Frommer's Review
Until it was radically renovated in 2002 by a likable former resident of Wisconsin and Minnesota, Owen Smith, this boxy-looking, two-story cement building functioned as a battered and run-down boardinghouse that focused on cheap mattresses and cheap but bountiful meals for itinerant workers. Today, in far better-maintained premises, something of the same spirit still prevails, albeit in cleaner, more hip, and more convivial circumstances. Owen is a very hands-on manager, who, from the premises of a cottage in back, is always available for advice, counseling, or humor. There's the sense, on the building's ground floor, of something akin to a bohemian commune, thanks to the owner's friendly sense of informality, a tuck-away bar in one corner, a communal kitchen where residents are invited to prepare their own meals, a tiny "lending library" stocked with dog-eared paperback books, and a gift shop where some of Owen's artworks are on sale. Bedrooms are angular, tawny-colored units that evoke a summer beach hotel in Provincetown, Mass., or Fire Island, N.Y.: breezy and airy enclaves with simple but comfortable furniture and a sense of well-intentioned laissez-faire. Although any hotel on the island will genuinely welcome gay and lesbian clients, this is the guesthouse that does so the most visibly, attracting a clientele that, at least in high season, is about 50% gay. The establishment's social center is within a cement-walled courtyard, around a very small, L-shaped swimming pool sheathed in cerulean-blue tiles.
Facilities:
Small outdoor pool; courtyard garden/sun terrace; rooftop sun deck; communal kitchen; TV room; small gift boutique
Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without
notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before
planning your trip.
