Shaw House Inn - Ferndale, California

Denise V

Safe location with beautiful trees. Mattress was great and room was clean and quiet. Staff were very pleasant and food was very good. Only downside was the extremely steep flights of stairs partially without hand rail. This should be mentioned when booking. Understood after paying there is a room at higher price on first floor.

Alaina Zulli

We've stayed here twice, it's a great little place. The house is adorable. We love the yard, there are places to sit tucked away all over. There are also two cozy sitting rooms (one is a library, I guess) that are criminally underused.

Our bed in the Orchard room was like sleeping in a marshmallow. Definitely the softest, puffiest mattress I've ever slept on, if that's your thing you'll love this (it's not my thing, so I plan to ask which is their firmest mattress next time I book)

Their cook is excellent. She said she owns a farm but she cooks like a professional. Breakfast selection is modest but what there is is very tasty. Today she made a quiche and yesterday was berry bread pudding.

Donald S

Wonderful old Victorian home a few blocks from the business area of Ferndale. Easy to find the home on large grounds but how to enter was not well marked (missed the small 'Entrance' sign at the end of a white picket fence near the East end). When we approached the house, it was unclear where the 'Office' was until we noticed the smallish parking area to the right of the home. We took a short 'tour' of the downstairs when we arrived, and given our room key which also opened the front door. ||We stayed in the Shaw room which was up a steep stairway which had a 90 degree turn with stairs on the curve (no landing). The room was beautiful with elegantly vaulted ceiling over the bed. The attached bath with a claw-foot tub and an obviously non-period fiberglass shower had low ceilings on the sides and a single old sink. It was very warm when we checked in, so we opened the patio door and used the provided fan to cool it off. The small patio off the back of the room was slanted away from the house, so it did not feel comfortable to us. ||The facility had beautiful old shady trees in the front but was not inviting to visit (no tables or chairs in the front) which we felt was a waste. The concrete walkways were obviously old with extensive cracks. There is a community garden next door that features displays of native flowers and plants, which was wonderful.||We walked a few blocks to find one of the (few) restaurants in town which was a beer/wine bar with a Mexican restaurant next door. Reservations were required, which was a surprise, but they seated us outside on the sidewalk right away. ||The breakfast was served between 8:00 and 9:00 AM the next morning which was very nice: Fresh fruit, crustless quiche, juice and such..

Gillian J

Ferndale prides itself on being a Victorian town and Shaw House Inn definitely fits with this! |Pros: a lovely but cluttered house in a lovely garden, with tea and coffee and a fridge with juice/yoghurt always available, plenty of comfortable seating in communal rooms and a warm welcome. Cooked breakfast (no choice of menu) was good, with well spaced breakfast tables in every corner. |Cons: we felt the lighting in our room, and particularly the bathroom, was extending the Victorian theme too far, reminiscent of candlelight…

gerri r

We were greeted by the owner (everyone masked and distanced) and checked in. She showed us around the beautiful home and to our room and then we never saw her again (quite different from other B&Bs I've stayed at but understandable with Covid). Our room (the Garden Room) was cute and we had our own bathroom but it was down the hall - no problem but you had to remember to take the key with every visit. The breakfast was wonderful and delicious and the chef very sweet. This home is quite unique and the grounds are beautiful. I wish we could have stayed there another day. The only issue was the bedroom was cold. The window was permanently open a few inches with a fixed screen (probably from the summer season). I just hunkered down under the covers and slept fine. I would love to go back after all this Covid is done with.

Silvia Grassetti-Kruglikov

Stayed one night on our road trip. We stayed in the garden room which is a small room with two beds. Everything was adequate, but the room made both of us sneeze. Our bathroom was clean, and just for us, but down the hall. There was a nice breakfast. There were also some comfortable public spaces. There were several other guests, but most folks kept to themselves. It felt a bit like a night in a museum.

Ed L

The recent review sums this place up. This place is not what it appears. My wife and daughter booked the Victorian Inn having heard unpleasant things about the owner of Shaw and they had a wonderful stay there. We would never stay in the Shaw house again. You have to leave your bedroom to get to the washroom.||||A mean old woman runs this stuffy joint that deserves no more than 2 stars. The photos are very misleading to what the actual let down experience is. Would never come back here. Save your time and money and go elsewhere with better vibes and much better clean decor.

Carolyn Whipple

What a beautiful and neat historic place! The bed was super soft, the room was gorgeous. The chef had made us a delicious breakfast in the morning. The gardens around the house are beautiful and peaceful. It's close to historic little downtown. In addition to all of that, it's pet-friendly, and the proprietors could not have been more accommodating to my dog, providing her with her own towel to lie on and a few little treats!