Harbor Light Inn

Top notch. Best place to stay in Marblehead by far. The rooms are awesome (a few need better ac or air flow but fixable flaw). This family run business cares and it shows in all they do. The breakfast is hot and varied and good. No the breakfast is not as gourmet as some small bed and breakfasts but this inn has like 25 rooms. The little cozy cordial bar is a highlite. Be nice if it had a hot tub but bet they get around to it. No elevator and tough stairs up if you have bad knees but just ask for a lower floor— cant do anything about that in such cozy historical properties. Location is great. Love it. Love it. I guaranty it!

We stayed here last fall, I agree in that its very over priced. For the price you would expect things to be a bit more updated. But breakfast and staff were lovely, great location. Just needs to be updated.

We stayed one night here as we were visiting friends in Marblehead for a party. Our room was clean and neat, we had a king sized bed that was comfy. A one night stay in January for this room was $ 199.00 (off season, New England a bit pricey) The staff is very accommodating and polite. We stopped in the bar area for a glass of wine and when I asked how long the bottle had been open for she said about 3 days. I asked if a new bottle could be opened and she said of course. Breakfast was offered in the morning, better than what you’d find at a Hampton Inn relative to presentation, the quality better as well but not outstanding. All in all our stay was fine.

I have absolutely no negative things to say about this place. In my 23 years on this earth, this remains one of the best hotel experiences that I have ever had. I’ve stayed here on two different occasions, both of which were during Halloween festivities in nearby Salem, and both experiences were nothing but pleasant.
It’s a bed and breakfast, so it’s very homey. It’s a really nice old estate that has a touch of sophistication and history without feeling outdated– it really made me feel like I was staying somewhere special. The woman behind the desk was super friendly and we spent a good hour talking to her about where we were from, our flight, and things like that. Anytime we came downstairs, she made a point to use our names and ask us how we were doing. It felt really personal, and it was nice.
Our room was clean and neat, and bigger than anticipated. The bathroom was awesome, and had a whirlpool in it, which was a nice surprise. There were also little goodie bags of Halloween candies on our pillows, which was just adorable.
Exploring this inn is neat, because there are tons of stairways that seem to go to a million places, not unlike Hogwarts. There’s a nice little business center with a computer and a printer. There’s a salon/​parlor area with plush seating and magazines and the like, perfect for socializing. There’s a pool, but it was October on the coast, so no swimming for me!
My favorite part of the hotel was the adorable little bar and dining area. It’s cozy and friendly in ambiance, and is decorated in a classy nautical theme. It was really nice to hang out there when we came home to have a drink or two. Breakfast was served in the little dining area, and that was all delicious too. It was so much better than chain hotel breakfasts, and that’s all the more reason to choose a smaller, more intimate inn like this one.
It’s within walking distance of downtown Marblehead, which is full of cute little stores and buildings that are full of American history. It was really neat to explore the area.
I really hope I get to come back here in the future, hopefully with my girlfriend for a romantic weekend instead of with family this time. I have nothing but fond memories, and I absolutely cannot recommend it enough.

What a wonderful romantic weekend getaway. Check-​in was easy and our room had so much character. The inn is centrally located, so we were able to walk to dinner, then go to a show we were attending. I thought breakfast the next morning was fantastic! They had a frittata, sausage, fresh fruit, pastries, cereal. I would definitely come back here again in a heartbeat!

Why oh why can some guests not close their bedroom doors quietly???
We stayed here for a night after flying in from then UK. Being fellow innkeepers we are aware of possible pitfalls when it comes to lodging, and the Harbor Light Inn presses many buttons in the right way.
What it has failed to do with the a/​c ducting in our room was preventing an echo chamber from the next door room.
We were soundly asleep when our ‘lively neighbours’ decided to return to their room at 23.45, and of course it was too much trouble to close the bedroom door quietly as they had 2 other friends in tow. The friends decided to catch up on their evening, with much chat and laughter, and after 15 minutes I decided to go and ask them to be quiet! They did apologise… but they still carried on chatting away and did we really need to know ALL about their evening, as they had spent the evening together!
The door of course needed to be opened again… and slammed again… and opened again… yup you’ve guessed it… slammed shut as 10 minutes later the friends decided to tell the whole landing that they would all meet up at 08,00 for breakfast. The remaining couple still couldn’t take their conversation down a notch or four… but thankfully after about 30 minutes they retired to bed and thankfully for us decided to not have some carnal thrusting.
So morning comes and the 08.00 meet up was completed again on time with a jolly slam of the bedroom door… and there they stayed for over 1 hour… so we decided to depart for some grub.
Apart from these clients who seemed unable to respect fellow guests, the inn was very pleasant, the king bed comfortable and central a/​c machinery quiet… the breakfast was a simple but tasty selection of hot or cold options and some daily newspapers were provided. The staff seemed interested in their rolls and the inn was clean and well kept and offered reasonable value in a central Marblehead location.
Would we go back… yes but we might enquire about staying in a different room or at least reminding fellow travellers that their lives at 23.30 are really something we would not hear about!

I know there are many «5» reviews but I just thought it was «ok». Clean, friendly and efficient staff, plenty of space to hang out whether the very small and cozy bar or comfortable living room with papers and magazines. These are all 5’s!
Nice location to walk to the water or to the center of the old district. Perfect locale
My hang up is for what I thought was pricey for a Bed & Breakfast and I always focus in on the breakfast, the breakfast was just «ok». The eggs based center piece had to many items in it both days were in there to enjoy for our tastes, the fruit selection looked from a grocery store as opposed to a farmers market and the breads off the same grocery store shelves, when down the road this little deli had some great local baked breads with great flavor. I guess I wanted to be wow’ed and I was just, well, hungry. One night I smelled the wonderful aroma of a pumpkin bread but when served the next day it could not have been more bland. was it a box recipe. Same with a carrot cake which was out for hours with the cream cheese frosting — just no real flavor.
I kept eyeing the daily special but after three days of the same special stew I became suspect.
Friends recommended the place and we were not disappointed– just not feeling a 4+ or a 5.

My mother and I stayed at the Harbor Light Inn recently over Halloween weekend on a birthday trip to Salem, Ma.
Marblehead is a beautiful little town just outside of Salem and I’m very glad we elected to stay outside Salem for our little Halloween trip.
The Inn is a gorgeous large old mansion that has been converted expertly into a high class Inn. It has parking around the back of the building and is located very close to several little shops and stores with nautical items as well as some very good restaurants.
The staff were so friendly. The Inn Manager, Susan, was amazing, we loved her. When my mother and arrived on the cold snowy night from Boston she provided us with excellent service at check-​in and coerced us into trying some of their food since we were already tired and didn’t really want to leave the inn to find something to eat after our flight and drive. I’m very glad we listened to her. We enjoyed the best Shrimp and Corn Chowder we’ve ever had by the fireplace in the main room.
Our room was beautiful and very clean with old charm. We had paid a little extra for a fireplace but sadly weren’t able to use it any of the three nights we stayed due to weather which was a large bummer for me but nothing to be done about that.
The food was excellent, the housekeeping staff cleaned our rooms daily and left cute little mints on the nightstand, staff helped us find local restaurants and walk around the confusing little streets, and the location was unbelievable.
As this is a true B&B breakfast is included. This included orange juice, fresh fruits, and various muffins and bread wares with jelly and butter. There was also always one homemade hot dish: french toast, some delicious egg and ham baked goodie that I went back for seconds of, and sausage or bacon.
While having a light lunch my mother and I had the opportunity to meet the owner who was very friendly and engaging and told us a little about the Inn and the town of Marblehead.
Overall, we had a blast in Salem and I think it was partly to do with our delight at our accommodations. You can tell that the owners take great pride in their business and the service they are providing to customers. While it was a little pricey, it was well worth every penny we paid. We greatly enjoyed our stay at the Inn and I will recommend it to anyone I know visiting Boston as well as try to visit Marblehead again for the 4^th of July as I hear there is a beautiful firework display at the harbor.

Good B&B to stay at — close into the Harbor and within easy walking distance to both local shops and the restaurants along Front Street (the harbor). Some rooms are small, but they are clean and well-​kept. Swimming pool with plenty of places to get a suntan, small but good bar, simple but good breakfast. Building kept up very well and in most areas WiFi is available at no cost. Stayed there early in June and it was good enough to draw me back for another day a few weeks later. Very helpful and friendly desk manager.