Cowper Inn

Though there was room for one, there was no bathtub in our «private bathroom» and no mention of that detail in any description. Neither was there any mention of the renovations the Cowper Inn was undergoing until we arrived and were navigating the appliances and furniture stored on the front porch leading to the entryway. Our ground floor (basement) windows did not lock, and the doorknob to our room was located about a foot and a half from the floor. Full price was expected nevertheless upon check-​in.
We stayed here 10 years ago, and it was a lovely experience. This time, we were greeted with «Oh you must be *last name*»… and after we introduced ourselves, the host (owner?) never introduced himself nor did he ever welcome us. For $ 229 a night, we expect hospitality – and a bathtub. There were punitive warnings posted telling us what not to do and about what would happen to us if we didn’t return our keys.
Checking out, the same nameless representative was at the welcome area writing figures in a notebook – no hello, no thank you, no goodbye, no nothing, not a word.
We’ll cross off The Cowper Inn from our favorite places list.

A private bath that’s across the hall isn’t a private bath. If I have to use a key and put clothes on to go there, it’s not a private bath. If folks in three rooms can be outside the bathroom door while I’m showering, it isn’t private.
This place is awful. Dusty, poor housekeeping, musty. Avoid it.
And seriously, who thinks a bathroom is private if it’s across the hall? False advertising, big time.

This place has charm BUT not enough to recommend it over all of the sore points. 1) it is very poorly managed; 2) reservation screw-​ups are commonplace, which is not a small issue considering that some rooms have private baths and others do not; 3) avoid Room 24 at all costs! it is right above the laundry room and very noisy all morning long. It is hard to believe that they have the nerve to charge people to stay in what is no better than a maid’s room; 4) the front desk staff will actually lie to customers about the availability of rooms if they don’t feel like fixing a reservation they screwed up. They did this to my guest, telling her there were no other rooms available so they couldn’t give her the kind of room we had originally reserved for her. My husband called them 15 minutes later and was offered a nicer room immediately. Unbelievable. And it was clear that customer satisfaction was not a priority for them — they would rather get a bad review on Unilocal (as I promised I would do) than offer actual customer service and true hospitality. Too bad. It is such a nice location, but after our recent experience I would not stay there myself nor recommend it to anyone else.

This is the fifth year in a row we have come to The Cowper Inn for the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. I drive up from LA, and my other relatives come from different parts of the country to meet other relatives who live here. We’ve stayed in almost all of the rooms here in the main craftsman house, and some in the Victorian house next door.
I would never consider staying anywhere else. The owner /​manager Joji and her husband are like family to my family now. They are so accommodating and always go the extra mile to make sure our stay is superb. The breakfasts are gourmet quality, the rooms, some recently renovated, are clean, cozy and well decorated and there is plenty of parking in back of both houses.
We always look forward to coming back.

I have stayed at the Cowper Inn close to a dozen times over the last three years. Not only is the location incredibly close to downtown Palo Alto and an easy walk to Stanford, the Inn itself is charming. I happen to love Craftsman-​style architecture, and the inn is a lovely example of it dating back to somewhere around 1900. It’s also very well kept-​up, so the few reviews I’ve read that describe it as needing repairs or messy are not at all what I’ve experienced over many stays in several of the rooms. In fact, quite the opposite. The rooms are beautifully furnished and all the beds I’ve slept in have been very comfortable with spotless linens. The furnishings fit the Craftsman style of the inn – an antique feel without cloying cutesy-​ness.
The breakfast is all-​you-​can-​eat buffet style, with yogurt, granola, fruit, hot & cold cereals, breads & pastries, ham, and a hot entrée such as French toast, interesting scrambled eggs, etc. Excellent coffee, along with milk, juices, teas, etc. Everything is very nicely prepared and presented. I never leave hungry and have been known to get up and give myself three servings! No one looks askance. My only quibble is they don’t serve maple syrup (but then I’m from Vermont). Instead, however, they do serve a delicious agave syrup – a good substitute. The dining area is what used to be the living room and very pretty with lots of windows. As good a breakfast as you’ll find anywhere in Palo Alto, and in a nice setting to boot!
I have always received excellent service, although the staff is not always on-​site. I am a B&B traveler, and this is a B&B that I truly enjoy. I actually feel quite pampered staying here. Reasonable prices, especially given that this is Palo Alto. Also, it’s very quiet even though it’s only a few blocks from University Ave. Can’t imagine staying anywhere else when I’m in the Palo Alto area.

You can not beat the price for a location right in palo alto downtown one street over to university avenue, when they were full we had to stay at a chain hotel twice the price and not a walking distance to town. Great staff, polite, quite, accommodating, very customer oriented, very clean, comfortable beds, I will definitely stay here and only here when visiting. But be aware it is an old mansion, turn in to a bed and breakfast, no AC, some rooms share bathroom, wood floors may creek, don’t expect a modern new place. If you love antique, Victorian charm and being able to walk to down town, but quietly tucked away in a residential street, perfect.

I’m just finishing up a stay. Kind of like staying at your friend’s house, as long as she/​he is not Martha Stewart or a messy bachelor.
Positives include a great location — can walk to plenty of dining and nightlife, or if you run, the trails at the Arborteum at Stanford are not far. Plus 1. Breakfast was decent, but is staggered which means early birds (if 7:30 is early to you) have a limited selection. Rooms were okay — some dated furniture. Neutral. I was on east coast time and was working in the morning when I realized my room was filling with smoke. I popped the screen and saw Gary, the maintenance man, smoking near my window. Not cool. Negative 1. Wireless was good given my experiences at hotels in the area. +0.5.
Would I come back? Probably not as a business traveler, but would snag the carriage house with a family of 3 or 4.

We enjoyed our stay here. The breakfast was special but most importantly, the location made it possible for my wife and I to walk everywhere! We thought it was cute.

I loved this slice of antiquity. It was clean and welcoming, bright and sunny, and very comfortable. The manager, Joji, was gracious and helpful. Most of the staff stayed out of sight, but every time I met any of them they were friendly and helpful. Being in downtown was fun, and the immediate neighborhood around the Inn was nice too. The breakfast was superb! Organic local yogurt, freshly-​squeezed juice, homemade granola, and fresh fruit. I could have eaten that all day long!
I live in downtown Palo Alto now, but when I have friends come visit, I’ll be sure they stay there.

I stayed at the Cowper Inn a week ago and will come back again. The staff is very welcoming. This charming Inn is located a few blocks away from down town where I could walk and enjoy all the stores. The historical building is very comfortable and I like the breakfast in the morning served in the main room nicely decorated.

We stayed in the Victorian house of Cowper Inn in room 26. While the room is spacious and has a small alcove room with a single bed and the main room with the full bed, the inn itself is old and dusty and not cheap. (We paid a total of $ 184). Also it was very stuffy in the area with the large bed with no air conditioning with a loud noisy fan to cool the room.
Also we were trying to check in at 3 pm (check in can start at 2 pm) but we got a sign that said out to lunch. Why would you go on your errand or lunch when people are going to check in?
Anyway our friends were staying in the craftsman house next door and it was much much better — it actually was cooler more well kept, cleaner. It was like heaven and the other place. They even had soft short robes were as the Victorian looked liked something out of a scary movie.
At least they had good chocolate chip cookies and Aveda products.
If you stay here, make sure you stay in main house — the craftsman. I will not stay here again.

If you enjoy lumpy, urine soaked mattresses, broken televisions, inefficient staff who screw up your reservation and a consistently late continental breakfast that consists of boring coffee, stale bread and old grapefruits PLUS you enjoy paying through the nose, then this is the place for you! The charm of the craftsmen-​style décor can not make up for the lack of efficiency and deteriorating rooms with broken windows and heaters, etc.
The location is great but is if really worth it?

I have mixed feelings about this place. Great location and sweet atmosphere. The staff is friendly. However, my room had cockroaches. They are not always on top of their reservation system and cancellation policy is not clear (although clearly stated on their website). Breakfast, although organic, is not for people who are big breakfast eaters. My computer was unable to pick up the wireless network unless I held it up high above my head. Despite all that I had a good stay.

The Cowper Inn is a cute restored house that sits just a couple of blocks away from downtown Palo Alto. It is surrounded by beautiful trees and has a couple of porches to relax on. This is a great location for people who want to walk too downtown and want a more intimate setting than the big corporate hotels in town.