New Video from Romantic Inns of Savannah: The Savannah Way to Stay

SAVANNAH, Georgia (April 29, 2013) -- In a town popular for its Savannah Film Festival and Hollywood movie making, it is no surprise that standout bed and breakfasts now turn the spotlight to themselves. In The Savannah Way to Stay the Romantic Inns of Savannah LLC highlights an important, yet overlooked word that defines their generosity -- complimentary.

"What a delight to be pampered in so many unexpected ways," announces Jim Carswell of Spyhop Productions, who produced and narrates the video. The association of privately owned Savannah bed and breakfasts in the National Landmark Historic District commissioned the USA travel video.

In just under two minutes the branded content emphasizes the high value and charm found in a dozen family owned and operated B&Bs. "Complimentary is a centric common denominator, important to each innkeeper and to each of our guests," says Jackie Heinz, volunteer chair of the association's marketing committee and owner of Zeigler House Inn. Each innkeeper chooses his/her own unique combination of complimentary offerings to be included in their lodging rate.

In southern, genteel ways the adjective "complimentary" is seen on-screen but never mentioned. Kudos go to the objectivity of Mari Carswell of Spyhop Productions, who pinpointed "complimentary" as the simple, memorable differentiator.

Complimentary Sweetens (or de-salts) the Deal
Business travelers estimate the value of the Romantic Inns' "complimentary" offerings would be an additional $75-$125 surcharge (nightly) at a national brand hotel. Especially for travelers with special diets, the complimentary home cooking is a extraordinarily welcome treat. It can be the deal maker, sweetening (or de-salting, de-wheating, de-lactosing) the enticement of B&B lodging in Savannah, Georgia USA.

No doorpost banners or street-side signs announce the long list of complimentary products and services at these historic lodging establishments -- each one tucked into prestigious residential neighborhoods of the National Landmark Historic District. "That would be tacky and provoke our neighbors to wag fingers, justly. Savannah's historic district guidelines won't permit it," adds Jackie.

Behind the Scenes: The By Words Are Local and Person-to-Person
"Innkeepers are connoisseurs of the arts, cuisine, literature, and well informed about what is extraordinary to do and see in and near Savannah. We wear a hat that once belonged to the fee-charging travel agent," adds Diane McCray, co-owner of Green Palm Inn, treasurer of the association and marketing committee member. "We will set up reservations to the area's top dining spots, arrange travel for sightseeing, set appointments for antique shopping, and pre-purchase special event tickets. Talking personally to a knowledgeable innkeeper is optimal efficiency."

There are more personal touches behind the scenes. "Like visiting your grandmother who insists on preparing her family's prized recipes, we are the cooks too, serving deliciousness, minus an a la carte pricing chart. Most inn owners are in the kitchen cooking personally, daily," states Diane. Before heading to the kitchen she, like most of her colleagues, has been to the grocer that carries favored brands and to the day-boat seafood dock. "On farmers' market days the innkeepers are there as well, hand selecting what guests will enjoy," she adds.

First introduced through social media -- Twitter, Facebook and the blog stream -- "The Savannah Way to Stay" video will be accessible on RomanticInnsofSavannah.com; BetterWaytoStay.com, a Professional Association of Innkeepers International (PAII) campaign; and on YouTube.com/RomanticInns.

"From this day forward our Savannah, Georgia tourism messages will include a lot more of this sweet adjective -- complimentary. No more of the Scarlett O'Hara approach of thinking about that tomorrow," concludes Jackie Heinz.

ABOUT ROMANTIC INNS OF SAVANNAH
A collective marketing association of family--owned historic home inns (circa 1855-1898), Romantic Inns of Savannah LLC interprets and romanticizes southern hospitality a dozen different ways in Savannah, Georgia USA -- renown as North America's most beautiful city. Let Savannah Romance You!™ is the invitation from the non-profit organization. Situated along the southeast Atlantic Ocean coast, Savannah's National Landmark Historic District (2.5 miles) is home to the city's smallest restored home inns -- private carriage houses to 16-room European-style town homes -- that dot the prestigious, quiet residential neighborhoods. Elite among America's original 13 colonies, Savannah, Georgia is prized for its southern traditions and architecture that survived the American Civil War (1861-1865), urban and coastal landscapes, the arts, and international commerce. For more information -- romanticinnsofsavannah.com, Twitter @RomanticInns, and Facebook. Press Contact: Sandy Traub, straub@spatior.com

Copyright 2013 Romantic Inns of Savannah LLC

Memorial Day Weekend in Savannah, Georgia 2013

SAVANNAH Georgia (April 10, 2013) – Formerly known as Decoration Day, Memorial Day originated after the American Civil War to commemorate the Union and Confederate soldiers who died in the war.

Entrance to old Fort Jackson on the Savannah River.

In an address delivered for Memorial Day on May 30, 1884, Oliver Windell Holmes spoke that “life is a profound and passionate thing” and of “youth they lent the passion and joy of the spring”.

"Life is action and passion.” – Oliver Windell Holmes

For a long holiday weekend in Savannah, Romantic Inns of Savannah innkeepers will help you to celebrate Memorial Day – the day in late May that typically marks the start of the summer vacation season. Labor Day marks its end.

We invite you to get away for gentle climates and quiet, patriotic days and nights in Savannah. Enthusiastically, we look forward to welcoming you to our Romantic Inns in Savannah on your next road trip to the Georgia Coast!

Monday, May 27, 2013 - Memorial Day in Savannah, Georgia USA

Especially in Savannah’s beautiful springtime one does not need events. The city itself is a spectacular destination worth the trip and worth the anticipation to explore.

Memorial Day is a patriotic holiday in the USA, a time for a long weekend to begin your summer vacation in Savannah, Georgia.

Memorial Day is a respectful time for tributes to the ultimate sacrifices by soldiers. For nearly 300 years and today Savannah maintains an idyllic, southern way of life because of brave soldiers and wise civic leaders.

Recommendations from our innkeepers embrace Savannah’s unique places and southern style. Famous places include garden-park cemeteries -- Colonial Cemetery downtown, Bonaventure Cemetery on the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, and Laurel Grove Cemetery where over 600 Confederates from the Battle of Gettysburg are buried.

• On tours of mansion museums in our fair city, you’ll come to appreciate architecture and lifestyles that survived the Civil War.
• On a walk down the Bull Street corridor, visitors will take photographs in Savannah’s famous squares that highlight monuments dedicated to fallen heroes.
• On a walk along the Savannah River riverfront and bluff tourists will see the World War II Memorial, and Vietnam War Memorial.
• Colonial and 19th Century forts – Fort Jackson and Fort Pulaski -- are spots you don’t want to miss.

Events Memorial Day Weekend --

• May 23 – 26, 2013 - Tony Award-winning Best Musical, "Urinetown" at Lucas Theatre
• Saturday, May 25, 2013 - “The Savannah Mile” (run benefits line-of-duty tragedy survivors)
• Saturday, May 25, 2013 – “Savannah Live” (8 p.m.)at historic Savannah Theatre.
• Sunday, May 26, 2013 (1 – 3 p.m.) - War of Jenkins' Ear at Wormsloe State Park
• Sunday, May 26, 2013 – “Jukebox Journey” (3 p.m.) at historic Savannah Theatre

Historically, Savannah’s slow-talking passionates offer refreshing welcome, goods, and services.

Located in Madison Square, downtown Savannah, patriotic monument to Sgt. William Jasper, hero in the American Revolutionary War, Battle of Savannah

During the 1700s, early colonists built a “Strangers House” in Savannah on Johnson Square. Yet, today the tales of ‘life and passion’ are daily episodes, like the arrival of strangers and returning friends into our historic Savannah inns. For over a century grand homes and colonial cottages have played important roles of ‘life and passion’ in the Hostess City of the South.

You will recognize more local names that we share with you in our chat here about ‘the passionates’ in Savannah, Georgia.

The headline from GastroTraveling is “Savannah Bee Company Passionate About Honey”. The local artisan honey is at the core of a modern-day, home-spun Savannah small business that has gained a chic-crowd following and now-famous praise. Besides that, the honey is delicious and the founder so passionate to deliver excellence!

Fleet Feet Sports -- the tireless sponsors of running events in the Savannah Area – posts this question on its web site: “Are you passionate about running and fitness?” Fleet Feet is a primary sponsor of running events year around, including the “The Savannah Mile” on Memorial Day weekend (May 25, 2013), and the Rock N Roll Marathon (November 9, 2013).

Of Flannery O’Connor’s Childhood Home, one TripAdvisor.com reviewer from North Carolina writes of his experience at the Pulitzer® prize writer’s home: “Absorbing story of a passionate girl. We absorbed vignettes of her child life on Lafayette Square and caught glimpses of the spirited, assured youngster, who would spell as she chose and not as directed! A true sense of caring for her memories is rolled up in the house restoration, which presents a resemblance of the O'Connor's 1930's decor and furnishings. The museum volunteers, staff, and donors earn our thanks for preserving and showing off the plain texture and style of this bygone era.”

Of the Black History Tour another TripAdvisor.com reviewer writes, “History Brought to Life Through Passionate and Gifted Story-Telling”. One stop on the tour is the First African Baptist Church, built by God-loving slaves. During the 1800s church patrons passionately hosted an important hub of freedom seekers, those traveling along the Underground Railroad during the American Civil War.

There is no need to wait only for Memorial Day.

The passionate spirit of the Romantic Inns of Savannah is stated gently in our tagline – Let Savannah Romance You!™ Be assured that guests staying under our roofs will spend their pleasantest days here, whether slumberous or excursion packed. Our innkeepers are among the doting passionates, too. Yes, the synonyms apply -- excitable, emotional, impulsive, and zealous.

‘The passionates’ and the homes of Romantic Inns of Savannah are like Savannah herself -- always dressed and ready for company. Just ask. We’ll even rustle up a picnic ‘dinner on the ground’* for you!

Of Memorial Day Wikipedia describes: “People gather on the designated day and put flowers on graves and renew contacts with kinfolk and others. There often is a religious service and a ‘dinner on the ground’*, the traditional term for a potluck meal in which people used to spread the dishes out on sheets or tablecloths on the grass. It is believed that this practice began before the American Civil War and thus may reflect the real origin of the ‘memorial day’ idea. Source: Memorial Day, Wikipedia 

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Copyright (c) 2013 Romantic Inns of Savannah / Sandy Traub

Romantic Savannah through the Decades: Tales of the 1920s

SAVANNAH Georgia (March 22, 2013) – Stories of Savannah in the 1920s are of romantic places and ideals, romantic adventurers and rascals, romantic movies and debonair villains, West Broad Street jazz and blues, and Frogtown’s soulful folk lore of haint blue door posts and the conjures of root doctors.

Christ Church (ca. 1920) where Johnny Mercer was a choir boy. On Johnson Square, it is a venue for the Savannah Music Festival (March 20- April 6, 2013)  Photo: Library of Congress.

Romantic Inns of Savannah is pleased to share a few of the dear stories, plus ideas for things to do and spots to visit in Georgia's First City.

Savannah’s population was 83,252 in 1920.  “In the 1920s, the ‘Jazz Age’ business flourished in Savannah, as it did in the rest of the nation,” we read in the City of Savannah tour guide manual. 

A Society for the Preservation of the Parks was organized in 1921 and continued to battle against the destruction of city squares through World War II.  Fort Pulaski National Monument, named after Revolutionary War hero General Casimir Pulaski, was first established in October of 1924 by order of U.S. President Calvin Coolidge.   

Born in 1925, Southern Gothic writer Flannery O’Connor (1925-1964) became the three-time winner of the O. Henry Award and posthumous winner of the National Book Award for Fiction for The Complete Stories. She was born in St. Joseph’s Hospital, at the time located at Taylor and Habersham streets overlooking Whitfield Square.  Her family home still overlooks Lafayette Square.

On March 23, 2013 (3 p.m.) at the Flannery O’Connor Childhood Home and on Lafayette Square the Flannery O’Connor Foundation celebrates her birth at the Flannery O'Connor Homemade Parade and Garden Party.  Visitors can shop for unique books and gifts and also wander in the garden where a six-year old O’Connor famously taught her chicken to walk backwards.

James P. Houlihan Bridge, the swinging bridge on Highway 17 and Highway 25. Still in operation (now ALT Hwy 17), for decades this was THE bridge between South Carolina into Georgia to reach Savannah.

In 1927, the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge was officially established.

Located along and just across the Savannah River into South Carolina, one would drive across the Houlihan Bridge (photo left, still in operation) to reach the wildlife refuge, a popular spot today for nature photographers.

The city’s first radio station, WTOC, began broadcasting in 1929.  Reading the slang of that romantic era, it is easier to envision the liveliness heard spoken on the radio, in the music, and chatter in Savannah during the 1920s -- “And how!” (I strongly agree) or “Bank’s closed” (no kissing or making out).  

During the romantic era of the Roaring Twenties, it was in Tin Pan Alley -- the music industry in New York, located between 48th and 52nd street – where Savannah’s own Johnny Mercer set out in 1928 when he was 19 to begin his now famously successful career in music.  If you don't know the name think "Moon River,", "Days of Wine and Roses", and "Two of a Kind" -- a Johnny Mercer Bobby Darien recording tapped by Apple for commercials in 2012 comparing the iPad and iPad mini. 

Moon Travel Guides writes of Johnny, “who began his theater career locally in the Town Theater Group”. 

Today you’ll find Johnny Mercer’s bronze statue in Ellis Square, a marble bench to honor him in Johnson Square near Christ Church where he was a choir boy, and his family grave in Bonaventure Cemetery.  And, you can see, row and fish in “Moon River”, which runs by the family's summer home and ‘huckleberry friend’ coastal playground of little Johnny Mercer.

Once upon a time the world was sweeter than we knew. Everything was ours; how happy we were then, but then once upon a time never comes again.  ~ Johnny Mercer (November 18, 1909 - June 25, 1976)

In 2009 for the Johnny Mercer Centennial, Carol Stalvey  wrote A Day at Massie School in the 1920’s: Johnny Mercer's Elementary School in Savannah, Georgia. It gives insights into the child’s school life at Massie School. 

Now open to the public as Massie Heritage Center: Savannah’s Museum for History and Architecture, Massie School on Calhoun Square opened in 1856 as Savannah's first free public school, operating continuously except for its use as a Union hospital during the Civil War. Extensive renovation were completed in 2013.

Tybee Island beach (ca. 1923), an era of oyster roasts, auto and turtle races on the beach. Photo: Library of Congress

The 1920s was an era of “boot leg” (illegal liquor) available in speakeasies (“juice joints”).  It was where one knocked on the door with a secret code to request entrance.

Today Mata Hari (Lower Factor's Walk near River Street) is a private club marketed as a speakeasy. 

In the State of Georgia archives of “Vanishing Georgia” we discovered  a 1920’s photos -- a Savannah policemen and his horse on Oglethorpe Avenue, Kingnut butter display at Chatham County Fair, and Interior of the Citizens and Southern Bank (now Bank of America) located on Johnson Square at Bull and St. Julian Streets.  

Sixth Sense Savannah haunted tours points to a 1920s photo of the root doctor’s house.  Surely there are tales of voodoo and herbal conjures in the folk lore – the tales of Savannah’s Frogtown!  A search of “1920s Savannah” in Google gives us a scrapbook of images, each sure to have character-rich southern stories.

We even stumbled across 1920s Era Entertainment for hire in Savannah today.  

Screen capture from "Stolen Moments". Statuary formerly at Greenwich Plantation is on display at Telfair Museum in Savannah, Georgia USA.  Photo courtesy: FlickrAlley.com

Silent era movies were made in Savannah. The yet-to-be-mega-star and “Latin Lover” of the silent movies, Rudolph Valentino stared in Stolen Moments, principally filmed “at a Savannah mansion on Greenwich Plantation.  Reportedly it rivaled Biltmore House in Asheville, NC, in both size and architecture. Source: essanaytrading.com. 

It was an era when the pipe organ provided the movie score.  Movie photos and city-side Savannah location pictures are posted HERE. The US television premiere was on Turner Classic Movies on May 22, 2006.

Today when one drives to Greenwich Plantation it is Greenwich Cemetery you’ll discover, overlooking the beautiful Wilmington River. “Greenwich Plantation, with its manicured gardens of ancient statuary, exotic plant specimens, and an elegant white marble fountain, was once considered the most magnificent, privately owned estate in the entire South.” Source: City of Savannah, Municipal Cemeteries

From "Stolen Moments" silent movie, showing magnificent gardens and statuary at Greenwich Plantation (now Greenwich Cemetery) in Savannah, Georgia USA. Photo courtesy FlickrAlley.com

The magnificent Greenwich Plantation mansion was destroyed by fire in 1923 just a few years after the Stolen Moments filming.

More than a few of the plantation’s statuary now resides as part of the Telfair Museum collection, on indefinite loan from the City of Savannah.  Many are on display inside the Telfair Academy of Arts and Science, located on Telfair Square in downtown Savannah, Georgia USA. Needing repair, the elegant white marble fountain remains at the old plantation. It is seen in background in a scene with actress Marguerite Namara. 

Rudolph Valentino starred also in the American romantic drama, “Camille” (a silent movie released in 1921), the first movie to be shown in the  Lucas Theatre in downtown Savannah.  Camille was included in Time Magazine's All-Time 100 Movies in 2005. 

Now the Georgia State Railroad Museum, the Central of Georgia Railway: Savannah Repair Shops were designated a National Historic Landmark on June 2, 1978. Photo: Library of Congress (1926)

“Staying on the cutting edge of technology, the [Lucas] theater was the first building in Savannah to install air conditioning in 1923, making the balcony a welcome retreat during the sultry summers. The front row in the mezzanine became known as ‘lawyer's row’ after local businessmen began spending their lunch hours sleeping in the cool, comfortable balcony.” - Source: SCAD.edu/lucas

Today the beautifully restored Lucas Theatre is where, periodically, classic movies replay on the big screen and a continuing series of contemporary events literally light up the night. The vintage marquee announces the 2013 show-stoppers. Also, daily silent movies play on the screen at The Distillery craft brew pub and restaurant, just off Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. near the Savannah Visitor's Center.  

What an exciting era! In Savannah, one historical era builds on another. The City and her citizens keep the best and keep expanding upon it.  

As you can tell the 1920s are very much alive here. Stay tuned for more romanticizing in our Romantic Inns of Savannah story series -- “Savannah through the Decades”. 

Copyright (c) 2013 Sandy Traub.  

Romantic Inns Point to Georgia’s Scottish Heritage Honored in Savannah Scottish Games -- May 11, 2013

SAVANNAH Georgia (March 8, 2013) -- Scottish lineage has seeped and soaked into the Georgia populace the way the Ogeechee River saturates the Low Country swamps and sloughs. 

Piper Dana Wells leading Scottish wedding processional to Lafayette Square in the National Landmark Historic District. Photo (c) James Byous.

When you visit Savannah watch for Scots – diaspora that is, maybe a few directly from Old Scotland.  A kilted Scot here, bagpipes playing there. Scottish families have been in Georgia since the colony’s beginning years and made up a large percentage of the population even at that time. 

The innkeepers of Romantic Inns of Savannah issue a special invitation to ‘stay romantic’ when arriving for the 2013 Savannah Scottish Games and Kirkin of the Tartan at Independent Presbyterian Church. Lodge in one of a dozen of the history-rich charming inns, all located in the National Landmark Historic District.

Even the founder of the state, James Edward Oglethorpe has plaited lines of Scottish ancestry.  His father, General Sir Theophilus Oglethorpe was English… “to the bone” one might say.  But, his mother, Eleanor Wall, was Irish.  Her family has been touted by Georgia historians throughout the state’s history as being “related by marriage” to the house of Argyle in Scotland.  Eleanor’s maternal grandfather, Lord LaRoche of Tipperary, was more than just associated by marriage. 

Kirkin of the Tartan at Independent Presbyterian Church. Photo (c) James Byous.

Today by a study on the website Ancestry.com one can connect the family of the titled heirs, Lords LaRoche along a weaving, genealogical line that zigs and zags across the Erin landscape and over the Irish Sea to Scotland.  There it winds through Western Scottish Highlands and down through the Ayrshire Lowland’s, through grandfathers and grandmothers of historic mark, members of the clans of Campbell, Kennedy, Carrick and Stewart.  It then reveals that Eleanor and her Georgia founding son, James Edward Oglethorpe are direct descendants of Scottish hero-king, Robert the Bruce. 

Bruce, you may remember, was immortalized by Scottish poet Robert Burns over a century ago.  But more recently he was highlighted in Mel Gibson’s movie, Braveheart, when Scottish actor Angus Macfadyen punctuated the warrior-king’s historic call, “You have bled with Wallace! Now bleed with me!”  That’s Robert I, the Bruce.  He’s purported to have enunciated those words…, or at least something similar. Many of his descendants, Oglethorpe’s distant cousins, can be found living in and around Savannah, Georgia today -- seeped, soaked, saturated.

In 1733 the year of Georgia’s founding Oglethorpe created a defensive position a few miles upriver from Savannah.  In 1736 Patrick MacKay, John Cuthbert and George Dunbar, all Scottish Highland officers, made their homes in the swath of wilderness that was then called Joseph’s Town.  The location became Mulberry Grove Plantation.  Many years later it was there that Eli Whitney invented the Cotton Gin and changed the face of the South. Those Lowland Scot gentry, wanting an occasion to commemorate and the libation thus associated, created the “Scotch Club.”  St.Andrew’s Day, 1735 was their first time to celebrate. It is still celebrated annually. Always with a wee dram.

A few miles south, other Highland Scots settled New Inverness, the coastal city that is now called Darien, Georgia. John Mohr McIntosh was their Clan Chief. His family included son, General Lachlan McIntosh, nephew and Cherokee Chief William McIntosh and nephew George Troup who became Governor of the State of Georgia.  Oglethorpe accompanied the Scots on their voyage from Inverness, Scotland and upon arriving donned a kilt when he stepped from the boat.



Scottish Games at Fort Jackson. Photo (c) James Byous.



Savannah has its own Scottish Games each May, always on the same weekend as Mother’s Day. 

Appropriate, one would suppose, since old Scottish lineage was passed equally from either the father or the mother’s ancestry. The games have changed locations over the years but now meet at the historic site of the Bethesda Academy (formerly known as Bethesda Home for Boys) a few miles outside of Savannah. The tree-lined green has ample room for caber tossing and rock chucking.

Scottish games were once a test for personal fitness and endurance, “for king and chief, for skill and strength,” it was said.  As did the Greeks in ancient times, the clans of Scotland gathered the best and strongest through competition.  The winning honor was to be selected as warrior protector of their region – so states tradition. 

Today, in Savannah and across North America, games are for fun, friends and family.  On Games Day everyone is Scottish.  If you’re in town this May 11, 2013, stop in and watch the big guys toss telephone poles.  Bring your mom.  She may want to chuck the Clachneart [“Stone of Strength”].

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Romantic Inns of Savannah wish to thank our guest blogger James Byous. A Savannah, Georgia resident, Jim holds a BA in Journalism and an MA in History. He is a photographer and writer who resides on the Internet at AATRPublishing.com and at JByousPhoto.com. Specializing in the history of his home city, he is currently working on a series of GPS history tours to bring Savannah history to life by taking history lovers to the exact Google Earth locations where history was made.

 

Romancing Our Guests: May Our House Always Be Too Small To Hold All Of Our Friends. – Irish Blessing

(c) Whitaker-Huntingdon Inn.

SAVANNAH Georgia (February 24, 2013) -- Recently we asked our Romantic Inns of Savannah innkeepers to share ways that each inn romances its guests.

We've omitted names in this post to share how Bill Saxman from Whitaker-Huntingdon Inn’s translates ‘romancing our guests’. His is a heartfelt example of extraordinary hospitality that began in 1995 and continues in 2013.   

“I don’t look at it as romancing. I just look at it as a way to treat guests staying in our home,” Bill begins.

“We try to make them feel at home and welcome them as we would a good friend or even as an extended family member, to the degree possible. In so doing we want to do our best to help them enjoy and experience Savannah. We do that by assisting them find or do what they express that they want to see and do during their visit. We also try to introduce them to something unique that they may not know about, something we feel that they may enjoy.

“For example, last week we received an e-mail for a previous guest and his wife wanting to know if we had three dates in March 2013 for a return visit with us. He stated that he thought that they were one of the first guests to stay with us when we opened the Whitaker-Huntingdon Inn in March of 1995. I had remembered that a third couple flew in from California (where he was working) and she flew in from Washington State (where they lived). He was coming to a convention and she was flying in to meet him in Savannah. The first two couples were from the northeastern and southeastern parts of the USA, respectfully.

“Debbie and I took that week's bookings as a positive "outlook" for our small new business, especially since the first three couples came from all four corners of the United States. I looked up our first guest book and he was correct about their first stay. So I was able to know which room they had stayed in during that visit by their nice note in the guestbook. 

“I replied back to him that we did have the same unit he stayed in before available during the nights he requested and that if he could stay a fourth night, we had it available, between our other bookings. He responded that they would like to stay the extra night and asked if I knew a 'Polly' [the lady’s name is changed for this blog], that he went to college with in the 1970's. He understood she had moved to Savannah and gotten married to a city planner, but that he did not know the man's name.

“Since I was an urban planner for the local planning commission for almost 40 years and he remembered that fact, he thought that I may have an idea who the man may be. I wrote back that I did not know of anyone at that time who could be that couple; but, I would try to find out who he was, since I had worked with or knew most of the planners that had worked in the city over the past few decades.

 “I then called a good friend that I had worked with and we compared notes and came up with a possible candidate. He was not employed as a planner, but we knew he had a degree in planning and could be the one she married since his wife was also named 'Polly'. Upon contacting our guest again with a name and some information about this person's work background he wrote back the following note:

"Yes, yes, yes! That's him & her!!!! Is there any way to get a phone number or an email?  Thanks a bunch!"

I checked the phone book and found their address and phone number and sent them off to him and he wrote back:  “I've already composed a letter to [Savannah area couple] that will go out on Monday. Thanks for the zip code verification."

I replied: "Glad we could find out who 'Polly' married and come up with an address and phone number for you. Let us know if we can do anything else and we will be glad to comply, if possible. It is 66 degrees and sunny here and the park is full of people. The local Saturday morning farmers produce market has started up again on the south end of the park, after being closed for over a month. They sell a lot of organic foods and are very popular with the local citizens and chefs. - Bill and Debbie"

He replied: “Your weather sounds great. Here it's currently 28 and our snow pack has reduced to 15. It is clearing and should be a fine day. Our local farmer's markets, which we also patronize, are months in the offing. We wonder if, while we're in Savannah, we could take you two out to dinner? Pick somewhere nice, eh? Maybe somewhere off the beaten tourist path with local cuisine.  I meant to mention that, in general, we eat anything for breakfast. No dietary restrictions."

Debbie and I are currently trying to suggest a good local restaurant that we think they will enjoy. We're eager to catch up on each other’s retirements and general interest over the past 16 years.”

May our house always be too small to hold all of our friends. – Irish Blessing
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Copyright © 2013 Romantic Inns of Savannah / Bill Saxman

Introducing Savannah Romantic Inns’ Unique Points of View: National Savannah Landmark District

SAVANNAH, Georgia (February 10, 2013) – The wonder and romance of Savannah are legendary. Travel writers, guidebooks, and news often tout Savannah’s charm and point to the southern hospitality found in the historic city’s bed and breakfasts.

“It was the wise Helen Keller who stated, ‘The best and most beautiful things in this world cannot be seen or even heard, but must be felt with the heart’. Savannah’s beauty is love at first sight. When travelers want more than a drive by tour, plus a bed and shower, we are here!” states Jackie Heinz, spokesperson for Romantic Inns of Savannah, and owner of Zeigler House Inn.

St. Patrick's Day. Photo (c) Bruce Tuten

"To revel in the heart of this historic city – to fully discover Savannah by heart -- travelers should and can get beyond the outside views of historic homes, into the heart of city life and into our lovable old inns,” Jackie adds.

The Association of Romantic Inns of Savannah wants more city visitors to discover the quiet small inns nestled in the National Landmark Historic District. “Our bed and breakfast guests become the extended marketers for the Savannah experience,” the sweet-tempered innkeeper insists.

The Romantic Inns are lovingly restored vintage homes nestled into picture-perfect residential neighborhoods downtown. Soft adventure travelers meet up in the inns’ home-like settings while they learn and explore more of Savannah’s secrets. Couples choose Savannah for a romantic weekend, eager to learn from the friendly insiders. Executives wanting a break from glass and steel love a home cooked meal.

From the noble cottages and stately homes, collectively, the innkeepers’ live up to the organization’s tag line -- Let Savannah Romance You. TM

These brief introductions only scratch the surface of 'let me count the ways'. They just may win over even the naysayer for a first-time bed and breakfast stay in Savannah.

Whitaker Huntington Inn and Forsyth Park Inn overlook downtown Savannah’s grand park, Forsyth Park.  Imagine strolling in the crossing sidewalks and stepping right into big events, like the greening of the fountain for St. Patrick’s Day festivities in March, and Savannah Jazz Festival in October.

Located on tree-canopied and mannerly Jones Street, Zeigler House Inn signals guests how to be first in line for Mrs. Wilkes boarding house lunch (4 houses from the inn). “Movie fans can visit film locations nearby, including Something to Talk About, and Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil,” she adds.

The 1895 Inn on Oglethorpe Avenue (originally South Broad Street) is consistently rated #1 among Savannah B&Bs on TripAdvisor.com.  Ideally located, the inn is steps away from the homes of Pulitzer Prize winning poet Conrad Aiken, the in-town Colonial Cemetery, and historic theatres.

Just east of Forsyth Park, two inns open their private pools in early spring -- McMillan Inn and Amethyst Inn at Sarah’s Garden (family friendly). The city’s central park was Mercer’s playground, and still the spot for bandstand events, Savannah Jazz Festival, and movies on the green. From Olde Savannah Inn

Catherine Ward House  you’ll be within a block or two stroll from the picturesque park for beautiful photos under the Live Oak tree canopies and at Savannah’s iconic French fountain. Hum one of Johnny Mercer’s lyrics while you roam -- Moon River, Days of Wine and Roses, and Ac-cent-chu-ate the Positive.  

More iconic images of Savannah are the garden squares. Balconies overlook the namesake square of Georgia’s founder at Presidents’ Quarters Inn, voted “Best Savannah Inn” by Savannah Magazine readers for five years.  On Oglethorpe Square the inn’s neighbor is Owens-Thomas House considered by architectural historians to be one of the finest examples of English Regency architecture in America, plus and authentic slave quarters.  

Once seamen cottages, the cozy Green Palm Inn is just off Greene Square in a village-like setting, popular for small weddings on the green.  Of all the Romantic Inns it is nearest the Savannah River front -- considered the best kept secret for a sunrise run and great spot for a sunset walk downtown.

For the best of self-contained lodging, Savannah Villas bring travelers to beautiful lodging places on time-honored streets – Liberty and Broughton -- near Leopold’s Ice Cream (named among top-ten in the world). A catered breakfast and fresh baked treats from local artisans are delivered daily to the much-sought-after historic homes of Armstrong Cottages.  

"I live here. I work here. This summary makes me want to stay at each inn,” adds Diane McCray, co-owner of Green Palm Inn.  It is Whitaker-Huntingdon innkeeper, Bill Saxman who extends a heartfelt invitation so well. “On your next visit, stay in one of the historic Romantic Inns of Savannah homes, and enjoy Savannah's true ambiance when you are not exploring Savannah's historic sites and districts.”

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Copyright © Romantic Inns of Savannah / Sandy Traub

Historic Military Sites In and Around Savannah

Photo from the GA Coastal Heritage Society

America's history is what has shaped her:  her freedoms, her laws, and her lessons.  Throughout her history, the military has played a large role in this development.  While Savannah suffered incidents of destruction, there are still historically significant military sights in existence today, and military buffs from all over the United States still come to take in the atmosphere, sights, and to remind themselves of lessons learned through our military events.

From her founding by British general James Edward Oglethorpe in 1733, to the British occupation during the American revolution, Civil War strife, and her ultimate survival of the blazing destruction that General William T. Sherman left in his wake on the way to our beautiful city, the city's past is both colorful and sometimes sad... but always interesting!  A sure bet for the start of your historic tour is Savannah's History Museum.  Here you can learn all about the different phases in the life here on the coast, and you can see a wide range of military artifacts including weapons, uniforms, and more.

Follow Savannah's history to Fort Jackson.  As the oldest brick fort still standing in the state, this fort was commissioned in 1808 by President Thomas Jefferson as a defense for our young country.  Located on an old Revolution battery site, the structure was initially finished in 1812, although later additions helped improve the Fort.  The Union Army captured Fort Jackson during the Civil War, and then fell into disuse after the War ended.

Fort Pulaski National Monument, located east of the city on Tybee Island, was completed in 1847.  This impressive structure features walls that are 11 feet thick and the traditional moat that was such a deterrent to attack at the time.  The fort was used by Confederate troops during the Civil War, but was overtaken after a long assault by Union troops using the then-new cannon artillery, causing a halt to shipping and prevented our city's prosper until the war ended.  The Fort was used as a prison, both during the Civil War, and during the years after.

The Fort McAllister State Historic Site in nearby Richmond Hill (10 miles south of the City's center) features  incredible earthworks created by the Confederates in 1861.  While the Fort was actively attacked by Union troops during the Civil War, much of the area has been preserved.  Besides its historic significance, the fort is set in some of the prettiest surroundings amongst live oaks on the banks of the Ogeechee River.

In the mid 1860's when General William T. Sherman occupied the city, he made his home (and headquarters) in the Green-Meldrim House on Macon Street here in the city.  While this beautiful abode is currently used as St. John's Episcopal Church's parish house, tours are given on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays throughout most of the year.

Finally, Fort Screven was built on the north end of Tybee Island in the late 1800s with the name Fort Tybee, as an additional defense for the country during the Spanish American War.  It remained an active military location through both World Wars.  The Fort was closed in the mid 1900s and was sold to Tybee as a historic site.

What better way to enjoy a military sightseeing getaway than to stay at one of Savannah's historic bed and breakfasts?  Each has an atmosphere guaranteed to set the perfect tone for your stay.  Feel at home with award-winning hospitality and amenities to rival area hotels; and let your senses revel in the timeless beauty of our gorgeous inns.