A few weeks ago Ben Miller, the author of the great new
Cape May history book called “First Resort”, dropped in for an
impromptu book signing at tea. It was great! Lots of our
guests were able to purchase his great new book and get it
personally signed by Ben. I’m not sure who enjoyed it more,
our guests or Ben.
There is something that you have to understand about Ben.
He is PASSIONATE about Cape May. Passionate in an infectious
way. As much as I already love Cape May, I get even more
excited about it when I talk to him. I’m telling you this so
that you’ll understand why “First Resort” is a MUST HAVE book
for anybody who loves Cape May. He somehow corraled all of his
passion for Cape May along with his wonderful writing style
into 300 pages of amazing photos and great stories that you’ll
have trouble putting down.
Of course I suggest you buy
a copy for yourself, but you might want to think a little
bigger in this case. Isn’t Christmas coming up? Aren’t you
always struggling to come up with a great gift for your loved
one who loves Cape May? I don’t think I have to connect the
dots for you here. You already know that this is the perfect
gift idea!
So you missed the signing party, and you’re
thinking that a signed copy would have been perfect. No
problem. Ben has volunteered to personally sign a copy and
ship it to any of our guests that need to get a copy (or two).
Of course, we’d love to have you book a couple of nights at
The Queen Victoria and purchase a copy in our gift shop (also
signed), but if you can’t make it down, you can get it
delivered to your door for an extra $8. Even with shipping it
comes to only $40 for NJ residents and $37.95 if shipped out
of state. Believe me, this book would be a bargain at $50.
Call us or reply to this email to order your copy.
You’ll be happy you did.
A New
Investment Strategy
Well, judging from conversations I’ve had with LOTS of
guests from all over, it sounds like the worst of this
recession is behind us. In fact, I’m hearing encouraging
things about many industries & regions. Unfortunately, the
one thing that still looks pretty bad are the pathetic
interest rates that banks are paying. The interest rates they
charge seem to be going up, but the rates on deposits are
going the other way. I guess the good news is they really
can’t go any lower. If you’re as disgusted by this phenomenon
as I am I have a suggestion for you … Take More Vacations at
The Queen Victoria.
Sure it is counter intuitive, but booking a reservation at
the Queen Victoria can yield you in excess of 16%. Who else is
offering you this kind of return? Seriously, you can’t afford
not to take a vacation. Even better, it is tax free!
OK, so now I have to explain how this works to you. It
is called the “Early Bird” discount, for reservations made one
year in advance. I’ll give you an example. Say you (yes you!)
book a reservation for next August or September in a room that
is $250/night this year for 4 nights. We’ll give you the same
rate for next year, saving you $5/night. Next, we’ll give you
a 5% discount, saving you another $50. That totals $70 in
discounts, which actually is worth $79.80 when you consider
the savings in taxes. We ask for a deposit of $475 (50% of the
discounted room charges). So you “deposit” $475 and get a tax
free “return” (discount) of $79.80. That is a 16.8% return!
Who needs a mutual fund? The best part, of course, is you also
have a vacation to look forward to.
Stay & Play
Package
We are once again pleased to mention our only early fall
package … the “Stay & Play”. Lots of you have taken
advantage of this great deal during your visits in past years.
If you love theatre and don’t know about this great deal, then
pay attention.
If you reserve a 4 night stay that includes a weekend, or a
3 night stay mid-week, any time that Cape May Stage is open
(May 20 – Dec 31) we’ll be pleased to present you with
complimentary tickets to Cape May Stage. This is a GREAT deal!
Tickets for a show are $35 each, so the value of the package
is about the equivalent of a dinner out (excluding
drinks).
Did you see “Social Security” during your recent visit with
us? It was GREAT. I didn’t meet anybody who didn’t love it.
That makes Cape May stage 4 for 4 this year, with each show
earning rave reviews from the press and audience alike. That
is why I’m SURE that their current production of “Visiting Mr.
Green” is sure to be a crowd pleaser.
We haven’t seen this show yet (it just opened last week),
but it sounds great. Several of our guests who saw it (doing
the Stay & Play!) really loved it. It appears to start out
as a kind of “Odd Couple” comedy with two people thrown
together who would rather not be together. As the play
progresses it morphs into a moving drama as they come to grow
close to one another. I’m looking forward to seeing it and I’m
sure you’ll want to make an evening of it as well on your
upcoming visit. “Visiting Mr. Green” runs through September
26th.
We were thrilled last year when The Queen Victoria was
awarded “Best Bed and Breakfast” in Cape May in the
Capemay.com reader’s choice survey. You can imagine how
excited Anna Marie and I are to have just been voted the “Best
of Cape May” in 4 different categories for 2009! We like to
think that we are the best, but we really have to thank all of
you who voted for us this year. I know that hundreds of you
responded to my email suggestion last month. THANK YOU so very
much for putting us over the top again!
So what are the categories? 1) Best Bed & Breakfast 2)
Best Accommodation Customer Service 3) Best Overall Customer
Service and 4) Best Victorian Building.
You may have
seen a copy of “Cape May Magazine” in your room during a
recent visit. Perhaps you purchased it in our gift shop. It is
a wonderful magazine, both in print and online. If you are
interested in subscribing for yourself and getting a little
taste of Cape May several times a year, just click on the link
below. Just think, if you subscribe you’ll know about the
contest even before I email about it!
I’m pleased to report that the QV is once again rated the
#1 bed and breakfast in Cape May on tripadvisor.com. Some of
you seem to watch this stuff pretty closely, so you may have
noticed that we slipped to #2 for a couple of weeks. Obviously
we’re thrilled to be back on top again. We got there and stay
there based on the reviews that you, our wonderful guests,
post for us, so I want to THANK YOU from the bottom of my
heart.
While I’m at it, I’ll thank you again for voting for us on
iloveinns.com and helping us receive the “Traveler’s Choice
for Romance” award a couple of months ago. We really
appreciate you taking the time to post these reviews about
us!
Upcoming Events
Cape May Wine Trail Trolley Tour Sep 27
Food & Wine Festival Sept 19-27
Victorian Week Oct 9 – 18
Cape May Wine Festival Oct 10,11
Halloween in Cape May Oct 16-31
Cape May Wine Trail Trolley Tour Oct 16
Sherlock Holmes Murder Mystery weekend Nov 6- 8
Cape May Jazz Festival Nov 6-8
Christmas Preview Weekend Nov 20-21
Wine Weekend (Wine School) Nov 21-22
Thanksgiving Nov 25-26
Dickens Extravaganza Dec 6-8
Christmas in Cape May Nov 20 thru Dec 31
Christmas at The Queen Victoria Dec 24-25
You would think that living at the beach, the summer would be
Anna Marie’s and my favorite season. We do love summer and the
beach, but I must admit that September/October are our favorite
months. Shocking, I’m sure.
So what makes us love it so
much? Well first of all, the crowds are gone and everybody is just a
little more laid back (I love that). The weather is beautiful, the
humidity is gone, the beach is wide open, the ocean temps peak at
around 80 degrees, all the great restaurants are still open, and
they’re easy to get into… It’s ALL GOOD. From a travelers
perspective there are additional bonuses. First of all, our rates
are lower (I’m not quite as thrilled about this as you probably are,
but that’s OK). Parking is also much easier, as there are fewer
people in town to take up our parking spaces.
Lots of you
have already discovered this gem of a season and make your annual
visit to The Queen Victoria now. For those of you that haven’t, you
don’t know what you are missing! I’m not trying to talk you out of
visiting us in the Summer, but if you haven’t had your annual
vacation yet (or even if you have) and you really want a relaxing
break from the real world, this might be a great time to visit us.
There are some wonderful events coming up including the “Food &
Wine Fest”, “Victorian Week”, and the “NJ Wine Growers Cape May Wine
Festival” (Anna Marie and I really love this last one!).
What are you waiting for? Come enjoy the best that Cape May
has to offer this Fall! Give us a call today.
Another great photo of Prince Albert Hall.
We’re
now selling matted prints of this picture in our gift shop.
Featured “Room
of the Month” … Lilly Langtry
Looking for a great room for your next visit? Check out
Lilly Langtry. Most the ladies I talk to LOVE this room. It is
a very pretty standard room on the 2nd floor of the Queen
Victoria building. With its big, bright bathroom, pretty, bold
floral print, and beautiful antique furniture, there is a lot
to love about this room.
Lilly is a very cozy room, and it happens to be one of our
least expensive rooms as well. This room seems to be
particularly popular with our female guests who are traveling
alone. It makes sense. Lilly is such a pretty and cozy room.
Whether you’re a woman traveling alone, or a gentleman
who wants to treat your sweetheart to a very pretty room, keep
Lilly Langtry in mind for your next visit to The Queen
Victoria.
No, I’m not joking! Think about it, no matter how reluctant
we are to let go of summer, Christmas is just around the
corner. In another 2 months or so, this is what The Queen
Victoria will be looking like.
Every single day one of you asks about Christmas, so I know
that LOTS of you harbor a desire to see Cape May at Christmas.
There really isn’t anything like it. You have to experience it
yourself. Christmas starts early in Cape May too! Our
“Christmas Preview Weekend” is November 20th this year.
So why am I telling you about this? Simple. If you’re
thinking about coming to visit us this Christmas, you’ll want
to start making your plans soon. We’ve been taking lots of
reservations for the Christmas season in the last few weeks,
and you don’t want to miss out on your chance to experience
Christmas at The Queen Victoria.
2009 Cape May
Designer Show House
I’m pleased to report that the 2009 Cape May Designer Show
House is open and pleasing everyone who crosses the threshold.
This year’s Show House is just a few steps from The Queen
Victoria, so it will be an excellent excursion for all of you
during your upcoming visit this fall/winter.
This year’s Show House is a little different than the ones
we’ve had in the past. This is truly the first Show House that
I would really want to live in. It is wonderfully done,
without going overboard. The house is much bigger than it
looks from the outside, and is a treat from the first moment
you step into it. With two Master Suites on the 2nd floor, it
is also a little different than many homes. I loved the
kitchen and the breakfast dining room especially.
You
won’t want to miss this year’s Designer Show House on your
next trip to The Queen Victoria.
Well, the continuing saga of our convention center …
continues (that is why it is a continuing saga). I’ve been
hearing a lot more about it in the news, however. Apparently
we do not yet have all the “CFRA” permits from the state of
New Jersey we need to start demolition, but they are close
(and the check is in the mail). It sounds like demolition is
likely to start in late Fall with construction commencing
shortly thereafter. The last I heard, completion is targeted
for Spring 2011.
Some interesting news, however is that the plans for the
restaurant have been enlarged to provide for more dining
space. It seems like Tishas is going to be moving into that
space, though I don’t know that for sure. It is also unclear
to me when and where the solarium will be moved to, if indeed
they are still planning on saving it. The big thing it has
going for it is that the building houses our public bathrooms
for our section of the beach, which makes it fairly important.
So all in all, there is not too much new to report
beyond gossip and rumors, but that obviously isn’t stopping
me.
Favorite Guest
Photos …
Last night we had a truly magical sunset, so I thought I
would feature a great sunset shot as my “favorite guest photo”
this time.
This photo was taken last summer by the Sheppards. One of
the funny things I always notice about sunset photos is just
how small the sun looks in the picture. I mean, it looks so
big when you look at it, but somehow the camera shrinks it
down. It’s just one of life’s mysteries, I
suppose.
Do you recognize this tower? If you’ve ever gone down to
Sunset Beach to watch the sunset, then you’ve probably driven
by Fire Control Tower #23 and wondered what it was. I often
pondered what it would be like to get inside the tower and
climb to the top. What a view from up there!
If you’ve ever had similar thoughts, then you’ll be pleased
to learn that this tower is now open to the public. Over the
last 2 years the Mid Atlantic Center for the Arts has been
restoring this WWII landmark and it has just opened it up to
the public this year.
A trip to the top of the tower
is a pleasurable experience, with lots of things to explore
and look at on the way up. There are several landings on the
way up which make the trip an easy one. Even my 80 year old
Dad with a bum hip had no trouble getting to the top. Once
there, you really do have a wonderful view of the Delaware Bay
and Cape May Point. It isn’t as high as the Cape May
lighthouse, but the views are just as spectacular. You can
almost imagine yourself as a young soldier during the war
looking out for German ships, ready to call in the firing
coordinates to the big guns located on the beach near the
lighthouse.
You’ll definitely want to plan a visit to
the tower on your next visit to The Queen
Victoria.
Serious About
Wine?
Are you serious about wine? Do you enjoy learning about
wine as much as you enjoy drinking it? Are you interested in
exploring and learning about wines from various regions of the
world? If you answered yes to any of these questions then
you’re going to want to come visit us this Nov 20-22.
Periodically the Washington Inn, in conjunction with Cape
May Winery, hosts a Cape May Wine Weekend. It kicks off with a
sumptuous 4-course dinner at the Washington Inn. Each course
will be paired with the perfect wine, of course. Saturday
you’ll enjoy a Tasting and Tour at Cape May Winery. On Sunday,
you’ll enjoy an afternoon exploring the wines of Chile &
Argentina at the Washington Inn.
Anna Marie and I got
really excited about this package and thought you might too!
In fact, we thought we would make it even more special by
creating a little mini package around it. Make your
reservation for that weekend, sign up for the package, and
we’ll also include a complimentary tasting at Hawk Haven
Winery, a free “wine tasting cheese platter” from Seaside
Cheese, and we’ll give you one of our beautiful Queen Victoria
insulated wine bags.
Now that is a serious wine
weekend. As if that weren’t enough to sell you on the weekend,
it is also Christmas preview weekend, so there will be lots of
Christmas lights up and tours to show them off. What more
could
