Where Guests Should Rest Their Heads

Where a guest stays is not necessarily the concern of the couple. However, Nantucket's got a pretty unique accommodation situation for anyone who's planning on staying overnight on the island. We may not be buying the hotel rooms or anything, but there is no Hilton or Ramada or Days Inn on this island. It's all B&Bs, inns, and private homes. There are a couple of "hotels", i.e. more than a dozen rooms to accommodate your guests. But the key is to be mindful of budget. We're offering guest suggestions on a low cost, middle of the road, and high end stay. We're also giving them the name of a real estate agent on the island should a couple of families want to go in on a home rental. Many of our guests have never been to Nantucket before, so, with our June wedding, they're planning on making a vacation out of it.
However, we're already running into people who are a bit, um, shocked, at the prices of some of the hotels and inns on the island. Someone who's used to spending $50-75 a night at a hotel off island is most likely going to experience sticker shock when they see a room is upwards of $300-400 per night. Of course, in many of these cases, you DO get what you pay for.
Like a room like this with a view overlooking the harbor:

(That's courtesy of the Wauwinet Hotel, one of the Nantucket Island Resort properties). There's also plenty of private homes and B&B's, owned locally. One of my personal faves is The Brass Lantern Inn. Owner Michelle was a good client of mine when I worked at Plum TV and, if you love your pets like I do, she's pet friendly. The building has a really great location, downtown. Another downtown fave (and former client of mine) is The Anchor Inn, owned by Anne & Charles Balas. Very nice couple, and super cool, historic-Nantucket building. In the case of our wedding, downtown is a pretty far trip from where our venue will be, but nevertheless, a nice idea for someone who hasn't been to the island before and wants to experience the downtown historic district.

Where ever your guests are coming from, though, chance are they are going to have to stay overnight for your wedding. The last boat leaves around 11pm during the summer months. And I don't plan on our wedding ending until at least 1am. I wouldn't want my guests feeling like they couldn't stay either. Best thing I can tell you is to shop around for a variety of prices to offer your guests.
AND make sure to tell your guest to do it in advance. Once places book up on Nantucket, they're booked. You can't hop over the Marriot in the next town. It doesn't work like that here.
(No offense to Marriot).

Until next time.

Liz