My husband and I stayed at the Guest House for the last part of our honeymoon. What an absolute gem! The room itself is beautifully curated and is so cozy. The bathroom was fun and interesting - the shower is huge and open and the rest is in a giant wine barrel! The bed was honestly the most comfortable bed we have ever slept in - like sleeping on a cloud. Our hosts, Brian and Colleen, were incredibly sweet and eager to please. They served us breakfast (which was delicious) each morning discreetly and asked us to please call if we needed any recommendations at all for the day. We also loved their dog and enjoyed petting him and playing with him. Overall, our stay was absolutely perfect and we can't wait to go back someday, hopefully. Novato is also a great little town that is in a good location for day trips to SF and wine country. I can't recommend this room enough!
We had a five night stay at The Guest House. The room occupies the larger part of a free-standing building behind the owner's house. Both the sleeping area and the bathroom are quite large; easily twice the size of any hotel room. The room is furnished with a wide variety of pieces from different eras and of widely varying design. The entire room is very spacious and comfortable. The owner makes his own wine and there is a theme of wine making throughout. In the bathroom, the sink and toilet are in a converted 4,000 gal wine cask (it sounds strange, but it is quite nice).The house is in a quiet and convenient residential neighborhood. The hosts are very nice, very accommodating and most anxious to please the guest. Breakfast is prepared fresh every day and is delicious. The breakfast tray is brought to the room each morning. The only negatives (both relatively minor) are a tight driveway that takes some care getting in and out and a slightly noisy pellet heater. None the less, if you are looking for something different, unique, and that shows a labor of love by the owner, then look no further.
My wife and I needed a place in Novato to stay. Was I surprised to find this little winery with one guest house. It stands on its own, the woodwork is hand crafted and the structure is old winery rustic. It is a large space filled with some nice antique furniture. Apparently this part of Novato used to be small wineries at one time. The remains of huge wine barrels are everywhere. So huge, that the bathroom is half built into a wine barrel! Very quiet other than the family dog who almost never barked. It is not a place for everybody but for those who love artistic, spacious living, and wine, it is fabulous! Incidentally, the Chardonnay is GREAT. Buy a bottle or a case! Brian and family are very nice hosts!
The pictures do not do it justice. Not only is the room spacious, but it definitely gives you the feeling of getting away from it all. The hot tub was a nice surprise being made from a large barrel. Since it is the only room available, you really have ypir privacy. Breakfast both mornings was deliciousand delivered to just outside our room. The rock shower with the 2 showerheads is also larger than we could tell from the pictures. There is a little coffee and tea bar set up in the room and 2 seperate seating areas. Even in August, we decided to use the pellet stove to warm the room up one of the nights we were there. If the room is available, we will definitely stay again!! Brian and Colleen were wonderful hosts. Along with their dog Murphy.
I loved my stay at this delightful B&B in Novato and I highly recommend it to other travelers! I went solo this trip, but I plan to return with my husband on my next visit to the region. The room was enchanting and I felt as if I were tucked away in a charming Tuscan villa in Italy. One of my favorite features was the large, unique, grotto style shower (double heads and good water pressure). Plus, Colleen and Brian were warm, friendly, and gracious - they went out of their way to accommodate all my needs and make me feel at home.
What an enchanting place to stay! I was unsure what I was getting myself into as it was hard to find information on this guest house and someone had written a terrible review, but still there was something intriguing about the place. I am so happy we decided to spend the night! Now we wish we would have spent more time there but there is always next year. The guest house is outstanding, with a huge bathroom that has twin showers and a rock lined giant tub and a main room that is warm and comfy with all of the amenities. We also used the pool which felt so nice to float around in and relax after we had just finished a long hot running race. We also had a wonderful breakfast the next morning out by the pool! The family that runs the guest house are very kind and welcoming. I hope our travels take us back to the guest house (next time we will try the wine that we read many good reviews about).
I am currently attending a 3-year training program in Novato, CA. and stay at the Guest House B&B 2-3 times/year. Each 10 day stay has been absolutely perfect. I think of it as my own personal little paradise. In an attempt to refer this lovely little treasure to a friend today, I happened upon this website and was shocked to see a rather harsh review from a recent guest. It hardly seems possible that she could be describing the place that I have loved and come to appreciate as my home away from home. The grounds are lovely, and yes rustic, which is exactly a part of the many aspects of this environment that provides charm and a homey, cared-for, restful, natural place. The ambiance and creativity of the surroundings, from the wooden/arched/stained glass windows and doors (all of which can be opened quite readily), the natural rock soaking tub, a bathroom constructed inside a huge wine barrel, tastefully beautiful antique furniture, and the exquisitely beautiful and comfortable bed, to the lovely setting of a small family winery, complete with surroundings including flowers, fruit trees, a vegetable garden, swimming pool and hot tub, it’s hard to imagine what I could possibly complain about. Above and beyond the satisfaction that I get from the surroundings, the B&B owners and hosts, Brian and Colleen, are the best treasures of all. They have gone above and beyond accommodating me during each of my visits. They are the real deal…..professional, responsible, kind, generous, responsive to my every need, and a whole lot of fun! I have had no experience with animals running across the rooftop, chickens scratching at night, or arguments occurring in the background (the hardest piece of all to imagine!!) and I’m pretty sure I would have noticed if any of those had been the case, even though I sleep like a baby when I’m there. It’s true that there are no curtains on the windows or locks on the door, but then there is no need because a 6 foot wooden (and yes, rustic) fence surrounds the premises, with carefully placed furniture and bamboo screens to elicit a complete sense of privacy inside the building. The respect for my privacy has been one of the qualities of this experience that I’ve appreciated the most. While the place is spotless, there is no sense of being in a sterile environment. I have no doubts that there are plenty of other lodging opportunities in the area where locked doors, sterile surroundings, and drawn curtains are abundant, but don’t expect an opportunity to laugh at the goats butting heads nearby, or the sound of morning birdsong, or the scent of lemons and fresh flowers wafting through your window. I could go on and on! Other reviewers on this site have described it as truly elegant and extraordinarily charming, and I couldn’t agree more. I HIGHLY recommend the Guest House B&B to ANYone and EVERYone open to a unique experience.
Reviews from years past coupled with aged photos on website are misleading. The accommodations are RUSTIC and anything but private. There are no locks on the doors, no curtains on the windows. Windows that do NOT open leaves the place smelling musty and stagnant. Attempting to freshen it with opening doors only gives access to the owners dog (which is not mentioned on website). The bed is lumpy and while the bath area is unique, there is no secure privacy. The "winery" is attached to the guesthouse with a door (no lock) in full view when Brian was "working" one morning as I exited the bath area (fully robed). The pool listed on the website was covered with leaves and debris and obviously not cleaned in quite some time. The hot tub was not shown to me. The vineyards for walking are 4 unmaintained rows. Gardens are not maintained. Animals running on the roof and chickens scratching during the night will keep you awake. Brian and Colleen may have been friendly and gracious at other times but during my visit, Colleen is out of town. If the bumpy drive and less than inviting atmosphere don't turn you away, when Colleen returns home on my last night the owners begin a LOUD screaming match that woke me and continued for several hours. I immediately exited the property the next morning. I would not recommend this property to ANYone.
