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One of the best bed and breakfasts in Peterborough Ontario,
as recommended by Janette Higgins.
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Eastern Ontario including Ottawa
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Lilac Lane Bed and Breakfast
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Mariann Marlow
1738 Chemong Road
Peterborough, ON
Canada, K9J 6X2
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| Phone: 705 748 6462 |
| A relaxing retreat where you're compelled to stop and smell the roses. |
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Review by Janette Higgins
author of The Best Places to B&B in Ontario: A Selective Guide
Six editions of the book were published to critical and popular acclaim. Janette now publishes her B&B
reviews and holiday reports online.
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Note 1 to reader: Every Ontario bed and breakfast receives my consideration. I travel incognito, pay where I stay and write reviews of the top 5%. Here is one I recommend. Janette Higgins
The transition from all that’s commercial on Peterborough’s Chemong Road to all that’s peaceful at Lilac Lane Bed and Breakfast is so abrupt you’ll think you’ve fallen down the rabbit hole and ended up in Wonderland. When I turned onto the long lane leading to the old stone house it was lined with masses of fragrant peonies. Pulling into the bed and breakfast parking area by the in ground pool I quickly saw the potential to kick back in style; the large area around the attractively angled pool surrounded by gardens beckoned, as did the adjacent portico hung with gauzy white panels.
Instead, I passed through the arbour by the white picket fence with sweetly-scented roses and knocked at the bed and breakfast entrance. Host Mariann Marlow provided a warm welcome and as she led me upstairs to my room I noted the two comfortably furnished main floor common areas. One with bright red furnishings has satellite TV and a library. Across the hall the other is done in quieter tones and has a wood-burning fireplace/stove.
Upstairs, you’ll find the serene white-carpeted Summer Room complete with queen size bed and spacious sitting area containing a queen sofa bed plus an upholstered chair with ottoman. Mariann's also added a rattan glass table with four chairs. It overlooks the gardens and pool. The commodious en suite bathroom has an air jet tub, separate shower stall and cherry-cabineted sink.
Nearby, the large rust-and-cream Fall Room has a queen-size bed, full-size electric fireplace and comfortable seating area. It has the pool and garden view. It also has an en suite entrance into a pretty spiffy bathroom with chandelier, mahogany vanity and double glassed-in shower stall. There's also a twin-bedded Spring Room at the top of the stairs, done in pretty pastels. It is usually rented only to guests travelling with those in the Fall Room. That's because the bathroom then becomes shared with Spring Room guests having access to the bathroom through a second door off the hall.
The night before, Mariann had given me a choice for breakfast: homemade waffles, eggs Benedict or frittata. I’d opted for the frittata. To start I had OJ and a fruit cup with fresh strawberries, blueberries and grapes and a dollop of yogurt. Next came the frittata, so tasty I just had to have seconds. To finish, I had a slice of Mariann’s home-baked lemon cake drizzled with a berry coulis.
Over breakfast I learned that Mariann and teen son Matthew live in an addition which makes for a very private guest experience though, as you come and go, you do pass by her newly-remodeled kitchen with its handy guest refreshment station. I also learned that she has an outside (but flexible!) job, runs a gift/antique store in a barn out back which is surrounded by bucolic fields (well, except for the view towards Peterborough). And that those fields are where you’ll often see the pair’s three horses.
Note: This bed and breakfast is in a stone house which tends to stay a bit cooler than others in summer plus it has central air conditioning. So with the windows closed I found it very quiet even though it's on a main highway. With windows open, (say, in Spring/Fall) you may hear some far-off traffic noise. In Spring that could be joined with a chorus of serenading frogs.
Note 2 to reader: I appreciate your support of the continuation of my research by letting the hosts know you read my review of their bed and breakfast on this bbontario website. Many thanks! Janette Higgins, Travel Writer
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Lilac Lane Bed and Breakfast, Peterborough, Ontario
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| Tell your hosts Janette Higgins sent you! |
| E-mail: |
Click Here |
| Website: |
http://www.bbcanada.com/lilaclane |
| Best to call: |
anytime |
| Languages: |
English |
| Season: |
All Year |
| CDN $ Rates: |
S $95-130, D $105-140 (BASED ON 2-NIGHTS)plus 13% HST
ADD $20 for 1-night stays
ADD $30 for extra person in a room
enquire about lo |
Currency converter
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| Cards: |
Cash/Cheque/VISA/Mastercard/AMEX |
| Restrictions: |
Enquire re children; smoking outside only; kennel for guests' pets |
| Facilities: |
3 rooms; 1 with queen bed, queen sofa bed and sitting area with en suite bathroom, 1 with queen bed and en suite bathroom, 1 with twin beds which, when booked, shares a bath with the queen (separate entrance); 2 comfortable indoor common rooms for guests only; in ground pool with adjacent covered portico; hammocks; wireless internet; central air; gift/antique shop in old barn out back; kennel for your pet; weddings can be held on the premises |
| Parking: |
on premises for up to 100 cars (not a misprint !) |
| Breakfast: |
full |
| In Residence: |
Teen son Matthew; three horses kept as pets in the barn; |
| Location: |
Chemong Road is a main road at northern edge of Peterborough; 8-minute drive mostly through countryside to Trent University (I timed it) and about the same to downtown Peterborough. |
| Directions: |
Obtain when booking |
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