Reservations, Deposits and Cancelations
The Whetstone Inn is a very small, family-run property offering just 11 guest rooms. As such, we are at times unable to offer the same kind of flexibility with reservations and cancelations that you may be used to with larger hotels. Our business and livelihood can be particularly harmed by last-minute cancellations, which will often leave us unable to fill an empty room.
Minimum Stays
Because it is often difficult to fill a room on a Friday or Sunday night when it has been reserved for just a Saturday, during busy holiday periods, we may require a two-night minimum stay. These holiday weekends include President’s Day, Memorial Day, July 4th, Labor Day and Thanksgiving. Additionally, some weekends during peak foliage times in September and October may also require a two-night stay.
Because of especially high demand during the Marlboro Music Festival, which runs from mid-July to mid-August, we will generally require a minimum of three nights for weekend reservations.
We may at times relax these minimums at our discretion or within a week or two of the reservation date if rooms are still available.
Deposits
We will generally charge a deposit to your credit card equivalent to one night of your reservation either at the time of booking or 14 days prior to the arrival date.
Cancelations
Cancellations can be made up to 14 days before your arrival date and your deposit will be refunded, minus a $10 fee to cover credit card processing charges. Cancelations made 13 or fewer days before the arrival date will forfeit your deposit, but we will allow you to credit that amount toward another stay within 12 months of your initial reservation.
Owner’s Rights
The Whetstone Inn is a small, family-run business and we reserve the right to refuse business to anyone at our discretion. Anyone, including paying guests, can be removed from the property for any reason with no chance for refund.
Security
Marlboro is a quiet and peaceful place, and we love that we can offer our guests a respite in this beautiful town. As part of that old, countryside charm, we do not offer safes or locks on individual guest rooms. We encourage you to leave valuables and irreplaceable items at home. We will not be responsible for guest accidents or injury, or for the loss of money, jewelry, or valuables of any kind.
Property Issues
Any damages, stolen items, or broken items occurring during the stay will be the full financial responsibility of the guest, including anyone traveling with the guest and will be charged to the original payment method. Please report all spills and/or damages to the Innkeeper promptly and charges may be waived.
Smoking
The Whetstone is a non-smoking property and smoking or vaping is not permitted anywhere in the building, including in guest rooms. Guests who wish to smoke or vape may do so outdoors and at least 25 feet away from the building. This policy applies to both tobacco and cannabis products.
Pets
We welcome well-behaved and quiet dogs for an extra fee of $25. Only one dog per room can be accommodated. Be aware that we also have dogs in our family, so if your dog doesn’t get on well with others, we’ll need to make sure we can coordinate entries and exits to avoid conflict.
Note that we do not allow guests to leave their dogs unattended while away from the property. Please be sure that you plan to bring your dog with you if you are going out.
While we love cats too, Jean is very allergic and we are unable to accomodate cat guests. For pets other than dogs or cats, please contact us by phone ahead of time to see if we’re able to accommodate you.
Food Allergies and Other Dietary Restrictions
We will do our best to accommodate your dietary restrictions, but we kindly ask that you let us know when you make your reservation if there are any restrictions we need to be aware of. Note that we do regularly use nuts and gluten products in our kitchen and while we can offer you a nut- or gluten-free meal, we will not be able to prepare that meal in a nut- or gluten-free environment.
Alcohol
The Whetstone does not have a Vermont liquor license. You are welcome to bring your own alcoholic beverages to enjoy with your meal or in your room, but please drink responsibly.
Check In and Check Out Times
We will do our best to accommodate your checking in and out at whatever times are convenient to you. However, if you would like to check in before 2pm or after 11pm, or if you need to check out before 7am or after noon, please speak to us ahead of time to make sure we’ll be able to make it work.
TVs, Phones and Internet
In our rooms you’ll find interesting books, but not phones or televisions. We do offer wifi internet that is usually able to accommodate a handful of guests on video calls or streaming TV or movies. But we can’t guarantee it. Mobile phone service is spotty at best in this area, but we’ve found that many people are able to make calls on their cell phones if they have enabled wifi calling and connected to our network.
We will not tolerate guests abusing our internet connection for file sharing or excessive usage that negatively affects the ability of others to have a useful connection and we will block devices that we suspect of abuse from our network.