Initially established in the 1930s, the Bayside Inn and Marina is located on four acres of the Otsego Lake shoreline seven miles north of Cooperstown, New York. The inn has eleven cottages and thirty single rooms. The cottages each have a full kitchen and a front deck. A sandy swimming beach is located on the shoreline of the property with lounge chairs. The property has a marina with sixty boat slips and boat rentals for guests. Canoes and kayaks are also provided for visitors to use free of charge. When not on the lake, visitors can use any of the inn's outdoor grilling areas or play games in the old fashion game room. The Bayside Inn and Marina is open from Memorial Day weekend to Columbus Day weekend every year.
The Bayside Inn and Marina is located seven miles outside of Cooperstown, New York, along the shoreline of Otsego Lake. Sixty boat slips and a boat ramp are located on the shoreline of the four-acre property. Otsego Lake is a four thousand acre lake fed by the Susquehanna River. Cooperstown is located on the southern end of Lake Otsego and is known for being home to the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. Trees and natural mountain landscape surround the inn providing each room or cottage with views of the lake and forestry nearby. A small sandy beach is available for guests to swim out of near the marina. There is a covered gazebo on the shoreline, cement pavilions with picnic tables, fire pits, and grilling areas.
There are forty-one units that guests can reserve at the Bayside Inn and Marina. Eleven of them are small cottages with rooms ranging from one to three bedrooms. These cottages can sleep four to ten people, and each one has a full kitchen, dining area, and extra living space. Thirty single rooms are spread between a motel and inn on the property. The twenty rooms in the motel building all contain two queen-sized beds. Six rooms are located in the smaller inn building, five of them have two queen beds, and one has a single king-sized bed. The remaining rooms are connected to some of the cottages with separate entrances and king-sized beds.
Visitors with special needs are encouraged to reserve any of the four handicap accessible rooms or the single handicap accessible cottage on the property. All but one of the cottages are raised with two floors and have a staircase leading to the entrance. A deck looking out over the lake stretches across the front of each cottage. The motel rooms all have private entrances, and ten of them have private balconies with views of the lake. Outfitted with simple furniture and high-quality linens, the guest accommodations also feature a television, personal heating and air conditioning systems, an in-room phone, refrigerators, microwaves, coffee machines, and a private bath with extra counter space.
Aside from the common areas outside, such as the covered gazebos and sandy beach, there is an old-fashioned game room inside, a main lobby area, a hospitality room, and a quiet office area where guests are welcome to gather. Every guest can use the canoes and kayaks provided by the inn free of charge. There are also several boat rentals as well as a sixty slip marina that guests can utilize for a day out on the lake. Each boat comes equipped with various water sports equipment and lifejackets. The variety of options for lodging larger and smaller groups, as well as the close proximity to the lake are perhaps two of the biggest draws to the Bayside Inn and Marina.
Lake Otsego is not the only attraction near the Bayside Inn and Marina. The inn is one mile from where the Glimmerglass Festival is held, eighteen miles from Sharon Springs, the home of Beekman 1802, and twelve miles from the Cooperstown Dreams Park. Many museums such as the Baseball Hall of Fame and the Farmers' Museum are popular locations to visit in the Cooperstown area. Five miles away from the Bayside Inn and Marina is the Blue Mingo Grill. This restaurant is located in a boatyard looking over the lake with both outdoor and indoor seating. Other nearby restaurants include Mel's at 22, the Bocca Osteria, and the Hawk-Eye Bar and Grill.
Jennifer Moore is the general manager of the Bayside Inn and Marina. As general manager, Jennifer is tasked with ensuring that every guest at the Bayside Inn and Marina is treated with respect. She also strives to make sure all their questions and concerns are answered quickly and efficiently. The main goal for Jennifer and her staff is to give every guest who stays at their inn a positive and memorable experience. In order to do this, the staff and guests can strive to follow the simple motto Jennifer has put into place, "Guests should respect other guests, the staff, the property, and vice versa." Jennifer says that when her guests and staff follow these simple rules, it makes the staff's job easier and can create a positive experience for her guests.
Because of the Bayside Inn and Marina's close proximity to Cooperstown, New York, many of those who visit the inn are involved in the sports and festivals that take place in the city. Every year a thirteen-week tournament is organized in Cooperstown at Dreams Park, twelve miles from the property. Over 107 teams visit Cooperstown for this tournament, and many of the teams and their families will spend time at the Bayside Inn and Marina when not at the baseball fields. The Glimmerglass Festival takes place just down the road from the Bayside Inn and Marina. This event draws an older demographic to the area with its opera shows and musicals, many of whom stay at the Bayside Inn and Marina.
Having such a broad demographic of guests between young families and older individuals makes it essential to have specific policies and rules to help keep the property clean and the guests comfortable. No smoking is allowed on the property, and only service animals are allowed in the rooms. Jennifer says these policies aid in keeping the environment kid-friendly and easy to maintain. A mandatory quiet time has been put in place from 10:30 PM to 9:00 AM. At the Bayside Inn and Marina, the staff believes that they and the guests go hand in hand. They want guests to feel special and well accommodated, and it's all worth it when they see guests having a good time.
Many guests at the Bayside Inn and Marina have left positive reviews regarding the management of the property, its location, and uncomplicated booking services. One guest's review, in particular, reads, "Simple and clean. Close to attractions. Quiet and well run. The balcony is nice for fresh air. Wireless internet was high speed, making remote work very easy. The game room was a huge hit for the kids, as well as the sandy beach."
Cottages are usually rented for larger groups and typically are reserved in advance. For smaller groups and shorter stays, booking one of the motel or inn rooms is more common. Many family reunions have taken place at the Bayside Inn and Marina, where everyone can be in the same place and spend the day on the lake or exploring Cooperstown together. The Bayside Inn and Marina is open from Memorial Day weekend to Columbus Day weekend. The busiest time of year is during July and August, when the Dream Park Baseball Tournament and Glimmerglass Festival take place.
The Bayside Inn and Marina was the first motel built along Lake Otsego and is one of the only two hotels on the lake with a sand beach. It was established in the 1930s by two immigrants from Sweden and Canada who met and decided to build a motel in the area. In the decades leading up to 2021, the property had a handful of different owners. Each owner added additional rooms onto the inn and motel, and slowly the eleven cottages were built. Currently, there are thirteen owners who split shares of the property. Jennifer Moore is the general manager of the property. Her staff consists of a maintenance technician, housekeepers, and an additional front desk receptionist. Jennifer enjoys talking to everyone who comes through the inn, getting to know their stories, and caring for their needs.
Jennifer has worked at the Bayside Inn and Marina for over twenty-one years. She started working on the property as a way of experiencing a new career path. She enjoyed working at the inn so much she stayed on and has made her way to general manager over the years. In her time working at the Bayside Inn and Marina, various updates and amenities have been added to the cottages and rooms. Furniture, drapes, flooring, paint, and door locks were the significant additions to the units, along with mattress and linen replacements. The original comforters used on the beds in the cottages and rooms were changed to triple-sheeted bedding. In the future, Jennifer is hopeful they can update more of the furniture and add more boat slips to the marina.
7090 NY-80
Cooperstown, New York
United States
Bed and Breakfast
Jennifer Moore
