The Market Street Inn is a bed and breakfast with seven rooms, three of them being suites. It is located in Jeffersonville, Indiana, only three blocks from the Ohio River and a mile from downtown Lousiville, Kentucky. The Market Street Inn has three stories and has a roof-top deck that guests may use to sit and relax on. The building itself was built back in 1881, but after several fires, it was renovated in 2002 and had its first guests as a bed and breakfast in 2005. The owners today are the original owners and live on the third floor of the inn. A custom-made breakfast is provided every day at the patrons selected time to fit their schedule.
One mile from downtown Louisville, Kentucky, and across the Ohio River, sits The Market Street Inn. The inn is located in Jeffersonville, Indiana, two to three blocks from restaurants, shops, the Ohio River, and the pedestrian bridge over the river. It is a three-story red brick building with a fountain in the front yard. Sitting on half an acre, the inn offers a front porch, garden area, and courtyard area with tables and chairs for guests. There is an off-street parking lot in the back for the patrons, as well as a motorcoach or RV 50-amp hookup and parking. There is a roof-top deck on the third floor of the structure with more tables and chairs, providing patrons with options of ways to relax and spend their time.
The Market Street Inn is a Second Empire 1881 mansion that has been through a flood and multiple fires and has been restored into the building it now is. Inside on the first floor, there are two dining rooms that can accommodate up to 32 visitors. The inside could be described as a mix of antiques and modern updates and amenities. The inn has “vintage” furniture and a front gathering room. The gathering room provides an area with tables and chairs to play board or card games or work on puzzles.
Spread throughout the three floors of the building are seven different units for guests to use. There are four ensuite rooms and three suites to choose from, each with different decorations and paint colors. The four ensuite rooms are the Rose’ Retreat, The Garden Hideaway, The Elegance, and The Classical rooms. They each have jacuzzi tubs, bathrobes, a blow dryer, a queen-size bed, ceiling fan, remote control fireplace, high-speed internet, and cable television. The Rose’ Retreat and The Garden Hideaway rooms are located on the first floor, with The Elegance and The Classical rooms located on the second floor. The three suites are the River Breeze, Royal Executive, and Renaissance Suites. The amenities for the suites include all that standard rooms offer, in addition to a king-size bed, a DVD player, wet bar, coffee maker, plush towels, and a bidet. Each suite also has a variety of other amenities, including a full-size sofa bed, a five-foot walk-in shower, and more. The Royal Executive and River Breeze Suites are located on the second floor, while the Renaissance Suite is on the third floor next to the roof-top deck. There is a refrigerator in each hallway for guests to have access to, stocked with bottled water.
Breakfast for the patrons consists of a three-course gourmet meal at the guest’s selected time choice. The inn attempts to honor any of the visitor's special diet restrictions. They provide multiple types of juice, coffee, tea, hot chocolate, fresh fruit cups, an assortment of coffee cakes and scones, and yogurt to start. The main dishes include bacon or sausage, a hot entrée, which is the chef’s choice for the day, eggs of any style, French toast or pancakes, a breakfast panini with an option of nine or ten different ingredients, breakfast pudding, oatmeal, English muffins or toast, and waffles on Sunday.
Nearby attractions for the Market Street Inn include restaurants such as Cast Iron Steakhouse; a steakhouse in Jeffersonville, Red Yeti; a fine dining, southern comfort food restaurant, and Town; a place that offers a variety of pasta and sandwich dishes. Also near the inn are various museums, including the Howard Steamboat Museum, the Vintage Fire Museum, and more. Other attractions are the Falls of Ohio, Shimpff’s confectionery, a candy store and museum, and an assortment of seasonal events. These events are Thunder over Louisville Steamboat race, Kentucky Derby, Abbey Road on the River, Farmer’s Market, and River Stage Concerts.
The Market Street Inn is owned and operated by Steve and Carol Stenbro. One patron wrote about them, “Mr. and Mrs. Stenbro made me feel so welcome. Like family, not a guest.” The hosts make it their goal to create a relaxing, welcoming, and friendly environment for the inn's visitors. They try to talk to and interact with all the guests to help create that environment. The Stenbros “enjoy meeting the guests” and hope that they can enjoy themselves and have “the best experience possible.”
The business is one of the only bed and breakfast in town and is open year-round. The busiest season for the inn is between the months of May and October. The owners also host dinners and rent out the front gathering room for bridal and baby showers. The inn’s policies are that they do not allow pets or smoking inside. After 9 pm, they ask the guests to make that quiet time. The property is handicap accessible with ramps and entrances into rooms on the first floor.
The various guests who visit the Market Street Inn include many businesspeople of various ages, retired couples, and once even President George W. Bush in 2006. The majority of patrons are between the ages of 25 and 50. One guest who stayed at the inn wrote, “We loved everything about our stay; Carol and her staff were wonderful. Great location and reasonably priced. Breakfast was delicious and there were delicious baked goods and snacks for the guests.”
The current owners, Steve and Carol Stenbro, bought the property in 2002 and did a three and half year renovation on the property. They bought the property in an auction after it stood empty for six years after several fires inside the building. Since it became a bed and breakfast, they have been the only owners of this property. Their first guests came in 2005 after the renovation to the inn. The Stenbros have been in the innkeeping business since 1995, and this is the second inn they’ve owned. They live on the property on the third floor of the building. They originally got into the innkeeping industry because of the many historic bed and breakfasts they stayed in while they traveled.
The Market Street Inn was originally built as a residence in 1881 by George and Barbara Pfau, who owned a company that processed oil that is still running. In 1906 the property became an “Old Ladies Home” for Civil War widows. In 1985 it became the Haven House Homeless Shelter before a couple of fires happened in 1996.
During the three and half year renovation the Stenbros handled, the third floor of the inn was changed from an attic to a suite and innkeeper’s apartment. The first two floors went from ten small rooms to six ensuite rooms. Some of the rooms had bathrooms added to them during the renovation. Because of the fire, the building needed new stabilization as well. After a long renovation process, the Market Street Inn has been housing guests for over a decade now.
330 West Market Street
Jeffersonville, Indiana 47130
United States
Bed and Breakfast
Steve and Carol Stenbro
