Scarborough Inn Bed and Breakfast is located near the ocean in Ocean City, New Jersey. The property is open year-round and has 29 units available. There is some variation in the high season, which is from Memorial Day to Columbus Day, and the low season. The business has one pet-friendly room that is only available in the low season. Another difference between the two timeframes is that children under the age of ten cannot be accommodated during the high season. However, several rooms are available for visitors with younger children in the low season. Amenities available to patrons include access to Wi-Fi, a private bathroom in each unit, a mini-split for heating and air-conditioning, and more. Breakfast is complimentary with each reservation from 8:30 A.M. to 10:00 A.M. The inn was built in 1895, which, according to the owner, makes it the oldest hotel in Ocean City.
Scarborough Inn Bed and Breakfast offers a total of 29 units, which are available for reservation year-round. Each room comes with a mini split that provides heating and air conditioning. Other amenities inside the rooms include a refrigerator concealed inside a cabinet, a flat-screen television, and access to Wi-Fi. They also come with a private bathroom that has a walk-in shower, a glass panel divider, mosaic tile flooring, and a white sink on a brass vanity. Everyone that stays the night at the inn is invited to breakfast the following day.
Breakfast is served every morning from 8:30 A.M. to 10:00 A.M. The meals that are prepared are different depending on the time of year. In the summer, they specialize in French toast and frittatas, while in the winter, the employees make dishes including one called Shakshouka, which is a Middle Eastern dish and is sometimes called "eggs in purgatory." Shakshouka is essentially eggs poached in a tomato stew. The business can also make food that abides by specific dietary restrictions and allergies. Every day they offer a gluten-free and dairy-free yogurt parfait. In the afternoons, a complimentary dessert is served at about 4:00 P.M.
The owner of the business describes the inn's interior as "Jazz Age, like the 1920s." He also has a few 1940s- and 1950s-style appliances that decorate the house. A shuffleboard can be found outdoors.
Scarborough Inn Bed and Breakfast is found in the Historic District of Ocean City. Outside in the yard, crepe myrtle trees grow, which are more commonly found growing in the south, according to the owner. Flower boxes of zinnias and other plants grow along the outside, with the owner mentioning that they periodically change which flowers grow in the flower boxes. There is a porch with rocking chairs that guests can use at their leisure.
The owner, Sne Avichal, enjoys talking to visitors and recommending places to visit, whether in the city or in other nearby towns. The beach and boardwalk are two blocks away. There guests can spend time lounging or doing various water recreational activities. The Historic District offers a number of historic buildings, some of which allow tours. A few of the buildings date back to when the town was first established in 1879. Sne also enjoys recommending restaurants to patrons looking for somewhere to eat. A few that he likes to mention by name include Deauville Inn, Tomatoes, and Josie Kelly's.
Sne Avichal, the current owner of Scarborough Inn Bed and Breakfast, would like his guests to feel "like they are staying at home away from home." The staff tries to treat guests like they would their friends if they were welcoming them into their own house. Sne explains, "We try to keep things clean and elegant, but not stuffy, and I don't want the inn to feel intimidating."
Scarborough Inn Bed and Breakfast hosts many events, with some of the most notable being the partnership with an organization called A Mother's Rest. The inn provides retreats for mothers with special needs children. A local artisan does arts and crafts with the mothers on the porch and teaches them how to make items such as jewelry. Another event that they host is an Oktoberfest-style celebration that takes place at the end of September, which is also when the owner, Sne, celebrates his birthday. During this time, the owner provides free beers and plays German music. A girls' weekend occurs twice a year and provides the patrons with a mimosa bar and spa treatments from a spa company that is one of their business partners. On New Year's Eve, the city celebrates what is known as First Night. The owner explains that for $15, guests can attend several events and attractions throughout the city. Tours become available, and there are midnight fireworks.
Scarborough Inn Bed and Breakfast has several policies that the staff would like guests to be aware of while they are staying in Ocean City. The business does not allow children or pets during the high season, which is from Memorial Day to Columbus Day. One room is pet-friendly during the low season, and children under the age of ten can be accommodated at that time as well. Quiet hours are from 9:00 PM to 8:00 AM; however, patrons are allowed to be awake during these quiet hours and can spend time in the common areas if they would like, though they are asked to keep the noise to a minimum.
The owner, Sne, interacts with guests frequently, yet he still tries to gauge how chatty they would like to be and generally leaves them alone if they would rather have privacy. He mentions that he has received many reviews from visitors who stayed at the inn, many of which comment on the staff's friendliness, the amenities included with their stay, and more. Someone who recently stayed at Scarborough Inn Bed and Breakfast wrote, "The whole inn is very clean, and a hearty breakfast was served in the morning along with some treats in the afternoon. The staff was friendly, and there were many nice touches to enjoy, like the porch with rocking chairs."
The inn was built in 1895 and used to have 64 guestrooms in total. Rather than having individual bathrooms for each unit, they used to have communal bathrooms that were shared between all of the rooms. The facades have fish scale shingles, which were popular among Victorian buildings at the time when it was erected. The owner explains, "Our color scheme is somewhat loud in keeping with Victorian architecture."
The original owner of the property had the inn built in 1895 and it was a hotel called Scarborough, which was constructed and run by Ann M. Bomhof and her daughter. The building has changed hands several times since then; in the 1960s, a family called the Workmans took ownership. The subsequent owners were the Perkins family, then the Jernee family. The Jernee family is notable because one of them founded the Ocean City Beach Patrol. In 1988, Gus and Carol Bruno purchased the business, then after the Brunos, Steve and Brandi Cesari took ownership until Sne Avichal bought it in 2020.
Sne Avichal was led into the industry because he is a registered architect and has done various projects for New York City. He found Scarborough Inn Bed and Breakfast for sale and liked what he saw, so he decided to buy it with some partners that had experience in the hospitality industry. Since then, there have been many renovations, including replacing the wall-to-wall carpets with hardwood flooring, adding tiles and brass fittings to the bathrooms, replacing the curtains, and renovating the furnishings in the building. With regard to the changes he made, Sne explains, "I would say I kind of gave it a sleeker, but still nostalgic, jazzy refresher."
720 Ocean Avenue
Ocean City, New Jersey 08226
United States
Bed and Breakfast
Sne Avichal
Steve and Brandi Cesari
