Rathbone Mansions

I reserved my room through
. At 4 nights for $ 880 at the Rathbone Mansion in New Orleans (not worth the money… too much for what they offer). It looks good on the outside but horrible inside.
The property states check-​in is 3:00pm. We arrived at 3:10pm to find that the office hours are 9−3pm (they were closed at 3:00pm). There was a note on the door with each occupants name with a key and instructions to find our room.
Upon entering the room it was very smelly and un-​kept. The (4) window treatments were very stained and soiled (it looked dirty, nasty and disgusting). The window treatments were held in place with tacks (not curtain rods). The bed sheets were stained as well. The bathroom toilet bowl and shower was stained and looked reeked of mildew (unsanitary). The desk chair was very used, lumpy, soiled and dirty (it reminded me of a computer chair that I would see in an old car repair shop). The dresser was dusty and was lined with old newspaper (which was faded).
I understand that a bed and breakfast «historic mansion» is vintage but the Rathbone Mansion room that that I was was very un-​kept.
I do not live like this at home and it was very uncomfortable to stay in the room which also included a very foul smell (my thoughts were… all the candles in the world could not smoother this smell).
I immediately called
and the representative stayed on the phone with me as she tried several times to reach Rathbone Mansion management, but was unable to reach anyone. I immediately went downstairs to the front office to find a telephone number to contact management but no one answered. I went to the parking lot area and spoke to the only person who seem to be on the property. Her name was (J.C.) she was able to reach the manager of the property Pat McArnold.
At 4:00pm
I spoke with Pat McArnold and she stated that she could not help me because they were closed and she would call me the next day when they opened. I explained to Pat McArnold that the accommodations were very misleading — that the room smelled very bad and the furnishings were soiled and very un-​inviting. Pat McArnold stated that «we have a no refund policy — but I could leave the keys with J.C. and she would call me first thing in the morning.» (She never called me).
8:00am the next day–
I called the Rathbone Mansion and spoke with Jason. He stated that Pat McArnold was not available. I left a message with him for her to call me. Pat McArnold never called me.
11:00am
I called the Rathbone Mansion and no one answered the phone. I left a message for Management to return my call… To this day July 29, 2015, no one has every called me back.
I immediately called my credit card company to inform them that I could not stay in this property and would like to dispute the charges. My reservation was was for 4 nights at $ 880.00 which is a lot of money and feel uncomfortable. We did not spend any time at this property had to find other accommodations on very short notice.

We (a female couple in our 40s) stayed at both the Rathbone I and II over the last few years — 2012, 2011, and 2009 — right around Halloween. A couple times, friends stayed in another room.
It’s a B&B — you have to keep that in mind. It’s an old house from I think the late 1800s, and while rooms have of course been remodeled since then, the basic structure is the same. There are a lot of stairs going up to the rooms, and they have high ceilings.
I found the beds comfortable, and the decorations lush and antique, in the wonderful way Victorians stuffed a lot of decoration into a room. No, the rooms aren’t huge. The bathrooms aren’t particularly luxurious, but I don’t really care about that — I’m not there to spend a lot of time in the room. I never saw any bugs in the rooms, nor mold. It got hot and humid, but, well, *shrug* that’s New Orleans for you.
The breakfasts, if you wake up for them — and that can be tough after a long night out — are fantastic.
It’s far enough away from the French Quarter that you’re away from the noise, but close enough that a middle-​aged woman with a sprained ankle could walk to it and back. Just don’t wear heels — and that goes for all of the French Quarter. Cobblestones will get you!
Yes, parking is limited. We flew in and took a cab to the place, then either walked, cabbed, or pedi-​cabbed everywhere.
I’d definitely stay again. Maybe one of these times I’ll see the ghosts I keep hearing so much about.

The lovely ladies of Rathbone Mansions get a five star rating. We were here in early June, and we were pleasantly surprised. I only say surprised, because of some of the previous reviews. I completely agree with the previous reviewer who said if you want a Hilton, stay at a Hilton. It’s an old house. Our room was nice and comfortable. The pool was a great afternoon respite. It’s so easy to walk to Frenchman Street and the French Quarter from here. Over the weekend, we went to the Zydeco Festival in Louis Armstrong Park a short distance away, and Ms. Pat was so nice to offer up some lawn chairs for us to take. We’ll be staying here the next time we’re in NOLA.

First the good. I love New Orleans and everything in it. This place is close to most of the things I want to do and there are buses for everything else. Pat and Tanya were awesome and fonts of information.
Now the bad. The bed although comfy was so high I had to climb on my suitcase to get into it. I got zero internet signals in my room (Musician’s Court room 311) neither wifi, 3G or 4G. The shower was claustrophobic. The breakfast wasn’t anything special except for the Sunday I was there when eggs and grits were served.
I won’t be staying there again.

Before we booked this B and B we were so worried because of the previous reviews but decided to chance it and we were delightfully surprised!
Only reason I didn’t give 5 stars is because the bed was very lumpy. But otherwise nice place. Delicious breakfast every morning and wonderful hospitality. The pool was great also! Nice location to just about everything, walking was fine but we did take a taxi a few times and it was only a few dollars.

Had a couple beers reading the reviews after we stayed our first night but look at it like this. The place may have some rough edges here and there but what are your expectations when visiting NOLA? A modern, boring Hilton in the metro section or an old home with charm? I don’t sit atop a high horse in life so I found Rathbone charming, amazing bed, nice staff, outdoor pool, fun morning music, close to FQ and bus route. Even Henry the cat takes refuge there, traumatized by gutter punks and hid in a tree for 2 weeks until staff coaxed him down and fed him. The reality is you’re just another globetrotting tourist in any town but they made my stay very comfortable. Cheers!

Cheap for a reason… historic mansion that has been updated all the way to Motel 6 status. We were in the second building and our room featured chintzy cheap Wal-​Mart decorations, sloppy remodeling– think slumlord style with stuff essentially fixed with duct tape and shoe strings. We stayed there for 5 days and our bed never once had the sheets changed… or even got made. The heater in our room sounded like a jet engine and was so full of dust you’d choke when it was turned on. Don’t even get me started on the bathroom. FILTHY. The best part was the location and the price. Wouldn’t stay there again, even though other places in the area cost much more.

I stayed here for 7 nights with two friends in the room 307 Frenchquarter suite. It was awesome* there was privacy for the couple I stayed with in their sanctioned off bed and the bed I had was comfy! Showers are good! You have to wait a bit for hot water but it never quits and just make sure the taps are completely closed or it will squeel.
If you are completely sheltered, the neighbourhood is awesome* just use your common sense. I found some neighbours friendly myself and some would need a bit of warming up to lol. There are all types of people in a city, variety is to be expected. There is a beauty supply store two blocks over and behind that I wish I knew about before!
I loved Tonya who cooks breakfast and helps out with everything you need* she is amazing. The rooms are historic and have all the character charm you would want. It used to be a house so that is the feel you get not a classy french character suite. It is perfect for a unique casual character place with history and culture.
The surrounding homes and shops are so cool. Frenchman street and the French market is walking distance so is Bourbon street.

Great place to stay. The owner, Pat, was very knowledgeable about the area. There are two parts of the property, one on each side of the street. The rooms are very nice and clean. The location is about a $ 7 taxi ride down to the French Quarter. I highly recommend staying here if you want a nice relaxing room to stay at. I would definitely stay here again. The breakfasts are worthwhile, too.

Spent three nights here last weekend and loved it! This place is a true gem and the prices are unbeatable, especially with breakfast included.
The staff is friendly, I love eating with the other guests, and the breakfast is solid and home cooked. The pool is a really nice perk.
We stayed across the street from the main house in a king room just off the garden patio. TV, AC, refrig, comfy bed… everything we needed.

We (three 21-​year old girls) stayed here during the week. The building was beautiful but the room itself wasn’t historical, it was just old and run down. It was a different vibe than a hotel would be and we liked it, but it just wasn’t what we expected. The walk to Bourbon Street and the rest of the French Quarter was fine during the day, but at night we were a bit uncomfortable walking home. Overall, the price was great and we didn’t spend much time in the room anyway, it was just a bit further than we thought it would be and a little more run down.

This was a really cool place to stay if you would like to experience the New Orleans feel and ambiance. There are 2 mansions that are across the street from each other. Main house is where the pool/​hot tub are and where breakfast is served daily by an awesome lady (don’t know her name :() The house manager lady is Tina (I think?) and she is nice but definitely more business. Had no problems with check in when we got there. Room was the 2 bedroom suite in the other house. Bedrooms are SMALL– but oh well. Beds are probably as old as the house haha. There was a living room area so it was not a huge deal. There was only 1 bathroom though which was prob the most inconvenient part of the lodging.
Location is good– in a cute part of town– Bourbon was about 10 min walk and Frenchman st was about 10 – 15 min walk. Not bad– but definitely plan on walking around your entire trip (ladies leave your heels at home– cobblestone streets = bad).
This is a bed and breakfast so you cannot expect the amenities of a hotel chain– but it’s definitely a great experience and much warmer and more charm then you would get with a hotel.
Overall I enjoyed my stay. I think this place is a tad more suited for people 30+ who are not looking to come to New Orleans to party their pants off. My group was in there late 20’s though and everyone was happy with it.

We just returned from a nice weekend stay at the Rathbone Mansions and loved it. We were arrived late and found detailed, easy to follow instructions waiting for us on how to get into our room. We were very pleasantly suprised to see that we had been upgraded to a king suite! The room was very clean, and was cleaned every day — which was unexpected and nice! The building themselves are beautiful. Don’t expect completely modern bathroom/​kitchen amenities, but you’re staying in a historic building and that’s the way it should be!
We only had breakfast one day, but it was delicious, easy, and fresh (the homemade banana nut muffins were delicious). All of the staff we talked to were nice and helpful. We told Pat that we were going to see a Second Line parade, and she gave us an umbrella and napkins to wave around! Very thoughtful.
The location is also great. It was an easy walk to all the French Quarter activity, and we didn’t worry at all about walking back late at night. We were also able to catch cabs off the street.

Getting a hotel in New Orleans for JazzFest is very difficult. Out of desperation booking late we came here; I’m very glad we did.
The property is beautiful with a nice pool and bar area, the rooms are clean (and cute!), and the staff is friendly and accommodating.
We are close to everything but still far enough to be able to get a peaceful night’s sleep.
I without hesitation will re-​book upon my next adventure to NoLo.

My boyfriend and I stayed at the Rathbone for 3 nights in March just a few weeks ago. We booked our stay through BookIt​.Com and on our way to New Orleans we called them to add an extra night. Because we arrived late at night, we recieved an envelope with instructions on how to check in, and from that point we never met, saw, or even knew who any of the managers were throughout our entire stay. The hotel was a bit of a treck from the French Quarter, at least the part of the French Quarter of which you would want to spend your time, but we are very easy going people and just went with the flow. I have never even written a review but I feel it was necessary to share this with future potential customers. Upon check-​out, the woman who handled our business was very rude-​I guess we had not been added into the system for the extra night we signed up for via phone on our way to New Orleans, so they had no reciept of our stay, nor was she friendly even though this was obviously her mistake. After leaving, I realized I left my Kindle in the room, and immediately called the mansions (literally no more than 2 hours after check out). Magically, my kindle was no where to be found.
I feel the mansion has potential, but obviously we will not be staying there again. The workers, whether that be room service or the cleaning ladies or whoever, are dishonest and without a doubt have yanked my Kindle. I am very disappointed and will be taking my service elsewhere (of which there are plenty other places to stay much closer to the French Quarter) in the future.

I’m fairly torn about giving this B&B a ‘meh’ review since I had such a great trip, but the bottom line is that this place could be awesome and it just isn’t. I’ll lay out my experience with a list of pros and cons. I stayed for a week.
Pros
1. Friendly staff and great service. Breakfast service was good, and we chatted a bit with staff while out on the patio. Check-​out was also nice and easy — they even called a cab for me, which I thought was very helpful.
2. Neat, historical building. Very beautiful from the outside.
3. Easy walk to the French Quarter… but far enough away that you don’t have to deal with long nights filled with noise and chaos.
4. Flat-​screen TV with plenty of channels. It was nice to unwind with Cartoon Network or the Travel Channel after a long day of walking.
5. Gorgeous swimming pool — It had a party light and fountains. We really enjoyed capping our night off with an evening swim and a soak in the hot tub… especially b/​c it was such a long, hot day.
6. Nice porch for relaxing and people-​watching.
7. Free breakfast! Had staples such as cereal, yogurt, coffee cakes, muffins, toast, fruit, and bagels.
Now for the Cons.
1. Not clean. The sheets were clean (if a bit rough), but the floors were… not really up to my standards. There was dirt and grime around the edge of the floors, the window sills were disgusting, and there was mold and grime around the baseboards of the bathroom. Bad enough for a mushroom to be growing out of the baseboard (I’ll attach a picture).
2. Floorboards had holes. I’m willing to give a pass for a bit of disrepair and dinginess, since it is a historical building, but this was pretty bad. There was a floorboard that seemed to be partially missing in the bathroom and it was just LOADED with dirt. I was wondering where the mud came from in the bathtub, and then I noticed it was b/​c I stepped on the missing floorboard before getting in.
3. The pipes suck. Every time I took a shower, it would be about 3 minutes of hot water, 1 minute of icy cold water, then another minute of boiling hot water before going back to a normal temperature.
4. Bugs, bugs, BUGS. Not really the bugs themselves, but the fact that the room wouldn’t allow us to keep them away. The mosquito netting had holes and dead bugs caught up in it. The door didn’t fit in the doorway correctly, so there was a rather large space for the bugs to come in (we got several varieties flying around). Also, there was a HUGE cockroach in our room on our second to last night there. Not necessarily the Rathbone’s fault (cockroaches in New Orleans are typical), but you’d think that they’d take some precautions against any kind of infestation.
5. The cleaning lady would come in despite my having put the «Please do not Disturb» sign on the knob. One time, it was knocked completely off the knob and was laying in front of our door. While she cleaned, she apparently turned our air conditioner off, despite it having been a hot day. And for some reason, she replaced our towels EVERY day, even though I hung them up per the «Be Green» sign.
6. The self check-​in method is unsafe. Honestly, anyone that knows how the self check-​in method works could potentially use it to cause some trouble.
7. The light outside of our room. I understand the purpose of the light, but I noticed that we were the only room that didn’t have nice, heavy, pull-​down curtains or blinds to block it out at night, which made it difficult to get to sleep.
To be fair, I didn’t bring ANY of these issues to the manager’s attention — I got this room for a steal through
and I went to New Orleans to enjoy myself… not stress over where I was sleeping for six or seven hours each day. I just wouldn’t stay at this B&B in the future without it going through some MAJOR overhaul.

Stayed in the Rathbone II at 1244 Esplanade and had a lovely experience. Overall, the pros of the Rathbone outweighed the minor cons.
Pros:
Friendly staff who are quick to give good tips
Free breakfast (nothing fancy, but lots of fresh fruit, breads and muffins, cereals and coffee)
Nicely appointed room, felt very «New Orleans»
Quaint atmosphere, not a generic hotel (may want to tone down the decorations in the common area though…)
Walking distance to the French Quarter and St Charles Street Car
Pool and Hot Tub plus outdoor patio
iPod docking station alarm clock, great for people who sleep to music
Cons:
Floors in room were dirty, as was the rug, and there was a stain on my sheets. Nothing too offensive, but I definitely rolled back the rug and wiped the floor down before laying out my yoga mat.
The mosquito netting canopy over my bed fell out of the ceiling the night I wanted to use it.
There was some issue with my fridge leaking.
Windows don’t open, would have been nice to have had a way to get fresh air into the room.
Overall, though, this place was better than expected! It’s definitely a bargain and has a quaint feel, which was exactly what I was looking for.

Not only is this where I had my a-​ha moment of clarity that I had to move to New Orleans, in November of 2009 during my umpteenth visit to the city, sitting on my suite’s beautiful balcony overlooking the oak trees on Esplanade, this guest house was also my first home in this city. The Rathbone, or «The Bone» as my friends and I lovingly referred to it after my 8 week stay during «Summer of Fun 2010», will always have a very special place in my heart. I will always refer my out-​of-​town friends who don’t want to crash on my air mattress, and also plan to spend every anniversary of being a resident, here.
Tip: they do weekly rates in both their «B&B» rooms and their «efficiency» rooms. If you’re NOT coming here for special events like Jazz Fest or Mardi Gras, but are planning to spend some time, that’s certainly worth looking into. The efficiency rooms are in the Rathbone II across the street, but you have full use of the pool in the back of the main mansion, and trust me, my friends and I took FULL advantage of that with many a pool party. The off-​season weekly rate was $ 275 for the efficiency, quite reasonable, although I didn’t have access to laundry and the shower had fairly low water pressure. You get a microwave and fridge, no frills and basic, but I wasn’t spending much time in my room — uhm, did I mention the pool?!
Dog friendly and Renee, the manager who run this place, truly demonstrates good ol’ southern hospitality at its finest. In fact, the first place I rented in Mid-​City ended up being a total nightmare, and had to get to out ASAP. My money was tied up in the security deposit and first month rent for that place but I called Renee, explained the desperate situation and lack of available funds — he replied without missing a beat: «Girl, you want your keys back? I’ll leave them in the mailbox and you just pay me when you can. You’re family now.»

Another beautiful B&B to stay at while in NOLA. There are actually two mansions. Rathbone Mansion and Rathbone Mansion II across the street. At 2, I stayed in an immaculately large room with ceiling to floor windows, huge king sized bed, and gorgeous décor in neutral pleasant colors. Close walk to the French Quarter (and Port of Call ~ check review below). There’s also an outdoor pool and jacuzzi on the premise.
Richard, who was the Innkeeper at the time, was friendly as could be, and served up a mean breakfast in the AMs (and by mean, I mean damn good!) Also a pet friendly establishment which can be hard to find in some nicer places at times while traveling.
* One warning, this was a few years ago however I don’t suggest walking around too much at night alone, especially as a girl, it’s a bit sketchy and nightcrawlers seem to come out of the woodworks here as they can sense fresh meat. be wary and safe. .otherwise have fun!

Stayed in the Sugar Bowl Suite for 3 nights (but had reserved something smaller, I guess we lucked out):
The good:
1. Quite a large room. Honestly, it was about the size of some studio apartments here in DC. We felt like we had rented out a small apartment.
2. The furnishings in the room itself. Not over the top, good colors (minus the uncomfortable sofa bed). Dug the brass framed bed and canopy.
3. The staff was very friendly.
4. The common areas were very nice as well but they went a bit overboard with the furnishings and decorations. Suggestion to the owner: sometimes less is better.
The average:
The bathroom was inferior to mine, which isn’t exactly modern. The low shower head might have been ideal for my 5’1″ girlfriend but it most definitely was not ideal for me.
The poor:
1. The towels were pretty bad, on par with a Motel 6. Not comfortable whatsoever. At least they were clean.
2. The sheets were a little on the rough side. One sheet had a small hole in it too.
3. Crappy TV with a remote that didn’t work.
The last one I really didn’t care about since one doesn’t come to NOLA to watch TV. The reason I’m giving it 4 stars is due to the bathroom and location.
Overall a very pleasant hotel that I think is a good value (we paid $ 110/​night plus tax). It is a bit of a walk to the heart of the French Quarter, but it is pretty close to Frenchman St. If you think your trip will center around the French Quarter and/​or the other side of town (such as the Garden District, Uptown, etc), I would not suggest it if you don’t want to walk much. And if you have any qualms with anything remotely sketchy, you might not want to stay here since the neighborhood has a small sketchville flavor to it. Keyword: SMALL. It really isn’t bad at all but some of my yuppie brethern might trip out.
On the other hand, it has character and personality. I’d definitely choose it over a lot of other similarly priced hotels just due to that.