Americus Garden Inn

Bed & Breakfast

“where history meets romance…”

By LEILA BARRETT CASE - The Americus Times-Recorder, Spring 2004

(To view this article in Adobe PDF format, please click HERE.)

You get more than a room and breakfast at Americus Garden Inn. A warm and inviting atmosphere reigns supreme at this home away from home located at 504 Rees Park in the heart of Americus' historic district. In fact, innkeepers Kim and Susan Egelseer make guests feel so welcome and comfortable with their pampered touches that they leave feeling like they've been to "grandma's" house for a visit instead of a bed and breakfast inn.

But what else does this romantic antebellum house built in 1847 turned bed and breakfast offer? And what makes the travelers' stay there extraordinary and different?

The Egelseers are committed to making their guests' visit memorable. "Our goal is to make visitors feel like they're at home," says Kim. "I think perhaps what distinguishes us from other bed and breakfasts or hotels is that Susan and I are on duty full time, providing guests a high level of service for their entire visit."

As part of that service, the innkeepers give personal suggestions for activities that are available in the area, the various dining options and arrange dinner reservations, provide driving directions to area attractions and other services that people might request for a special occasion like celebrating an anniversary or birthday memorable.

Kim points out the inn's location situated on an acre and a third in Rees Park, one of the most historic sections of the city, provides a quite, serene and tranquil atmosphere. "This sets the inn apart from other bed and breakfast inns and hotels. Instead of high traffic noise, our guests can enjoy birds and other critters as well as the night sounds of frogs and cicadas."

The inn has a total of eight spacious guest rooms. Two rooms are on the first floor and five on the second floor.

There is an executive suite separate from the main house that is large enough to accommodate a family or guests staying for an extended period of time. Each room has a full bath, one has a Jacuzzi, king size bed and in certain rooms there are two queen size beds, TV with VCR, telephones with data port and voice mail. Other common rooms on the main floor include the living room, where guests can visit or enjoy singing around the baby grand player piano. Shelves are filled with a well-stocked movie library and various board and card games. In the spacious and airy dining room, guests assemble in the mornings for what Kim describes as one of the best parts of their stay, "Susan's world-class breakfast."

"Susan is the chef and I am the taste tester," he said with a smile. "She loves to cook and our guests enjoy her creations. Susan's breakfasts are unique – something you wouldn't prepare at home, or even find offered at a restaurant. She has hundreds of recipes and changes the menu daily." Guests are served a full breakfast in three courses, beginning with fruit, followed by fresh home-made baked products and the entrιe – an egg-based dish – which is always served with the pancakes of the day.

"Part of the bed and breakfast experience is breakfast, and we make ours a meal that is memorable – one you can linger over and savor," says Kim. "Folks don't often get to do that – but it is one of life's little simple pleasures that we offer our guests."

Kim and Susan Egelseer came to Americus by design. They have been operating Americus Garden Inn Bed and Breakfast for a year, having purchased the business and property from former owners/operators Don and Jodi Miles, who retired and moved out of state. The Miles' lovingly restored and updated the house and converted it to a bed and breakfast inn in the mid-1990s.

Kim Egelseer describes the couple's first year here as "very enjoyable. We've met so many wonderful people. Financially, it has been pretty much what we expected and projected."

The couple moved to Americus from Florida, where Kim worked in management in the corporate world for more than 20 years. Tiring of the fast-paced lifestyle and stress that goes along with big business, the couple wanted a less hectic existence and decided to move to a middle or small size city. They researched the market for bed and breakfasts, a search that took them all across the country, and finally settled on Americus Garden Inn.

"We have found Americus and Sumter County to be delightful – we're happy to be refugees from the big city and it is working out just fine," says Kim.

To know more about Americus Garden Inn Bed and Breakfast you can take a virtual tour by logging on to their Web site at www.americusgardeninn.com.

[ Inn Tour | Details | Attractions | Links | Map | History | FAQ | Home ]