The Martha Washington Inn And Spa

First time here and we aren’t coming back. Staff is disengaged - no pleasant greetings and no friendless it’s clear they are just going through the motions. I had a horrible experience in the spa. Massage therapist clearly was not trained and her version of a spa was grinding against the bones of your back and neck. She also forgot just decided not to do any upper leg massage on the backs of my legs. Wiped my feet with a wet towel before finishing but not the soles, while is the whole point so you don’t slip. Massage room also had a loud vent near your head on the massage table so it was like your massage next to a vacuum cleaner. No apologies or asking if they could do anything when I do them the massage had been less than pleasant. They just states their price and said that standard gratuity was a 20% tip would be automatically added to my bill. Dinner at Sisters was equally disappointing. My husband ordered the shrimp and grits which was a pile of mushy glop with raisin stuff cornbread. A fried egg on top of breaded shrio and mounds of cheese piled on that. Weird and nothing like what was described on the menu (which also said it had andouille sausage - which was never seen in what came to the table).

I rarely leave negative reviews, as I want to share positive experiences for businesses instead of bad. I booked a night for new years and had to cancel due to a family health issue, the staff would not let me just cancel as it was within the no cancel window. I get that, they offered me the opportunity to rebook before April. I responded to the email with a date of March 7th as a possible rebook. Silence in the response from the Hotel. Fast forward to March 6th and I get an email from the Hotel with check in directions. I email back saying I am caught off guard by this because I had never received confirmation of a rebook. 8:30pm I finally get a call from the Hotel. Mind you I sent the email at 10:30am. In the email I sent the screen shot of the original email with the cliff hanger of no response. I was assured that they had called me twice. They had not. I was originally told that they had rebooked me on the 26th, when I hadn't even sent the rebook date until the 28th. No phone calls during the time frame and the excuse was the email probably went to my spam, even though their other emails came to my main email. Resolution was to cancel my stay, which was for a night, the cost of $325, and the opportunity to have that as a credit for the next year. The communication from the Hotel to the customer is beyond lacking and cost me for their inability to respond to emails in a timely manner. It was apparently my fault I hadn't checked my spam folder, called the hotel to follow up on if they had actually rebooked me and I was flat out lied to when they started trying to tell me about the phone calls they had made. As a fairly well versed traveler in the US and abroad this is the worst experience I have ever had with an establishment I havent set foot in. I would recommend looking at the areas other offerings, such as VRBOs

Wedding. Beautiful suites Reasonable rates Beautiful ballroom We hosted the rehearsal dinner and bridesmaid luncheon Shelby was absolutely amazing and worked so hard-she does need more help tho
It was a fantastic weekend and I would recommend Martha Washington to all for a venue or get away weekend!

We spent over$1500 over the Thanksgiving weekend on a suite at the Martha. The heat in the rooms (bedroom and sitting area) did not work. When the staff gave us space heaters, they blew the circuit breakers.

We kept the staff apprised of the situation. When we checked out, we were told we would get a credit on our bill. We received no credit.

Since then, we have sent several emails and left messages for the management to contact us. NO ONE HAS RETURNED OUR CALLS!!!! We are now 3 full weeks from the end of our stay and NOTHING in response from the management.

We love the Abingdon area and will visit again but there is no way you should stay at the Martha!

It was a family trip and we were expected much more from this hotel. Unfortunately service is not as good as we were expecting and especially in the restaurant.

We stay at The Martha each year and love staying there. The one draw for us is the hot tub. We love relaxing in the outdoor hot tub each night when we get back to the hotel. The rooms are nice and spacious, the staff is super friendly. The hotel is also very clean. You can tell it's historic. My biggest complaint is the breakfast, or lack of. Your only option for breakfast in the hotel is an omelet, a croissant, or scrambled eggs. Neither my wife nor myself like croissants or omelets, so we were pretty limited on our breakfast options. It also comes with yogurt which is... meh. So if you're used to hotels with decent breakfast options or even continental breakfast options, you may want to skip the breakfast that the hotel offers and go to a restaurant in town for breakfast. If the restaurant at the resort would give people options, I would give it 5 stars. Even if it were simple options such as bacon, biscuits, gravy, etc each day. The set menu with a single option is a major flaw I think they have.

My family of eight had dinner at Sisters at the Martha’s on Friday evening. We had a semi private room in the dining room. Our drinks and dinner were all delicious!
Marissa, our waitress, was awesome. Would definitely go there again!

Had dinner and drinks at their bar and our bartender, Nikita, was the most knowledgeable bar keep we have had in the south. We asked if she was from Russia and she said Nyet....Suspicious but ok... She made us everything we asked and the drinks were perfect. A very warm, outgoing, funny, and professional attitude. We will certainly be returning and requesting Nikita to take care of us.

We have been visiting The Martha for years and are so impressed with the upkeep. We love that we can drive up and leave the world behind. There’s no need to get back in the car until we leave - everything is at our finger tips, from three meals services (lunch service is new) to a fitness center, spa, indoor pool, boutique, outdoor (amazing) jacuzzi, putt putt, pickleball - not to mention many other food options, shopping, the creeper trail, and the Barter Theatre within walking distance. The management is exceptional as well, and will do all they can to ensure a great stay!

Really cool place! Very welcoming and a great and friendly staff. Reasonable pricing decent food. Abingdon is a neat older town the retained a lot of charm. Facilties are pretty nice at the Martha with a decent gym, pool and Jacuzzi. Definitely worth a visit!

Horrible customer service. Horrible communication.

I accidentally left my corporate card in my room and was promised it would be mailed out the next day and the tracking number be emailed to me, I even left my personal credit card information to pay for the shipping.

Since my job depends on being able to access this corporate account, it was important that this was time-sensitive matter. I left an email, left a voicemail, and called the property 5 different times. I was given the run-around, no one had answers for me, and no one apologized.

I had to call back the 6th time to talk to the Bellman Manager. He finally went to UPS and they had never sent the package. This was 7 days later.

I work in sales and hospitality and this was such a disappointment and a detriment to my job. I ended up paying the shipping fee myself since no one at the property offered to cover the cost for the hassles of the situation.

After paying over $350 for the one night stay, the customer service was lacking to say the least.

-I found out the sauna was out of order after the front desk staff told me it was an available amenity.

Overall, the hotel is very nice. The gym was excellent, and the breakfast was good. I had room 211, and it was not particularly inviting. In the two beds, you could see the box springs, and the furniture was spartan. I cannot figure out why they chose a pedestal sink, but you will have no room for toiletries. My friend's room was much nicer. I would suggest requesting a room in the older section.

A stay last year was canceled by the hotel due to their own plumbing problem. The stay this year was unable to occur because of the hotel failed to return my multiple calls. I do not believe that this is a reliable nor dependable property. I would not advise wasting my time at the Martha.

We had a Wonderful Stay from December 26 to 28, our fifth time here. The staff was very courteous, warm, friendly, and helpful.
Our Room at the Governor's Suite was perfect. The fireplaces were lit, and we felt we were living or staying during another Era of the Century.
Special thanks for our arrival, Brook at the Front Desk, very helpful and Warm.
Tonya the Geuests Services Manager, is incredibly knowledgeable about the Inn and the Town of Abingdon.
The Sisters Restaurant was amazing. Our Server, Nikita, was very detailed, warm, and knowledgeable, and the Manager, Willie, was so gracious and helpful.
We will be back next year.
Marvin and Judy Love, Charlotte, NC

My main complaint is that the room had plastic glasses and only 2 , certainly this lovely in. Could afford real glasses. . Also the only coffee available was , for us, a walk down a hall, and down a flight of stairs which was quite a hike for early risers in our pjs. The room was lovely.

What an overpriced mediocre hotel. My friend and I booked a double for about $380 total per night, way above my price point but I went along my friend's wishes. The location is right across the street from Barter Theatre, very convenient, but NOT worth the money. Upgrading is needed; there was peeling paint on the elevator ceiling. Our room was ok, but the glassware was wrapped plastic cups. PUHLEEZ-for THAT money??? Nice shower and linens, no tub. The breakfast was inferior to anything I've had at Comfort Inns or Holiday Express's. NO fresh fruit, a lame small muffin/sweetened yoghurt combo, over-cooked eggs and one sausage and one bacon slice served up on a cold plate. Serve-yourself coffee. To add insult to injury, the "server," whose sole efforts were bringing us the miserable entree, came by at the end of the "meal" to have us record a tip for him on our room charges. Gauche, uncouth, and unearned. To add to the class and graciousness of this pit, there was was a note on the hotel's TV channel informing us that if we brought our own drinks out onto the veranda we would be charged $15 per drink. Lesson I've learned: read other reviews, do homework and don't go along with something just because someone wants to.

This was our second trip to "The Martha", combining our stay with a show at The Barter Theater and dinner at The Tavern. It was as good a we remembered. We planned this trip before Tropical Storm Helene hit and devastated much of western North Carolina where we live, so this was a very welcome respite. The setting is lovely, the staff is friendly, and the room spacious. There is information on what the hotel has to offer on the TV in the room, but I was surprised to not also find some kind of information book in the room to review and also a layout of the property as there are many levels to the Inn. I took advantage of the great indoor pool and outdoor hot tub, and we enjoyed a lovely, included/complimentary breakfast the following morning. The Barter Theater is just across the street, so very convenient and the restaurant where we dined just a short walk down the street. The only issue we had is that after returning home a charge showed up on our credit card statement from the Inn we didn't recognize. I called and found this was a charge from the in-house restaurant Sisters. I noted we had not charged anything to our room from the restaurant and only went there for the breakfast and I left a cash tip. The front desk person said this would have to be resolved by the restaurant and there was nothing she could do. She would inform the restaurant. I was advised to wait a week and if the issue was not resolved to call the restaurant. We will wait and see but I was surprised this could not be resolved quickly. We shall see.

This is a nice hotel in Abingdon that's convenient to walk to the Barter Theater, and a few local restaurants in Abingdon. My review was borderline between a 3* and a 4* but I cannot give it a 4* because of the housekeeping. I had to go to the front desk twice to request extra towels and soap. Housekeeping just doesn't show up unless requested. I can understand if they are short staffed or super busy, but TWICE I saw a housekeeping girl just leaning against a wall on her phone. I think her phone was more important than the guests' needs.

The Sisters Restaurant on-site provides free breakfast for guests. However it's a set breakfast so you have no options, only what they offer for the day. The service is super, super slow in there as well. The food itself was good though and the service was friendly, just slow.

The hotel does have a 24/7 pool and hot tub. However the pool is enclosed, and there are no lights other than the lights in the pool so it's very dark. I tried every light switch and nothing turned on the lights in the pool area.

We arrived about 45 minutes early (3:15) and they adhere strictly to the 4pm check-in time, unlike other hotels. So at 4pm, there's a ton of people checking in and you will have to wait. Most hotels allow you to check in early as long as the room is ready. This was odd.

We will return to the Martha next year to see if things are any better for check-in, and the housekeeping. Hopefully it is, so we can return again. Otherwise, we'll seek another hotel in the area.

The Martha Washington Inn is a gem. Situated centrally in the lovely old
town of Abingdon, VA, with lots of things to do. We enjoyed walki with rockingng around, amazed at the architecture as well as the cute shops and the delicious restaurants. We had dinner at The Tavern the first night. It was originally the towns overnight inn and tavern for stagecoach travellers. Having many other "lives", it serves a fabau;ous restaurant now. I had the fresh North Carolina trout. Breakfast next day was at the Martha, where we stayed for 3 nights. What a joy and great find this is! Reasonably priced and includes a wonderful, healthy and hearty breakfast, and a free cordial of port after dinner on the front porch with wicker rocking chairs and sofas. Second night we ate dinner at the Inn and used our $25 off coupon towards our meal!! Can you believe that? The indoor pool has a retrablel sunroof and unique designed two-layered hot tub with falls from the top level to the lower one. We highly recommend this Inn for all 4 seasons. We were here from Richmond for grandson's Little League tournament!

Having stayed at the Martha several times in years past, I had fond memories of the hotel.
Alas, they seem to have changed a lot and not in a good way.
Breakfast was formerly a fabulous affair, ordering from a menu and the number one item was the world famous cheese grits. No more. Now it’s this is what we have. Take it or leave it.
The room was hot. Staying in the 300 suite, the most expensive suite, the thermostat would only turn to 68 but the room temp never got below 73 and during the night would go up to 75. As a fan of cold sleeping, this was concerning. I did bring it to management’s attention, and they seemed to be concerned but nothing could be done. It was June. It was 90 outside. It’s an old hotel. I understand all that. I just believe their system needs a major update.
Supper at Sisters. The website and literature advised that the dress code was business casual. Not t shirt and gym shorts. Which were abundant. Either enforce it or do away with it. Again, it’s not the fabulous hotel of yore.
Interior is a bit dingy and shabby. Minor compared to the rest.
The bell men were efficient and helpful. Rachel at Sisters was an excellent server.
The shower has issues with water only coming out of the handheld wand and not the shower head. A small thing. But still…
Sadly, unless a major overhaul is done, we will not return.