Old Harbor Inn

Great location to walking just about everywhere in downtown South Haven, as well as to the beach and lighthouse. Very clean and inviting room, really comfy bed (too bad it wouldn’t fit in my little Ford Fiesta!), well-​stocked kitchenette with dishes, silverware, etc., fantastic hot water, awesome water pressure (loved my hot showers!). From reading previous reviews, I was aware of the noise level from the local bar right out my back window, so I took headphones, which did the trick, and was only needed on Friday night (quite, quite boisterous and noisy with revving car/​motorcycle engines and rowdy drunkards leaving the establishment). As I said, I was prepared, so don’t let that deter you from staying at this Inn; I must add, when it was quiet, it was REALLY quite. The only negative, which I reported, was that the smoke detector was gone, as if someone had just taken the whole thing. I’m definitely going to return, and ask for «my» room when I stay!

Positives: Extremely spacious room. Great views. Good location.
Slams: Television inoperable — could not repair or swap during our stay. Dusty furniture. Whirlpool had crusty residue not scrubbed out. Overpriced — especially considering time of the season and room quality.

My husband and I stayed the first week of September so the touristy season was pretty well over, so it almost seemed like we were the only residents at times. The room was spectacular with the exception of a very noisy bed frame. And no it wasn’t just because we were getting ‘busy’, everytime you moved it creaked loudly. (Room 19, by the way) Otherwise, the room is nicely decorated in the lake theme, nice sofa, eating area, kitchenette and bath.
We had a private balcony that was just heavenly to sit out over the harbor and watch the boats and marina activity. Would have been nice to have a tall table, as the chairs were tall ones, but we made do by using a cooler we brought with us. Sooo enjoyed sitting out there with the morning coffee!
There is a nice boardwalk with some shops that was probably booming at one time, but now there are so many empty storefronts. And I don’t think it was because of the end of the season, but I could be wrong.

I have to start with the customer service Carol was absolutely amazing!!! We were very late…
She stayed on HER OWN time and waited!!! Then waited and made sure we got settled in our room. Big thank you again to Carol :)
The room was very clean and the view was amazing. The location is perfect right on the river in the heart of downtown. We will be back and on time so we can enjoy all of the local attractions

I stayed at Old Harbor Inn 7÷1÷15−7÷4÷15. The location is perfect, right in the middle of downtown and a short walk to the beach. We had a downtown view room that contained a queen size bed, a day bed with two twins, and a couch. Plenty of space for two. The room also had a mini fridge, microwave, flat screen tv with cable, and free wifi. My only issue overall is that the bathroom could use some updating/​deep cleaning, but it wasn’t terrible or anything. There is a very small indoor pool, nothing to get excited about. If you are looking for a quiet room, I would suggest choosing a downtown view room. I slept peacefully. There are riverboat bars docked up to the inn on the harbor view side, so be mindful of that. The hotel sent us an email a few days before our stay with so many details about the town, things to do, and the upcoming busy 4^th of July weekend. If your plan is to visit South Haven, park your car, and spend the rest of your vacation carefree and walking to wherever you want to go, this is the place to stay.

Beautiful village looking Inn that was right down town and has views of the black river. Super friendly people we will be back again.

Last minute changes and unexpected early guests had me looking for extra housing for my wedding guests! 1 call to This hotel was all I needed and they handled everything so efficiently and my guests were extremely pleased with their accommodations. CI was very impressed with the entire process! Will use them every chance I get!
Such helpful staff! Thank you ALL for making it so easy in what seemed like a crisis!
Did I mention, we travel A LOT & are particularly fond of The Four Seasons and I can tell you the room choices at The Old Harbor Inn in little South Haven did not disappoint us at all and the views from each room were outstanding!!!
TRCG

Very nice place! We spent a weekend here in November and were very pleased. The staff was friendly and helpful with suggestions of local restaurant s and bars… and didn’t steer us wrong. The room was very nice, clean with nice décor… and the amenities were top notch. We will definitely be back !!!

Absolutely LOVED this hotel. We came in same day and were shown both rooms available. Staff had no problem showing us.
We chose the room facing the river, right next to the riverboat restaurant. We actually enjoyed all of the noise and commotion. The room looked like a boat and having the water outside the window really gave us the boat experience.
The décor was gorgeous, very spacious, huge tv and comfy bed. It had a microwave & fridge along with table settings, glasses & plenty of coffee.
The couch was an excellent spot to hang out on. We enjoyed sitting by the window playing cards and watching the party people on the riverboat.
The air conditioner worked great, although we shut it off and enjoyed good old fashioned fresh air.
Next time I’m in south haven if we don’t try a B&B for the first time this will be our go to! Everything about this hotel was great, and the location was perfect!

We had a great time here… would definitely stay again… the only thing was that our room was dusty and the blinds were very dirty. Other than that we were very happy with our stay

From start to finish this place was great. beautiful clean room, friendly service and great location. I’ll be returning. Balcony room highly recommended!

What a great place to stay! First time in South Haven and I have to say my welcome didn’t disappoint. Everyone was really warm and the room and view were perfect.
Upon checking into the room I was really pleased to see the place clean and spacious, and it had a great hot tub! A really fun and relaxing spot with lots of nearby parties that were close enough to walk to, but not distracting or bothersome.

The Old Harbor Inn has been a favorite of ours since we discovered it two decades ago, on our ten year anniversary. With the harbor setting, there is a distinct New England feel to the Inn and surroundings. Inside, each room has slightly different amenities (harbor view, street view, private balcony, shared balcony, hot tub, fireplace, etc) which in our minds adds to the charm of it. It is a bit pricey and no, the rooms are not modern, nor are they cookie cutter. If that is your cup-​of-​tea, I’m sure there are properties off of the Interstate that will suit you just fine but not in the heart of a small resort town like South Haven. However, the rooms are very comfortable in size and appointments. Shopping, restaurants and beach/​lighthouse are all within walking distance.

Expensive but a great location, great rooms.
If you get a room with a harbor view you can watch the boats come in and out. We also had a view of the Idler boat-​bar, interesting people watching. The room was clean and very complete with bar, fridge, huge bathroom. The Wifi was a little flakey but no different than a lot of other places. We were there on a weekday so there was no noise from the bar. Tiny but good pool. Very good location for all the bars and restaurants in the area. If the price was a bit lower I would give it 5 stars.

I called to book a room and the lady that answered was very helpful. We discussed my needs and she recommended a couple of rooms. She also made a point to make me aware of the noise from the bars that we will probably be hearing in certain rooms. Although it is pricey I have gone ahead and booked a room for the following weekend.
After the stay…
The hotel is a bit dated but then again I’m not sure if a complete remodel would be warranted here. I think it would greatly detract from the charm of the place. I think a freshening up of the place would be a much better idea (new paint, carpet etc.). They have a small indoor pool and hot tub. Nothing special but it was nice to take a dip after the miles of walking we did.
OHI has a very inventive layout with an overall feel of a small village rather than a hotel. We were in room 30 which is above the main bar/​restaurant. We braced ourselves for the noise (based on other online reviews and the warning from the operator). Yes there was evening noise but it really wasn’t that bad. I was expecting loud music from a band or DJ and instead we only heard the music from a single performer. It was really not a big deal and did not bother us in any way.
I did not meet one staff member that had an attitude and they in fact did an outstanding job on the room cleaning when we were out and about.
On to the room
The room was huge. We had a VERY comfortable king sized bed. It was so good that I actually sprang out of bed which I never do (bad back). I woke up Sunday and for the first time in years I didn’t have a single bit of back pain. I should give the place 5 stars just for that! Aside from the bed we had a sofa and love seat and a big screen tv with normal cable. It was nice to be able to flip channels as if I were home.
The room also had a small coffee maker, microwave and a fridge. It had flatware, dishes and glasses which was really nice. Now we could actually take the leftovers from a restaurant back to the room. The bathroom was also large with a large vanity which gave us more than enough room in the morning.
The only cons that I have for the place is really superficial. As I said earlier, the place could use a facelift. However, it is not enough to stop us from coming back.
I gave it a pricey rating because it is $ 200 a night. However every place in town is at least $ 200 or more. You can find cheaper accommodations but they will not be in the downtown or near the water. So all in all I cannot complain with the price.

Spent a 3-​day weekend in a Harbor View room overlooking the Black River. What a romantic and charming place! The front desk told us that each room was privately owned and uniquely decorated. We spied the Harbor Grand rooms on the floor below — pretty luxurious-​looking. The room was large (king-​sized bed, sleeper couch, dinette, and kitchenette), newly remodeled (large flat screen mounted on the wall), and cozy. We had a cute juliet balcony, too. The Kal-​Haven bicycle path was undergoing massive renovation (expansion, changing rooms, etc.), so we got a 30% discount to compensate for the torn up streets. Can’t wait to check out this place during the peak season, as well as ride the new Kal-​Haven trail.

Rented a 2 BR, 2 Bath suite with another couple and were very impressed. Clean, comfortable, and well apportioned. The kitchenette was well stocked … and the fridge in particular was big enough to hold bevies and a pizza box.
The location is right downtown South Haven where there was a nice selection of restaurants, pubs to visit for the boys, and shops and nearby wineries for the girls.
The staff was friendly and helpful, but we thought the maid cleaning the room next to us loudly claiming she got a $ 50 tip as we were taking bags out to the cars was both silly and unbelievable… and her tip from us was greatly reduced after she tried to hustle us. Kids these days…
One word of warning… the walls are a little thin. Not «you can hear your neighbors having a normal conversation» thin… not that at all…
But if you’re going to go out to the bars, get in a fight, storm back to the room [repeatedly] screaming about how you’re leaving cause you’re miserable, and then loudly «make up» the next morning… just know that your neighbors will be ruthlessly ripping on you for the rest of the weekend.
All in all, for the price point and the location we were quite happy and are already planning on going back.

I enjoyed my stay here, although it was only one night. It’s a great location on the harbor and would be perfect for a girl’s weekend especially in teh summer. Most rooms have balconies which is great for overlooking the harbor. Right in the middle of downtown and is walking distance to shops and restaurants, and the room we stayed in had a kitchenette which was a plus. Fun fact: there was a littler of kittens outside this hotel and I got to take one home.

Eight girls from Chicago traveling to New Haven, Michigan for a bachelorette party, two hotel rooms, and only one knows the name of the town is actually SOUTH Haven… what can go wrong there?
Bride: We’re here!
Maid of Honor: What’s that smell?
Bridesmaid #1: That’s pine tree, idiot.
MOH: It smells like Christmas!
Bridesmaid #2: They sell Christmas trees in New Haven?
BM #1: God… No. There’s just pine trees around… they grow in non-​concrete locations… it’s called vegetation.
BM #2: Oh right. Well I still feel like I’m in a little Christmas village. It’s so cute here! You think there are Christmas shops that sell decorations for these trees?
Bride: I hope they decorate these trees to look like Christmas trees in December!
BM #1: Kill me…
Once the literal high of fresh oxygen wore off, we were all settled in to our sweet little rooms, ready to paint New/​South Haven red, blue and every other color we could find.
This hotel is old school in a classic, very cute way. They give out REAL keys. Real keys! Which would have sucked if we had lost one (I’m genuinely shocked we didn’t…) but added to the charm of staying in a quiet hotel in a quiet town. The rooms come furnished with a coffee maker, kitchenette sink, small refrigerator and boating knicknacks that I swear start talking around 4 a.m. after a dip in the pool and a crawl of the local bar scene. I believe there was a TV as well but it was never turned on.
York’s Landing is an indoor/​outdoor restaurant/​bar attached to the hotel and incredibly convenient. Serving up fresh, fried fish and cold beer, this little dive and pool hall destination was a perfect way to begin our evenings. The patio of York’s leads out into the mini plaza filled with wine shops, t-​shirt stores and a few other locations. On Saturday evening they had a festival going with a live band, which might have been annoying if we had wanted to sleep (the Inn posts signs about such noise, fyi), but it was a fabulously fun time.
The staff is friendly and polite, even to us idiots from the city that don’t know pine trees from Christmas trees… the only qualms we had were the pool, which did not look appealing, yet we took extremely late night/​early swims in anyway, and the cobble stone hallways to the rooms. Dangerous.
Loved it, loved everything about SH, and I will retire here one day. Though I really wanted to find a t-​shirt that read, «I went to New Haven and all I could Find Were These South Haven T-​Shirts».

We stayed here one night and plan on going back. The location is great– on the water but within walking distance to everything in town. The room was really nice– not super updated though. I recommend this Inn to anyone just looking for a get away.