Two Weeks in Three Styles

Other Features

A stucco house with steep pitched roofs, Arbutus House welcomes guests from behind a hedge with wrought iron gate. Seven brick steps take you up to an arched alcove protecting the plank front door. The residence is set among homes, which were built for railroad executives during the period when passenger rail service ruled the day. 

Built in 1922, Gus and Lani Mitchell bought the home some fifteen years ago and decide to use it for a B&B after living there for seven years.  She grew up in the hotel business and indicated that she has been surprised at the volume of business that Arbutus House does.

Open  March 1^st each year they close for the winter on October 15^th.

One of the aspects of the house which I found attractive is the hardwood floor detail in the foyer and hall. Additional detailing can be found in the antiques throughout the residence.

There is an eagle, hand carved from Quebec pine in the living room. A Flemish farm clock keeps time in the dining room.

Breakfast is an upscale event. When we were there, the white linen table cloth had red cloth place mats and red cloth napkins to high light the setting of: bread plate, floral print coffee mugs, stemmed water glasses and five pieces of flatware to either side of the white plates.

As is often the case at Arbutus House, guests for breakfast during our stay were from many parts of the Us and other countries. One of the guests was from Scotland.

"Summer time we see a lot of folks from the southern states. We once had a visitor from Atlanta that came and expected to use British Pounds as currency. Occasionally we get someone from Australia. Everyone has as story to tell, remarked Gus

An average day for the Mitchells begins at 6:30AM. They have their own coffee and prepare breakfast which is served at 8:30 where Gus serves as host.

The balance of the morning is spent with guests- helping them with travel questions and orientation to the city.

The couple even helps with dinner arrangement s at various restaurants.

At 11:45 they break for a while. She organizes the business affairs and does the shopping. Gus attends to email and works on the web site.

People begin arriving through the afternoon and Gus sets aside a couple of hours to great guests and provide orientation.

At 6:30 they unplug and go to the beach for a while. When they return they do the preparation for the following mornings breakfast.

The house, being part of the Shaughnessy residential area is a 15 minute walk to south Granville Road and only 35 minutes walk to Kitsilano Park. A small mall is nearby where picnic lunches can be purchased and buses caught.

Perhaps it was the fact that I was writing an article which included their B&B, but the owners were more than informative about Arbutus House. Monday morning they took us for a trip through the neighborhood and over to Kitsilano Beach Park too.

At the conclusion of our stay at Arbutus House, we caught a cab to the docks and placed our baggage in the care of the stewards. Boarding the Sun-Princess was not unlike security at an airport.     

                      Connect to the Aquarium tour and Dinner Train

                      Link to the Arbutus House web site- worth doing!