Hey!!!  Luray has a diner…again!  For everyone who mourned the loss of Southern Station Diner, there is reason to celebrate…and hope.  Even more important, there is now reason to go and patronize Frost Station Diner, which took over the building in June 2010…and that reason is that they are serving good food; not just any food, but old diner comfort food meals we all want to find on the menu when we visit any diner.  Best of all, the Frost Diner in Luray is the 3rd in a private chain.  With any luck, their experience in Warrenton will help them figure out how to survive the winter months in this tourism centered economy and make sure they enjoy a healthy rate of growth at this newest location.

Well, we ate there last week and we can testify that they offer the old standards …  start off with breakfast any time and then move over to steaks and potatoes, grilled pork chops, country fried beef or chicken steaks, fried chicken liver dinners and meatloaf, followed by a long string of sandwiches, hot plates, desserts and beverages.  Our meal was good, hot and delivered sooner than expected given the crowd having lunch at 2PM that afternoon and the price was right.  We’ll certainly keep it on our list of places to grab a quick meal and hope you’ll try it when you are in Luray.

So remember, when you are headed for Luray and want a quick breakfast from 7AM to 10PM or something else from the diner menu, look for Frost Station Diner at 913 East Main Steet, Luray, VA 22835…tele 540-743-9000

If you’ve fried in July’s cauldron of 100F days, if you are frizzled at the gills from humidity AND the heat, if you can’t face another weekend in the city, well then,  you need to head for Luray, Virginia and the Shenandoah River!  We, of course, hope you will decide to stay at South Court Inn and make us your home base for fun on the river.  The river is only 9 miles from Luray if you have your own boat and outfitters only a bit further.

What you’ll find is a host of businesses and activities just waiting to put you in a canoe or kayak, on a tube or boat deck or something else entirely.

New this year for example, did you know that we have a company offering leisure cruises on the Shenandoay River?  Well, we do.  It is Shenandoah River Cruises and they are offering sightseeing and wine tasting cruises, as well as specially themed  and private cruises like birthday and anniversary celebrations.  They are new and we’re hearing good things about them, so check out their web site.  BTW, you really do need to heed their suggestion that your book cruises for the fall color season long before October arrives!

Here are links to and a few comments about some of our favorite outfitters… you know, the folks that rent you a canoe for the day or put you on the river for several days.  Click each of the links here and you’ll get a web site to help you find somebody that specializes in just what you want:

Shenandoah River Outfitters is celebrating 40 years in the business and has a discount coupon for your to print right from their web site.  Nancy and her folks know the river and business backwards and forwards and keep folks coming back year after year.  They are the closest to South Court Inn.

Do you want to go fishing?  We’ve referred folks to C.T. Campbell at Page Valley Fishing for years now.  He knows where the brook trout are in the mountains and can clamber over some of the hardest terrain going to get your fly just where it needs to be.   Or, if you want something a little less strenuous, he knows the river just as well.   Give him a call!

Enjoy Nature in Shenandoah National Park and on Skyline Drive!

Good morning!  Just as we tell our guests at South Court Inn that they haven’t been to Luray until they have seen Luray Caverns, we also tell guests that they haven’t enjoyed Mother Nature until they visit Shenandoah National Park and drive the scenic Skyline Drive.

A word to the wise here:  If you would like to visit the Park or the Luray area during the fall color season, you need to plan ahead.  Book a stay with us here at South Court as soon as you can.  The best rooms and days will be take by 1 Oct 10.  The time of peak color varies from year to year, but you should have color to enjoy from mid-October to mid-November.  Keep in mind too that everything will be crowded on weekends, but fantastically uncrowded from Monday through Thursday.  Come during that time and you’ll be able to enjoy all the attractions without feeling pressed by the visitors who only come on weekends!  The same advice goes for dining.  Ask us and we’ll be happy to make reservations for dinner as soon as you make reservations with us.  Arrive on a weekend without planning where you will eat and you will probably have to settle for whatever we or you can find that has an open seat at after 8 or maybe even 9PM.

The Park stretches from just South of the Town of Front Royal to Interstate 64…a distance of about 105 miles…and encompasses nearly 200,000 acres. The Park is well-known for its spectacular fall color, the number and variety of hiking trails spread out across the sides of the Blue Ridge Mountains.   Click the first link here and you’ll find their home page where you can branch out to make reservations for campsites and rooms at the lodges.  NOTE TO BLACKBERRY LOVERS:  The food at the Skyland Lodge dining room is very good, but more importantly the Mile-High Blackberry Pie is fantastic.  As you head off to your camp site or room, you’ll be proud of yourself for remembering to call ahead for reservations and for ordering the pie!

Now for a bit about Skyline Drive.  Several years ago, we did a travel log of Skyline Drive and posted photos and comments about the entire 100+ mile road on the web site called MilebyMile.com.  We started at the northern terminus and drove the entire length of the Drive.  Click this link and you’ll be able to read about Skyline Drive and see photos of overlooks and activities all the way to the southern terminus, the point where it crosses over I-64, and shortly thereafter becomes the Blue Ridge Parkway.

So, I hope today’s post will grab your attention and get you thinking not just about enjoying the Park, but planning a great visit during the fall color season.  The mountains are especially beautiful during the fall color season and planning ahead will turn your visit into a great and enjoyable getaway!

Good morning! Since Anita and I worked 3 years and lived apart for 4 to get this house turned into South Court Inn B&B (I had a friend’s basement room in the DC area during the week and came out to Luray on weekends, holiday and vacation time to work on the house and business, while Anita was here full time from Sept 1997 on.) we are always glad to share the success of somebody else’s dream come true. That and the fact that it is such a great artistic asset to the Town is why I choose to encourage you to make sure you visit the Warehouse Art Gallery every time you visit the Town of Luray.

The Warehouse Art Gallery was the dream of one man: Jim Mayes.  He opened the gallery in 2002 and has stuck with it through thick and thin.  He solicited artists to display at the gallery and has added more and more artists and types of art as time passed.  Today the gallery is a fantastic collection of art from artists across the Shenandoah Valley.  You’ll especially appreciate the various types of art…pottery, oil, pastels, mixed media, sculpture, photographs, mobiles, jewelery and much more.  Jim is constantly out looking for new and challenging artists and art forms.

You’ll want to check out the Warehouse Art Gallery web site for special events such as music jams Jim pulls together periodically and his bring your lunch program.  Pick up a sandwich and drink at a local restaurant and take advantage of the tables set up throughout the gallery.  It is a break from the usual lunch scene and a chance to enjoy a longer view of the artworks on display.

Some of the sculpture exhibited at the Warehouse Art Gallery, Luray, Virginia

Good morning!  Just got guests on their way home and came up to see if I can get this updated posted before noon.

Today I want to tell you about the Singing Tower of Luray. It sets in a park just South of  RT 211, opposite the entrance to Luray Caverns, and houses a carillon of 47 bells ranging in size from nearly 4 tons to only 12 pounds.  The park is a great place to take a break, enjoy a picnic or listen to a concert of the bells.

The timing on carillon concerts varies throughout the year, so here’s a listing to let you know whether there will be a concert during your visit:

April, May, September and October – Saturdays and Sundays at 2:00 PM

June, July and August – Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays at 8:00 PM

Easter Sunday for Sunrise Services

Labor Day at 12:00 Noon

Sunday before Christmas at 4:00 PM

Good morning!  Today I want to talk about insights into our history and the opportunity you have to enjoy relics of the past as part of your visit to Luray.  So, I choose a visit to the properties owned by the Page County Heritage Association in Hamburg, today only a small cluster of homes and buildings about two miles outside Luray.  There you’ll find the Association’s Calendine Museum set up in the house  once owned by famed sculptors William Randolph Barbee and his son Herbert, along with the Mauck “meeting house” (a place where those not members of the Episcopal Church when the Church was the Official State Church could meet with fear of problems with the local constabulary) which dates from the mid-1700s and the Hamburg Store which recreates a well-stocked “country store” circa 1940s.

In Calendine, the Association displays lots of items from Page County and its residents dating all the way back to Colonial times.  If you’ve forgotten that our early settlers actually wore some pretty bright clothing rather than just the dark black so often (wrongly) attributed to the Pilgrims, keep an eye out for the bright yellow deerskin pants from the frontier times and the hole in them where the musket ball injured the wearer in battle.  In the kitchen you’ll get a chance to examine up close one of the few surviving “Pennybacker” stoves and marvel at the good quality of ironwork being turned out by Pennybacker’s furnace right here in Luray in 1799.

The Mauch Meeting House and the Hamburg Store are directly across the street from Calendine and worth the effort to see, as well.

NOTE TO READER:  These Association’s buildings are open the 2nd Saturday of each month June through Oct, and by special request in advance of your visit, so do visit their web site for details and try to see these properties when you are here.

Keep in mind as well that the Association opens all 3 buildings during the Page County Heritage Festival, scheduled for 8 & 9 Oct 2010 at the Page County Fairgrounds in Luray, and on the 1st Sunday of December each year, when it hosts a community sing along with guest visitors singing.  Come enjoy an “old time” sing in the Mauck Meeting House and refreshments at Calendine afterward.

Good morning!  As promised, I’m up and going early to make sure I can post a comment about Things to Do in Luray.   But first, I have to tell you that we finally got rain last night!   I have not been out to get the paper yet, but I am hoping it came in time to rescue some of our black-eyed Susans.  I’d sure like to see that sea of yellow begin to break across the front garden beds.

Now, let me tell you about the BB&T Center for Performing Arts Luray .  It began about 6 years ago with the idea of converting a large bank building in downtown Luray to a center where performing artists could share their love of music, stage and performance with the public.  The group formed a non-profit corporation, started raising funds and approached BB&T Bank about buying the building.   It took a keen bit of negotiation, but they were successful and have been open for several years, presenting concerts, plays, improv and live mike nights for everyone to enjoy.

Right now, they are working on a Children’s Theater presentation of Charlotte’s Web scheduled for the end of July and early August.  In September, they have  scheduled an evening of  classical music, another of blues  and on 25 September, they will host their inaugural Chili Cook-Off, Car Show and Beer Garden.  In short, there’s an activity at the Center several times each month and you’ll be surprised at the quality of the performances!

And, of course, we hope you will remember that South Court Inn caters to couples.   We strive to provide accommodations and an atmosphere where you can slow down and have time to recall those special things that brought the two of you together.  Whenever you head in this direction, we hope you will come stay with us here at South Court Inn…and see if there is something going on at the BB&B Center for Performing Arts of Luray!

Good morning!  Looking for an upside to the weather?  Well, aside from the fact that the forecasters are promising some relief in the next day or so, the upside for me is that I’m reminded that I need to be more active on this blog.  So today I’m posting the first of what will become 10 postings on my listing of the Top 10 Things to Do in Luray VA … things you should plan to see or do when you visit South Court Inn and the Luray, VA area.

I  have to admit that my own title here scares me just a bit.  All too often, lists of 10 whatevers become newspaper or magazine articles.  That works out well for the reader who can pick up the paper product and resume reading from where they left off.  I, however, find long on-line articles more challenging, so I’m doing this one suggested activity at a time.  I hope you’ll come back to read my daily posting and let me know if there is something you think I’ve missed.

So, with all that said, what is the #10 thing I recommend you plan as part of your visit to Luray?  Visit the Luray Zoo! The zoo has a large collection of animals and offers daily outdoor presentations and demonstrations from April through October.  You’ll get the chance to see birds of prey, the tiger, lots of reptiles and outdoor animals.  There is lots for the kids to enjoy and the price is right.

When we lived in the Washington DC area, I always enjoyed visiting the reptile building at the National Zoo.  Growing up in rural eastern North Carolina, I was accustomed to encountering snakes in the woods and fields.  It was always fascinating to come across them and observe their behavior.  But I had a real Ah Ha moment when we moved to Luray and I visited the Luray Zoo.  As it turns out, it has a snake collection that rivals or maybe even exceeds that of the National Zoo.    You see, the Luray Zoo is  a rescue haven for abused and illegally imported animals, particularly reptiles.  When police and animal rescue organizations throughout the tri-state area find themselves holding snakes and other reptiles and need to find a home for them, many contact the Luray Zoo immediately.  So, when you are in Luray, plan a visit to the zoo and enjoy the wide range of programs they offer and enjoy an opportunity to view an exceptionally large collection of  rare and exotic reptiles too boot!

So, mark that on you list of activities for your visit to Luray, VA, and return tomorrow when I discuss #9 on my list of 10 Things to Do in Luray, VA!  Cheers, Tom

Tonight I want to tell you about another surprising place for ethnic dining when you are visiting Luray and what a hidden surprise it is.  You are going to love The Brick Oven Pizzeria at 58 Main Street, Luray, VA 22835.  The first surprise is that the Brick Oven Pizzeria is here at all, and the second is that Maria also offers deeply flavorful, soul-pleasing, crisp… tart… pungent… mouth-watering Indian cuisine (by reservation only) on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday nights.  Whether for pizza or for reservations, call 540-743-2600 and get the ball rolling.

You’ll recognize Maria by her petite size, sound and presence.   She is the constantly smiling, bundle of energy you’ll see or hear just about any time you enter restaurant.  Her smile and energy are infectious.  You can’t be around here without feeling happier and better.

Try her crisp, thin crust, honest-to-goodness, learned at the counter and the oven authentic New York pizza and you’ll swoon.  This in none of that half-done doughy-frisbee kind of thing so commonly flaunted as pizza; it is the clean, fresh crisp-crust tart-when-it-is-supposed-to be, herbal-when-it-is supposed-to-be, meaty- when-it-is-supposed-to-be, wheel of flavor so many of us remember from our taste of pizza so long ago…back before it became the thing to pile so much on top you could not see the crust and had to use a ladle to scoop the cheese soup to a plate to eat it with a spoon.

If you are here mid-week and like Indian cuisine, call the Pizzeria and book an Indian dinner instead.  Keep in mind that Indian dinner is available by reservation only and that it takes a lot of work to prepare good Indian food.  This is not Indian buffet; there is not enough demand in our meat and potatoes area to justify a large menu or quantity cooking.  Think instead of  home-style 3 or 4 dishes prepared just for the guests coming that evening.

Typically, you can expect tasty offering of dhal, a meat or vegetable curry, a masala, raita, corriander chutney, basmati rice and a finish of rice pudding with rose water and pistachio, Indian cheese or perhaps even butter-stewed chickpea flour balls steeped in honey.

Whatever you find, you’ll be glad you took the time to make the reservations and enjoy a taste of India right here on Main Street Luray, VA.

And, of course, we hope you’ll plan on spending a few night with us here at South Court Inn.  Keep an eye on our blog for upcoming announcements about special savings on multiple night stays and a special program that will make our cottage available as a private rental for up to 10 days at a time.  We think you’re gonna like the savings and the values we will be offering in these new marketing programs.  Give us a call…toll free 888-749-8055…and talk!

We’re glad you found South Court Inn and hope you’ll come to stay with us at our Bed & Breakfast and

South Court Inn Innkeepers

home here in Luray, Virginia.

We cater romantic getaways for couples seeking quality time together. That’s why we offer a wide variety of anniversary, elopement, and honeymoon packages. From the day we bought our home, we wanted to create a place where couples could come and relax in friendly elegance here in Luray, VA.

Even with all the Victorian decor, we are not a museum, but a couples retreat where we want you “to make yourselves at home!” We offer four guest rooms in the main house and our private Susie Hodges Cottage for that very special getaway.

Our Rates and Packages include a complimentary:

• Help-Yourself Coffee and Tea Bar
• Full Gourmet Breakfast
• Help-Yourself Snack Bar

If you are wondering what you can do in Luray, VA? You’ll find South Court Inn in Luray, VA is close to just about anything you want to do.  Hiking? Wine Tasting? Exploring Caverns? It’s all nearby and we have specially priced packages for just about everything you’d like to do.  We hope you make us your home base for fun while visiting in our area.

We’re only 2 hours from Washington D.C. metro area and convenient to everything the historic Shenandoah Valley has to offer.

Come for a visit…..and plan to relax when you get here.