by Barbara Weibel of Hole In The Donut Travels

“If these walls could only talk,” I thought as I walked into the lobby of the Linden Row Inn. I was in Richmond, Virginia for a writer’s conference and, sight unseen, had made reservations at this historic hotel at the suggestion of conference organizers. As it was located in the slightly dilapidated – yet reawakening – city center, I expected another run-of-the-mill, seedy hotel. Instead, I found eight Greek Revival row houses that have been lovingly restored and converted to a 70-room hotel.

Linden Row Inn, looking toward historic row houses

The moment I set foot in the Linden Row I was transported back to the nineteenth century, when Richmond was the capital of the confederacy. Wooden rockers line the interior balconies, wrought iron tables and chairs dot the red brick paved courtyard, and antique leather sofas and chairs in the Parlor Lounge tempt guests to while away the hours with a book and a glass of wine. Guest rooms, many with original windows nearly reaching to 12-foot ceilings, are filled with antiques and reproductions from the Victorian and Empire periods, yet the facility has bowed to modern times by providing cable TV with premium channels, coffeemakers, clock radios, and complimentary high-speed Internet access. Read More »