A busy summer in Duluth!

Spring is in the air, and the sense of another wonderful Duluth summer is in the air too! As we approach the “blooming” month of May, after the April “rain/snow” showers, the veranda and patio furniture is in place. New window boxes have been ordered, and I can just picture the amazing floral display that will take place not only in the window boxes, but all around the grounds as well. We will be putting in 3 new raised beds for more herbs, veggies, and flowers this year (Tim facetiously calls it my “farm”). The flower pots have been dug out of storage, and the yard has been raked. Ah…it’s time to enjoy the beautiful season that is summer in gorgeous Duluth, Minnesota! Hopefully we will get time to enjoy a cup of coffee or a glass of wine with our guests amongst the blooms!

As always, Duluth will be full of attractions and events this year. A recent bit of great news is that a small group of Tall Ships will be once again gracing our port in July. It will not be on the grand scale of last summer, but will be a nice surprise for the season. This May the newly remodeled DECC will be hosting a couple of superstars, Elton John and Sheryl Crow. Then later this summer at Bayfront Park we will have the great honor of Willie Nelson performing.

The Visit Fleet will be setting sail and begin their dinner cruises on May 7th with the regular sightseeing tours beginning May 13th! The Glensheen Mansion will be opened daily (just weekends now) beginning on May 27th, and the William A. Irvin has already begun limited tours.

Of course this is just a small sampling of the multitude of things to do in Duluth and along the North Shore. A favorite stop is always Gooseberry Falls and Split Rock Lighthouse, but don’t forget about Tettegouche State Park and Palisade Head further up the North Shore. Plus so much more! We have a ton of information for you and can always help you plan your stay.

Finally, we are very excited to start our summer with some great recognition from one of the Midwest’s premier magazines, Midwest Living. In April, we learned we were chosen as a “Best Bed and Breakfast” in the North Shore for the 2011 Midwest Living Travel Guide. This guide provides travelers a list of the very best places to stay. We were then incredibly honored to be chosen in their top 30 “Best B&B’s” in the May/June 2011 issue of Midwest Living. We are the only Bed and Breakfast chosen for our North Shore region, and quite honored to be selected when realizing that the magazine covers and includes an entire 12 state region. Midwest Living is also one of the rare publications that actually send its writers to stay at the places they endorse!
Thank you to the amazing travel writers and editors of Midwest Living magazine for taking time to visit us, and for choosing our Inn as a “Best B&B” in both issues! We’re looking forward to another great year in our gorgeous port city; and to welcoming old and new friends as we embark on the season that is THE reason we love Duluth!!

An Award winning year!

The seasons are once again changing in Duluth and the shipping season is already underway. It seems like it was just yesterday when the last ship came in for the winter layover, and here we are smiling as we look out at the Lake to see them once again making their way in and out of our beautiful port city of Duluth!

We have enjoyed an unusually busy year so far at our Duluth Bed and Breakfast. If the first quarter of 2011 is any indication of how the rest of the year will be, we better hold on tight! We are deeply grateful to all of our guests, past and future, for choosing to spend their valuable time and resources with us. We are excited to see many of you again, and look forward to making new friends!

We have managed to complete some projects we had planned; here is a quick update! Painting has been the project of the year so far with the grand entry way of the Inn getting a beautiful new color on its walls; a welcoming and warm Benjamin Moore “Mineral Alloy.” The dining room also has been updated, along with the Salyards Room. The entry way of the Carriage House has a new trim and wall color, and the North Shore Retreat is now complete with new trim and wall paint. Good thing Tim’s a very, very good painter!!

You can follow all of our projects, and get updates and photos by “Liking” us on Facebook and following us on Twitter too! We hope to complete a few more projects before the whirlwind of the season begins.

We were incredibly excited to learn we were chosen for several prestigious awards and recognitions in 2011. We are grateful and humbled by the recognition, and know that we could not have accomplished what we have without the support of our wonderful guests, friends, family and colleagues! We love Duluth, and are very much aware of how lucky we are to live in such a beautiful destination area that allows us to share our home with you!


Here is a brief update of what your support has helped us realize this year:
• LanierBB.com awarded the AG Thomson House Bed and Breakfast with the “Best Amenities” honor
• iLoveInns.com selected the AG Thomson House Bed and Breakfast as a “Top Ten Romantic Inn in North America”
• Duluth~Superior Magazine’s “Best of” poll for 2011 awarded the AG Thomson House Bed and Breakfast in five categories: “Best Bed and Breakfast” (second year in a row), “Best Amenities”, “Best Romantic Getaway”, “Best In-Room Dining” (second year in a row), and “Best Hotel Rooms” (second year in a row). And we came in second place for “Best Hotel.” Wow! We thank you all for taking the time to vote for us. We were told that over 700 votes came in for the AG Thomson House Bed and Breakfast! Simply amazing!

• Midwest Living magazine puts out a Travel Guide each year and the AG Thomson House Bed and Breakfast was named a “Best of the Midwest” in their 2011 issue. We are the only Bed and Breakfast in our North Shore region to receive this honor.

We will continue to keep you updated via our Blog, Facebook, and Twitter so be sure to bookmark these pages. You can also become a subscriber to our You Tube channel, and check out our Flickr page. And don’t forget, to become a subscriber to our quarterly newsletter too!

Happy Spring to all of you!