When we bought Blue Haven two things were clear: the beach is absolutely beautiful, and we would have to upgrade all the cottages.
Upgrading the cottages would happen in a few phases over summer 2022 before we had some major overhalls in 2023. To start the 2022 summer season we made some quick improvements - painted each unit, replaced TV's, added keyless locks, and purchased new linens. We also added some new art work and placed a welcome basket into each cottage before a new guest would stay.
Between stays we started to refresh kitchen cabinets removing the doors on upper cabinets to open the space up with a fresh look.
Other improvements had to wait until the resort was closed for the winter. After our last guest left for the year we removed the old carpet from each cottage and replaced it with new hard flooring - carpet was not the right choice for a beach! While the carpet was being replaced so was the electrical, with old fuse style circuits being replaced with new modern fuse boxes and updated wiring. And we love the quality of 1940's building materials but the storm doors had finally met their match and were replaced with new doors. We finished up the 2022/23 winter upgrades with a refresh of our showers. Each shower has new hardware, and most of them were completely rebuilt with new plumbing and tile installed.
Next up we will refresh the landscaping before opening for the 2023 season, along with minor exterior improvements to the cottages. We have worked on our backend systems, and have a new reservation and payment system in place for this year - hopefully relieving the pain that the previous free use software caused.
But with all that we aren't done! Our third phase will see future upgrades to the remaining showers and electrical, new AC units (after 80 years it's time to bring this 1960's luxury to the cottages), exterior painting, and new lawn games. We complete the third phase by replacing the hot water tanks and refreshing the kitchens.
An 80 year old resort needs love, but it will love you right back.
