Big Experience, Itty Bitty Inn

The place we stayed at the first night on our birthday road trip for Pedro was so much fun, it gets its own post. It’s the Itty Bitty Inn in North Bend, Oregon.

While planning this trip, I had searched for an hour online, trying to find something special for the night. I looked at many Airbnb places, many motels with beach views and hot tubs, a couple bed & breakfasts. The prices were too high, or they looked too ordinary, or too out of the way, or something else. I took a careful look at this tiny Inn right on Highway 101 that looked – if not special – at least interesting.

Each of the five rooms is themed. There is an Oregon Trail room, and That 70s Room. Most especially, there is a Star Trek Enterprise Room – but it was booked. I reserved the Tiki Lounge Room.

Like I mentioned in my last post, host Ric called us while we were still on the road and offered to find a choice of places that were open (it’s a small town). Sure enough, when we arrived, Ric was there to greet us and recommended a new brewery in town that has high quality food – he recommended the perfectly prepared fish and chips – and showcases local artists on the walls.

Then he gave us a tour of our room and answered questions. He said our movie for the night would be the Bond movie Dr. No, and set it up for us in the DVD player. I didn’t know there would be a movie, so he explained that it’s a courtesy for guests, and the movie selections are designed to match the theme of the room.

Ric asked what brought us there and we said it was Pedro’s birthday. He said, “For your birthday you must have a complimentary drink!” On a little table in the corner were two clean glasses and he took them and said, “Follow me.” We went back to the office and there he had on tap a local beer and a local cider they were showcasing. I took a cranberry cider – because cranberries are a significant export in this part of Oregon. And Pedro tried the beer. “Anything you need, even if it’s an emergency in the night, do not hesitate to call me,” he said.

We sipped our drinks and made our way back to the room. I took a lot of photos.

We had a nice dinner and the fish and chips was as fresh as advertised and the breading was light and perfect. Eager to get back to the Tiki Room, we skipped a second drink at the restaurant and stopped by a store and picked up some Zinfandel on the way home. We used our now-empty glasses from earlier, and poured some wine and settled in to watch Dr. No. I had yet to see a Bond movie with Sean Connery – can you believe it?! – and I was looking forward to it.

We also explored the room some more, and that’s when we discovered the turntable and the phone. It was fun to use some unrealized muscle memory when I reached out to pick up the phone and bring it over to the bed. I knew exactly how to pick it up, with my hand on top of the receiver. If you used these phones in your past life, you know exactly what I mean. I dialed a few fake numbers, and missed how satisfying that is, to feel the dial’s resistance and to wait for it to finish turning before you can dial the next number.

We continued exploring in the morning, and I discovered that there is a real AM radio on top of the Tiki Bar, and it actually works! I turned the dial till I found a station (it was a sports commentator, naturally), and played it while we packed our bags. Before we left, I made sure to get photos of every mural outside. The place is certainly welcoming of Star Trek and Star Wars fans, and the website includes photos of people who stayed here, wearing their Enterprise uniforms. So cute. They are also set up for Tesla fans, and the charging station is in the center of the parking area.

Sunday night, when we were done checking in, Ric told us he had to go and put the chickens to bed. I told him I was a chicken momma too, so he said that I must go see the mural on the outside of the office. That’s it above. The next day we tracked him down to say goodbye. He called us his “loves,” and told us guests are family and that we must come back. Awww. ❤