Saybrook Point Inn & Spa to open adults-only guesthouse

OLD SAYBROOK >> The Saybrook Point Inn & Spa will open an eight-room guesthouse next month across Bridge Street from the main property, the culmination of a dream Stephen Tagliatela had 16 years ago.

Tagliatela, co-owner of Saybrook Point Inn & Spa, used to walk past a home on his way to work every day that was originally built in 1892 as a single-family home for engineer William Vars. But by 1998, the old, ornate Victorian home overlooking the mouth of the Connecticut River and Long Island Sound was showing its age and looking like it might collapse under its own weight.

It was at that point that Tagliatela decided to write a new chapter in the old home’s history.

East Wharf Architects of Madison and Stamford-based Silver Contract Interiors researched and replicated the architecture and interior design of the era that Vars first lived in the home. Franklin Construction of New Haven was the lead builder on the renovation project.

The new Three Stories guesthouse is an adults-only facility, designed for hosting corporate retreats or quiet getaways for couples. Its wraparound porches, private gardens and common rooms with billiards and books offer guests a place to relax.

The guesthouse will open May 1 with rates starting at $349 a night. Each of the eight rooms is individually designed and includes a pri­vate balcony, fireplace, heated bathroom floors, multiple shower heads, extensive water views and original artwork by local artists.

“It’s been a labor of love, and we’re thrilled to finally make our dreams a reality,” Tagliatela said in a statement. “We wanted to save the house, and that came from liking our neighborhood.”

Tagliatela and his family are hospitality industry veterans.

His grandparents operated the local Castle Inn in the 1950s, which hosted famous guests including Charlie Chaplin, Howard Hughes and Jimmy Durante. Later, his father and mother bought the Terra Mar Hotel in 1980 after its previous owners had been foreclosed on and replaced it with the Saybrook Point Inn & Spa, which includes a spa, marina, and restaurant.

“It’s always a dream when you do this to have a perfect inn,” Taglietela said. “For some people, perfect is a few rooms, with a living room and a place for board games, and porches.”

The historic Saybrook Point Inn & Spa property has been hosting guests since 1870.

That’s when the Pease House opened on the present site of the Saybrook Point Inn. The small country hotel, built by William Pease, hosted guests until 1956.

The property was later purchased by a group that built the Terra Mar Hotel and Yacht Basin on the site, which operated until it went into foreclosure in 1979.

Tagliatela’s parents, Louis and Mary, bought the unoccupied and dilapidated Terra Mar at auction and nine years later, they opened the Saybrook Point Inn on the site. The upscale hotel has 82 rooms.

Call Luther Turmelle at 203-789-5706.