The John Carver Inn & Spa

Great place to bring your family. The price is right, and it’s an nice little getaway. My girlfriend, her son, and my daughter went for one night last year. We will be going back next month. Can’t wait.

Overall nice trip.
Snafu at check in had the hotel charging me $ 50 more. I had to «prove» my rate, which I had via confirmation. Check In Staff member commented that it was unheard of that they would offer such a rate during school vacation week. She seemed to be alluding to the fact that I somehow scammed the system. But, they honored the rate, begrudgingly. I would also check your bill. There’s some other strange charges on there that were never explained.
BUT — pool is great. My daughter loved it. There are lifeguards present but they were inconsistent and pretty disengaged, so I would keep an eye on all children in the pool.
Room was OK. Beds were very comfy, good temperature, nice TV. But the whole hotel had a very «dark» feel to it. Rooms seemed stuffy, whereas hotel seemed to be aiming for family-​friendly.
Food at the restaurant was very good. Additional activities for families throughout the week was a great idea.
I would recommend, with the caution to bring print outs of all your paperwork with you.

I booked a reservation for Thanksgiving, EXTREMELY disappointed!!! Being in PLYMOUTH, you would think you would have REAL turkey for your Thanksgiving day dinner. Surprise’, It was processed meat that you would get from the deli. I was so looking forward to getting a leg and they told me that they didnt have any legs, it was all pre-​cut meat. It was dry and tasteless!!! If you are going to charge $ 30pp, you need to have REAL turkeys.
The room was nice and clean. Unfortunately, the people next door to us were extremely loud and obnoxious. Kids were yelling and screaming and doors kept slamming all night. I mentioned this upon checkout and the response was «We are sorry, hope you will come back.»
Are you kidding??? This room was double the cost of a room at Disney!!! (where you would expect noise from children!) I would have been very thankful if I got a discount based on my complaint for the disrupted behavior of their guests.
The pool would have been relaxing if the lifeguard would have kept they kept the slider doors closed!!! Why in the world would you open doors to a indoor pool and freeze people??? If you are too warm in there, then go outside and sit on the deck!!! Dont open doors to a heated pool area where people are wet and subject them to cold air!
I would not recommend this hotel to anyone, especially not for Thanksgiving!

DON’T ever try their Thanksgiving dinner. Worse than school cafeteria schlock. Turkey was the quality you’d get from a frozen dinner. Indian pudding was gross, almost as if you were expecting smooth delicate chocolate pudding, yet it came out chunky or grainy. And, of course, with a mass serving meal the food temperatures were room temp or even cool. Yuck!

Review of Thanksgiving dinner at the John Carver Inn. We were intrigued with the location, respectable price, and promise of seconds and a turkey sandwich to take home. Unfortunately, the ambiance was a room full of tables, a dining companion mentioned that some music would have been pleasant. The waitress asked if we were all getting the turkey meal, we all were. Well, when that arrived it very much resembled food you may see at an institution: mashed potatoes, mashed butternut squash, peas, and a gelatinous heap that was gravy covered. The heap was stuffing/​dark meat/​white meat/​gravy. A dining companion asked the waitress to take back her plate and bring one without gravy (we didn’t imagine the meal would be pre-​gravied, thought there would be a gravy boat). That was done, but with eye rolling and some discussion about how the stuffing touched all the meat (but we were concerned with the gravy). I mean, yes the stuffing was good, potatoes good, turkey okay. 4 our of 6 of our party received peas, so that was okay. Desserts were disappointing, we were excited about the Indian pudding, but the texture was odd and seasoning bland, so not great.
I understand that it is a busy day, but service was lacking, we needed to flag down servers for water, not all diners received their meal whole, drinks were forgotten after being ordered and a long wait to get anything, we requested spoons for our 6 and received 3. It wasn’t horrible and we enjoyed ourselves, but only ate about half a plate each, no need for seconds! We did take home our pre-​wrapped turkey and bread sandwiches.
We were looking for a nice meal for our small party, while the company was good, I can neither recommend the food or the service.

Our actual stay at the hotel wasn’t too horrible. It was fine. Wasn’t the best place we’ve stayed at but we have young kids and they loved the pool and that’s all they needed. It is a great location too. We ate at the Hearth restaurant and the staff was really friendly. However, it was AFTER our stay that made us never consider staying here again.
First of all, we’re not very picky people. We’re pretty forgiving when it comes to places we stay. Sure, it wasn’t the cleanest or the best well kept place but know its an older building and you get what you pay for. But we booked through
and we’ve booked through this site numerous times before. And what we love about this site is we know what we are expecting to pay when we book. No hidden fees later, nothing. However after our stay here, we look and see we were charged 20 some dollars extra.
We call and, first of all, we are yelled at by the woman we spoke to. She was rude to us and wouldn’t budge when clearly they were in the wrong. Either they charged us by mistake or they have some really messed up voucher/​coupon system. Upon arrival, we received these meal voucher/​coupons. We didn’t use them and tossed them, like we do with all coupons we do not use. We actually thought it was a nice little gesture from the inn. But what we didn’t realize, because they never explained it to us when we received them, we were PAYING FOR THEM. She explained that is what it was. We tried to explain that is NOT the definition of a voucher or coupon and it is crazy to expect us to pay for something we didn’t use nor ever wanted. So we still don’t know if it was just a mistake on billing or really this messed up voucher/​coupon thing they have. I don’t know if she just wouldn’t admit to their mistake and kept yelling at us. But eventually we got a $ 20 credit for the voucher/​coupons. She wouldn’t budge on the the service fee. She sounded like she was making up the reason for that fee too. Again, we’ve never received other service fees or any other fees at other places we’ve stayed at.
I refuse to give my business to people who are rude, misleading, and dishonest. There are other places we could have stayed at but from reviews and the website, it looked like a charming place to stay and I also like giving my business to as many mom-​pop type of places as well. But sorry, don’t yell at us when clearly you made the mistake.

Pleasantly surprised by the John Carver Inn! It was very clean, the staff was very friendly and was fully equipped. The bathroom in our room must’ve been recently updated and was well appointed: Makeup mirror, hair dryer, tissues, extra towels, great lighting. The room features a good sized «mini» fridge, tons of cable channels, in room movies to purchase, very cold AC, a coffee maker, plenty of outlets and free wifi. The bed is so comfy, I’m writing this review in it. And I’m dying to know what kind of mattress I’m laying on, but it’s just so damn comfortable that I can’t be bothered to get up.
The Waterfire Tavern on the first floor is by far the most gorgeous bar in the area.
There’s plenty of shops, restaurants, attractions and a convenience store all within a 5 minute walk.
We will definitely stay here again!

The Hotel was beautiful and historic and convenient to everything. I called on Fri for a Sat reservation when most places were booked.
I would give only give it 3 stars instead of 5 because there was a heavy rain Sat night so when we woke up it was RAINING in the bathroom. The floor had puddles & the vanity & toilet were wet. We told the front desk upon leaving.
Other than that we will be sure to stay there again… maybe on the 1^st floor next time.

Great place to bring your kids. Walking distance to area attractions and great restaurants.

My wife and I stayed her with our 11 month-​old daughter for two nights this past weekend. The staff was friendly and accommodating. Room service was good and quick, though expensive (but that comes with the territory). We were part of a wedding block and we on the same hall as everyone else, so that was great. The hotel was a little run down, but in a charming New England kind of way.
The staff in the bar and restaurant were very friendly though a little slow during busier times.

My Husband, daughter and I went to a seminar on a new machine to remove fat by cold laser treatment, we went several times and dieted, it was over $ 1000 each. My daughter paid and never went. Needless to say it was a waste of money. Never did anything to us and when they measured us there was no change. And they would not refund us anything. They wouldn’t even discuss the issue when they new it didn’t work for us. And our daughter never went or got refunded. Want our money back. Don’t do it. It’s called zerona laser, cool sculpting. It was a few years now, but had to pick a date to go forward. This was the one at John Carver Inn in Plymouth Mass. We are going to let everyone know how it was a ripe off.

First impression… good… the lobby is quaint and has comfy seating. I was a little disappointed because we arrived after 7pm, hungry, and we had planned to take the kids to the water fire restaurant thinking we would have fun, but its for adults only. I didn’t see that on the website.
I wanted to love it here, but the constant, annoying loud hum of something, maybe pool pumps, all night long kept me up for hours. I thought there was on old beat up truck idling outside my window!
Then on top of that my neighbors kids were up until 1:30am and on top of that their TV was on so loud that I heard the entire movie they watched! I’ve never had a bad sleep at a hotel until this place.
Bathroom floor grout was black. Really??? Just take some bleach and a scrub brush and clean it. Lots of towels though, and really nice soap & shampoo.
Attempted to stop in the spa but there was a sign on the door that they would be back later. every time I went. bummer! so much for using the $ 50 off coupon upon check-​in.
The kids loved the pool — plus!
they enjoyed the game room, too but as with any game room: ripoff. but when there’s nothing else to do, you pay the price :)
Everyone was nice — no complaints about the staff whatsoever!
We stayed two nights — second night’s sleep was better because I cranked the heater/​fan up in my room to drown out that annoying hum.
We enjoyed eating at the Hearth and Kettle!
I would stay again.

The heater in my room was off when I arrived (outside temps are in the teens & twenties), and judging from the room temperature, had been off for quite some time. I was going to work in my room before dinner, but even wrapped in a blanket it was too chilly. I went to the restaurant to eat, instead, and the selections were terrible. For a «spa», there sure is not anything healthy on the menu. The gluten free options were nonexistent, and the chef (cook) seemed unwilling to be accommodating, so I went down the street for dinner. The hot tub was miniscule, and the spa had little availability. But the bed was super comfy!

I’ve stayed here 4+ times this year alone. This place needs a serious upgrade; the paint is chipping, it smells like a nursing home, and the carpet floors are sticky. The beds are pretty comfortable and the bathrooms are clean but there is mold on the exhaust. The staff is kind enough but the owners need to stop cutting corners.
I never realized a hotel could have crummy front doors; there is no one to assist with your bags (fine) but then how do they expect someone with a ton of luggage or in a wheelchair to turn two handles and make multiple turns JUST TO GET IN THE BUILDING. Me and this poor lady had to use all our extremities and some serious maneuvering.
Unless you’re a kid, you won’t want to be in the pool area. They do have a fitness center with equipment from this century.

The room was clean and quiet despite there being numerous events going on. The pool looked awesome although we didn’t end up going (happy it was there as a back up in case it rained). Good location, good price, in hotel restaurant was convenient but did fill up quick for breakfast leading to slow service.
I was not happy that upon arrival there was NO parking due to their numerous events. Lugging 2 small children, asleep and all our stuff while blocking their drive with our car, then parking across the street and down the road was frustrating to say the least. Doing all that while pushing our way through a lobby where the event had spilled into — dodging, bumping and shoving through to a surprisingly slow elevator– not thrilling and spoiled our mood.

We enjoyed our stay at John Carver with a historic ambience. Most importantly we found the beds to be super comfy. The staff was fabulous and I would definitely stay there again. Wish we had time to use the cool indoor pool area and hot tub– maybe next time!

We stayed here for a few days for a family event. I’d recommend this for families with kids, maybe not so much for honeymooners or higher-​end travel snobs.
The pool is partly what sold us on the place. Kids would love this thing. Indoor pool featuring a faux Mayflower two-​story water slide, and a faux Plymouth Rock hot tub. Knowing I might never go to Plymouth again, I figured we had to see the kitsch instead of staying at a bland chain hotel. Fortunately this didn’t come back to bite me too hard.
The pool is somewhat heated and full of screaming kids, and not all that big, but enough to stretch out in. The hot tub — when we got there, it was more of a lukewarm tub. It’s as noisy as you’d expect for an indoor pool full of kids, and there are lifeguards of a sort on duty (bored high school kids, but better than nothing).
The hotel is obviously an antique. The halls are narrow, there is one small elevator (which fortunately worked the whole time but was not air conditioned) and not much room outside its doors, so a lot of backing and filling was required to use it. The narrow halls and occasional odd ramp on the room floors were not very welcoming to this wheelchair user.
The rooms have fortunately been updated, but still run small and historic. I wanted one with a bathtub for my arthritis — this meant I ended up with the honeymoon suite or king fireplace suite. When they said «jacuzzi tub in the room» I was sold — a good hot tub is better than painkillers for me, and we had a lot of family partying to get through.
I didn’t expect to get a jacuzzi tub in the *bedroom* exactly. But there it was. There was a front living room area with a sofa, table and chairs, and so on, a bathroom, a sort of dressing area/​closet, and a bedroom incongrously featuring one enormous four poster faux-​antique bed and one jacuzzi tub. And there’s a fake gas fireplace serving as the divider between that tub and the living room, and there’s a fake sky mural overhead. And the bedroom window looks out onto the indoor pool. Well, I wanted kitsch. And I got to soak in a jacuzzi tub while my husband ran out to Dunkin Donuts across the street for me, so there was that. The bed was great — new firm memory foam mattress — and they astonishingly actually got my memo about being allergic to feathers and had removed all the down accoutrements. Even more amazingly, using the jacuzzi tub (which was relatively new and quite clean and in full working order) did not turn the room into a humid sauna. The air conditioning was more than adequate, although in an ideal world it might not be pointed exactly at the head of the bed.
The service didn’t impress me. The front desk was a little lacking in cheerful smiles and helpfulness, and verged on surly at times. We asked for a late check-​out and they scowled like we’d asked for the moon, and told us they couldn’t give us anything later than noon without «a lot of trouble». Asking for information, luggage carts, and other services any chain hotel could provide with a smile got a tepid response at best. The only people who ever held a door for my wheelchair were fellow guests; the doors were very difficult to manage even with my husband pushing me, and would have been impossible on my own. There is at least wheelchair parking near the front entrance and ramps to the door.
We ate a private brunch there as part of the family events, and the food was adequate if nothing special, and the service a little slow and slack. I don’t think I ate any better from their buffet than my various Dunkin breakfast sandwiches on other mornings. The private upstairs dining room we used was a little grim in its décor; I don’t think it had any windows. We didn’t eat any other meals there, which may have been for the best (although they gave us some paper coupons for the hotel restaurant when we checked in, which just felt weird). Husband tried the bar and wasn’t terribly impressed with the cocktails.
So if you’ve got a pack of kids you need to keep busy or like kitschy pools, need to rent some function space and don’t care if the décor’s faux Colonial grim, or want a jacuzzi tub in your bedroom, go for it. If you want good reliable service and modern conveniences, you’re probably better off elsewhere.

I used to work here a long time ago when I was in High School. Probably one of my favorite jobs ever. I was a lifeguard at the pool which turned out to be a pretty sweet gig. The pool here really is pretty nice, never seen anything like it in a hotel since. It’s probably one of the biggest draws the hotel has. I guess the other would be the historical aspect. Plymouth obviously prides itself on it pilgrim rich history and tourists flock to see one of the most disappointing tourist attractions in all the land.
The John Carver has a great location for getting to most any tourist type things you want to do or the budding nightlife of the downtown area. Almost every time back in town, I’ve stayed at this hotel. Once just recently as I was passing through, a few years before that for a friends wedding, and again a few years before that for a family funeral. Each time I come back, not much has changed. Some of the staff are different, some the same. The rooms aren’t very modern or updated but, that gives it a bit of old school charm. There’s no real amenities, it’s just a hotel but it’s not bad.
They’ve maintained the place well and even added on a bar and grill downstairs that looks all modern and swanky. Kind of out of place compared to all the other aspects of the place. The pool with the small waterside is still the main attraction with the plymouth rock hot tub in the middle of the pool. If you look on the side, it says 1620. To be honest, you’re better off seeing the hot tub rock than the real one because the hot tub one is three times the size plus has a hot tub in it!

We booked with Priceline for a Sunday night and we had the room for under a 100 $ so I was not expecting much but we were very pleased with the hotel.
We got there in the evening and the hall was light up beautifuly, everything is kinda victorian chic and we had a good vibe about the place.
Not crowded at all on a Sunday night, the front desk lady was very nice.
We got in the room with the 2 double beds, the room was very nice, well decorated (if you like the old victorian style) and very clean. We called the front desk to see if a King size bed was available and they change our room for a King bed room no fees.
The King bed room was even nicer + it had a fireplace !! We had the fireplace working easily and the bed was huge, high and very comfy. No little fridge in the room.
We had a good time, we did not tried the pool but it was impressive and seemed to be a great place for kids.
Only downer is the restaurant, I was not impress with the food… Kind of like diner style food but maybe it was just what we ordered that was kind of cheap.(Quesedillas+ Cheesesteak sub).
We will go back, everything was perfect !

Horribly, awfully, inexcusably unorganized «hotel».
Booked the room online, went to check in and they told me they didn’t have any rooms. Funny, because I had a confirmation e-​mail saying I had not one, but two.
The staff said they would cancel that reservation, and offer me what they had…
The «only» available room was a $ 399 suite, conveniently one of the most expensive suites in the hotel.
Bob the builder could have built a better suite.
For $ 399 dollars we got a TINY suite, nasty pull out couch, had to ADDITIONALLY pay $ 20 for a cot which smelled like urine, and a nice view of bushes and a fence.
I got a call today from them asking if I meant to book my room twice or if I wanted two separate rooms. Confused, I reminded them that they «canceled» that reservation when I had to book my Hilton «Suite».
Just horrible.
I might give half of a star to the pirate ship in the pool area.