mendocino area lodging help
 

I will be spending two nights in the mendocino area in mid Sept. I've been searching this wonderful site(and many others), and have narrowed my lodging choices to three. They are the Elk Cove Inn, The Harbor House Inn, and the Albion River Inn. It appears that Elk and Albion are both small towns near enough to Mendocino should we decide to tear ourselves from the wineries for an afternoon. These choices are similarly priced, with the Harbor House being the most pricey(but it includes dinner for two). Any comments on these Inns would be appreciated. I'm a little concerned about booking Harbor House in case the food is a disapointment.
Since I have never been to this area any special winery reccomendations would also be helpful.
Thanks!!!!

The Albion River Inn is down a bit from Mendocino, but it's a very nice place with an excellent restaurant. However, if you want to go out in the evening, it can be a dicey drive back in the dark. If you stay nearer Mendocino you wouldn't have that problem. We like the Glendeven Inn but haven't stayed there since it changed owners.

We have stayed at Elk Cove Inn and loved it. Elk is a small town, but a charming one none-the-less. The views from the Inn to the water are spectacular. A dinner suggestion:
Bridget Dolan's Pub had wonderful, fairly reasonable prices and very good food.

The only winery actually on the coast is Pacific Star Winery, about a half hour north of Mendocino Village. The majority of wineries are located on Hwy 128 near the town of Philo. As another poster pointed out, it can be a bit of a challenge driving the coastal roads after dark--they are narrow, curvy, two-lane roads and it isn't unusual to see deer. The distances appear small on the map, but in the Mendo area the locals usually talk of amount of time to travel a certain distance rather than the number of miles.
Elk is about a half hour drive south of Mendocino Village, if that matters to you. Haven't heard any recent reports of the food at Harbor House or Elk Cove Inn so I can't help you there. The Albion has an excellent restaurant and lovely rooms. The only complaint I've ever heard of it is that some people were bothered by the sound of the nearby buoy at night. Their amenities include a set of earplugs, but personally, I could see complaining about nearby railroad tracks--but a buoy is a nice sound!
If you want spectacular ocean views and proximity to Mendocino Village, have you checked out Cypress Cove? It's oceanfront lodging and just across the bay from Mendocino. Check their website at www.cypresscove.com.

The Harbor House Inn is awesome! Just gorgeous, right on the coast. The grounds and the walk down to the ocean are beautiful. Each room is decorated differently. Dinner is well worth the extra price. Breakfast is included as well, right? Yummy, yummy food. Lots of courses & flower garnish on the plates. My hubby & I honeymooned and celebrated our first anniversary there. I also like how central it is to many sites to see, and not too far from Mendocino. I haven't been to your other choices, but I can't imagine Harbor House could ever disapoint!