(keep reading to learn what happened)
Season: 3 | View All Season 3 Episodes
Original Episode Air Date: June 7, 2016
Town's Inn Address: 179 High St Harpers Ferry, WV 25425
Episode Recap
The Town’s Inn was a Harper’s Ferry, West Virginia hotel featured on Season 3 of Hotel Hell.
Though the Town’s Inn Hotel Hell episode aired in June 2016, the actual filming and visit from Gordon Ramsay took place in late 2015.
It was a two-part episode that spanned Season 3 Episode 3 and Episode 4 of Hotel Hell.
In this emotion-tugging episode of Hotel Hell, Gordon Ramsay heads to The Town’s Inn for a big two-part episode extravaganza.
The Town’s Inn is located in Harpers Ferry, WV.
Harper’s Ferry is a pretty historic place, as it played a big role in the Civil War and was the site of John Brown’s raid.
John Brown’s raid would later be immortalized in a Showtime series called The Good Lord Bird.
The hotel is located right where the Potomac River and the Shenandoah River meet, which gives it a beautiful location.
It’s also right on the border of Maryland and not that far from Washington DC.
According to some of the commenters below, there don’t seem to be a ton of hotel options in Harper’s Ferry, and The Town’s Inn is one of the few options there.
The current owners Jason and Ana Townsend bought Town’s Inn in 2007.
That means means they’ve owned it for a little under a decade at the time of the visit from Gordon Ramsay.
The idea was that Karan Townsend, Jason’s mother, would manage/run the hotel after she retired from her original career.
She is a former teacher who wanted to work at the hotel to stay busy.
That’s definitely a nice thing for her son to do, but there seem to be some issues.
Gordon Ramsay later finds out that Karan has been staying in the office overnight, and her son is concerned about her.
When Gordon arrives at the Town’s Inn, he discovers creepy decor for sale and expired loaves of bread.
Not a great first impression, right?
Karan doesn’t want any changes made to the hotel, so it has been in a cluttered state for some time.
On the way to his hotel room, Gordon passes a collection of wicker baskets for sale that is covered in dust and bugs.
It’s like an episode of Hoarders, to be honest…
If you read the comments on this post, you’ll see tons of debate over whether or not Karan is a hoarder – you can share your thoughts if you want. There are even some comments from mental health professionals (or at least people who claim to be mental health professionals).
Gordon is staying in the Potomac Room at The Town’s Inn.
The Potomac Room is named for the local river, but the state of the room is disgusting.
The ceiling has a crack, and the owner stores her clothes in a locked cupboard in the room, which is super weird.
Karan agrees to remove half of her clothes from the dresser so Gordon can unpack his luggage.
Again…super weird for this to be the experience at a hotel. I’m using that word a lot in this update, but I’m not sure how else to describe it.
Obviously, Gordon Ramsay agrees with me, so he takes things into his own hands to do a little decluttering.
That led to this very funny screenshot from the episode haha:
After clearing out his room, Gordon Ramsay is hungry and decides to head down to the restaurant to eat.
After perusing the menu, he orders mac and cheese, fiesta stew, and trout.
As you can probably guess, Gordon was not happy with his dining experience at The Town’s Inn,.
The mac and cheese have been microwaved…
The trout is watery…
the stew was cooked days ago.
It’s just not that good.
Next, Gordon meets Sarah.
Sarah is a friend of the family who volunteers her time by working at the hotel.
Sarah keeps telling the staff what to do and that annoys them.
Karan sits in her office while Sarah bosses everyone around.
The team gets mad because Karan nitpicks at everything, but she doesn’t help.
The walls have been painted in the kitchen, but Karan and Sarah stuff the holes in the walls with brillo pads, which had rotted the wall.
Gordon heads into the kitchen and sees that the cooks are boiling pre-prepare burgers.
Boiled burgers?!? No thank you!
When Gordon Ramsay confronts Karan about the issue, she denies how the burgers are cooked a problem.
To help him make his point, Gordon actually brings diners into the kitchen to see how their burgers are being prepared.
Naturally, they’re a bit surprised and not very happy.
Gordon also makes the kitchen staff share the origins of their food with customers.
Among other juicy tidbits, this information includes a chicken that was six months old. Not what you want at a restaurant!
After this, Gordon shuts down the kitchen, which is one of his favorite things to do.
Once the kitchen is shut down, Gordon can dig into exploring the kitchen areas, including talking with Karan while he’s doing so.
Karan denies giving up after Gordon calls her out.
He keeps on inspecting the kitchen to see what else he can find.
The walk-in fridge is filled with fries sitting in dirty water and fish sitting in blood.
It’s so disgusting…
Karan tells Gordon that due to debt, she can’t replace any of the broken equipment.
Gordon uses a bacteria testing kit to test and see how dirty the hotel is.
He begins his test with his bedroom.
Gordon’s hotel room floor reads 803 when an acceptable reading is 30.
I have no idea what those numbers mean, but it definitely doesn’t look good, right?
Gordon decides to leave the hotel after Karan blames bikers and hikers for the mess in the room.
Karan cries and tells Gordon she is done being in denial and is ready for his help.
Gordon makes Karan pack up her things as she will no longer be sleeping in the office.
Jason, Karan’s son and the actual owner of The Town’s Inn, then meets with Gordon.
While they talk, Gordon tells Jason about how bad things are at The Town’s Inn.
He also tells Jason that he found a home for Karan and will pay the rent himself for the first two months, which is a super nice thing for Gordon Ramsay to do.
The idea is that having the apartment for two months will at least give her some space to think about the current situation.
Once Karan agrees to move out, Gordon Ramsay and his team get to work packing up all of her things and moving them out of the hotel.
After the clutter is out, the Hotel Hell team gives the room a contemporary makeover.
As is usual, they didn’t renovate all the rooms, though – only a few of them. Karan talks about this below in one of her responses to a customer review.
The hotel restaurant’s menu has also been reduced to simplify things.
Gordon makes Karan promise to relax and take time off to spend with family.
So was the Town’s Inn Hotel Hell episode a long-term success?
Keep reading my update to learn what happened next and if this Harper’s Ferry hotel is still in 2025 and beyond.
Town's Inn Update - What Happened Next?
Now that I’ve recapped what happened in the episode, let’s talk about what happened after Gordon and his crew left historic Harper’s Ferry, WV.
For a time, Karan stayed in the house Gordon had found for her.
Jason also took a more active role in Town’s Inn.
Unfortunately, this would not last and Karan would eventually move back into a room in the hotel.
Karan also seems to have had some issues with the Hotel Hell experience.
I found these comments from her in a response to a TripAdvisor review:
The Townsend Family lost hundreds of thousands of dollars in our effort to follow Chef Ramsay’s advice.
I ended up going back to the country-style cafe, shopping, & lodging that had won us the Trip Advisor Certificate of Excellence in 2012 (i took over the restaurant in 2011), 2013, 2014, & 2015.
We’ve not gotten that Certificate since Ramsay came & made unhelpful changes,
She says that Ramsay’s changes were “unhelpful” and cost them thousands of dollars.
So, it seems like she didn’t feel like they got value from the Hotel Hell Town’s Inn changes.
Despite that, the hotel has survived so far…
Is Town’s Inn from Hotel Hell still open?
As of 2023, Town’s Inn is still open and serving patrons in Harper’s Ferry, WV.
Reviews are for the Town’s Inn Harpers Ferry hotel are mixed but generally OK.
Town’s Inn has a 4 star rating on TripAdvisor, which isn’t bad.
It also has a 3.9 star rating on Google Reviews. Again, that’s not bad, but it’s also not exceptional.
A lot of people seem to compliment it as “cozy”, but seem people also view the “cozy” atmosphere as a negative.
For example, consider this review excerpt:
The charm of in the inn is supposed to be the age but not enough has been done to the property to give it modern amenities.
The renovations are uneven & under funded
This makes sense, because Gordon Ramsay and Hotel Hell only renovated some of the rooms.
So, for customers, it would be kind of luck of the draw whether people got a good room or an old room.
A lot of people seem to book the hotel thinking they’ll get one of the rooms that Gordon renovated, even though those are only a small portion of the rooms.
Here’s another example of a TripAdvisor review that was written after Gordon Ramsay’s visit, including a lengthy response from Karan Townsend (direct link here):
And here’s a more average review of the hotel that also got a response from Karan.
This is the response that includes the quote from above (direct link here):
If you’re in the Harper’s Ferry area and you want to see what the Hotel Hell episode was all about, you can book a room and stay there yourself.
You can book via the official Town’s Inn website or one of the many third-party booking platforms.
Rooms at the Town’s Inn West Virginia hotel seem to start at just around $70 on third-party booking platforms.
On the official website, rooms start at $80 per night and range up to $180 per night for the 1820 suite.
If you want to stay in the Potomac room that Gordon Ramsay stayed in, that will currently run you $145 per night.
Here’s a screenshot that shows some examples of the rooms and their prices:
With that being said, Bistro 1840, the restaurant at the Town’s Inn Harpers Ferry location, seems to have closed as of 2018.
It seems like only the hotel is still doing business at the location, though I’m guessing the hotel has its own restaurant.
Here’s what the Town’s Inn Harper’s Ferry WV location looks like in the most recent picture from Google Maps street view:
Next, let’s talk about what happened to Karan from Town’s Inn.
What happened to Karan Townsend after Hotel Hell?
According to her Facebook page, Karan Townsend is still involved with Town’s Inn as of 2023.
She’s also listed on the hotel’s business registration, as well as a separate registration for High Street Development, LLC (which is headquartered at the Town’s Inn building, so I assume it’s the same thing).
I can’t find much more than that because I don’t like digging into people’s personal lives, but I hope she’s happy and healthy.
Final thoughts on the episode
Overall, the Hotel Hell Town’s Inn episode seems to be a success as the hotel is still open and doing business under the same ownership as of 2023.
This episode generated a ton of strong feelings in viewers because of how Karan was portrayed, so I think it’s one of the more memorable Hotel Hell episodes out there.
The Town’s Inn was the only time that Gordon Ramsay visited West Virginia on Hotel Hell (or on any other show as far as I can tell, as he hasn’t been there for Kitchen Nightmares either).
If you want to see some updates for other nearby Hotel Hell episodes outside of West Virginia, you can check out my updates for Brick Hotel in Newtown, PA, River Rock Inn in Milford, PA, and Landoll’s Mohican Castle in Loudonville, OH.
And if you want to share your thoughts on the Town’s Inn episode, you can do so using the comments section below.
As always – thank you for reading!
More Information
https://www.yelp.com/biz/the-towns-inn-harpers-ferryhttps://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g60722-d1023380-Reviews-The_Town_s_Inn-Harpers_Ferry_West_Virginia.html
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Last updated: 2023-12-21 08:07
This was an extremely difficult show to watch. I’m the same age as Karan. I’m distressed because I don’t feel as if her son was monitoring her at all. I thought she had the beginnings of Alzheimer’s. She just wasn’t living in the real world. Very painful. Broke my heart.
She’s right back to living in the Hotel again now. She actually hates Gordan Ramsay now, she is unappreciative for the help and advice he gave, and thinks their old way is the way to go, because doing things right costs money and effort. That horrible disgusting way they did food, she thinks that was all good and fine. Along with letting her friend go around bossing around the employees and painting on the walls like a child, posting a bunch of business cards over walls that need real re-plastering done to them.
She is pissy that they stopped their dangerous and disgusting food practices and hired a good chef and that things didn’t take off in the food department when they did so. We all saw how she thought what they were doing with the food was just fine. She regrets that they stopped doing those sickening practices.
She thinks as long as she can hide the issues from people, that’s great and how she will operate. She doesn’t understand that historic buildings still need to be upkept and cleaned. She hasn’t learned her lesson, yet is still around somehow.
Looks like her mental health has deteriorated even more
Well the son has a family so he can’t babysit his mother besides I don’t think he even knew half of what she was doing she needs to take responsibility for herself the way she acted and the way she dressed she gave up.
His mother is part of his family, is she not? What is a sorry excuse. I’d hate to see the way you treat your family.
Your wife and kids are your priority over other family members. You give them the time they need, then if you can you give some to other family members. If there’s a health issue, then she needs to be taken cared of by people who it is their job to do so. Unless you have the space and means to have that person live with you, and trust me, that’s not an easy thing at all on the spouses and children.
It doesn’t surprise me that she moved back in the second he said he paid for 2 months I knew at the end of that she was going to go right back in the restaurant.
She needs to take responsibility for her actions I understand hoarding is a mental problem I have issues with hoarding myself but I got help for it. She seemed lazy and of course doing what Ramsey suggests is expensive he never said it was going to be cheap and easy.
For the sake of the customers I think it’s a good thing that the restaurant part closed down. She didn’t need her son to babysit her she needed to step up and if she had mental issues she needed to get help for them and to stop being lazy.
I mean having diarrhea on the floor and not knowing about it that’s bull
Hoarding is a serious mental affliction, and so is complacency with filthy surroundings and pretty awful food. All I could think about while watching the episode is where is the nearest McDonald’s, Mac and Cheese from a box is better and Motel 6 is cheaper and cleaner.
Hopefully Karan will step aside and let someone actually run the place for her. If she can tidy up her appearance they can let her sit in a corner and greet people.
Poor woman. She is sick. It’s not a Gordon Ramsay issue.
The woman was dirty, popped all over the room and never got it cleaned!!! Don’t blame Gordon Ramsay, that she was a lazy cow!!
This woman is obviously mentally ill. I felt like her responses were very weird, and as if she just could not comprehend what was being said. I’m surprised Gordon didn’t pick up on that. I thought her “turn around” was unconvincing. I don’t think she had an epiphany at all. She was just saying what everyone wanted to hear from her at the end. I felt sorry for her but she has no business running that place.
Yup
Watching almost all episodes of Hotel Hell and especially this one, I’m convinced that many people need help (not with business management). A lot of personal issues going on, from bad attitudes, anger to trauma. I wish Gordon would have sent people for personal counseling instead of “fixing” their business. But at the end, it’s all about the show.
The Hotel is still open as of June 2022 and now has many excellent reviews and several Trip Advisor awards. And yes, Karan is still there. Apparently somebody listened to Ramsey and turned things around. I felt badly for Karan who was a very naive or perhaps even delusional and had no business running a hotel. Nice enough elderly lady with zero background in hotel management or any type of business. Literally every episode of this show is people who think you can just run a hotel and restaurant with no training. You wouldn’t try and be a doctor without going to med school – why would you open a hotel without hospitality training or a restaurant without culinary training??
Kitchen Nightmares meets Hoarders. This was a sad and really insightful episode. This poor lady has a mental illness, and it is sad to watch her be oblivious to the fact that her standards are far, far below the rest of modern society. It’s hard to believe her son thought it was a good idea to buy her an inn and restaurant to manage alone. Surely there were warning signs of this kind of behavior? Maybe he just hates vacationers from D.C. and he uses her as his weapon. That’s what I would do. But, I’m a super villain.
This was a case of the patients running the asylum and it was terrifying to watch. This was so bad that it wouldn’t matter what Mr. Ramsey did to fix this place. After what I seen of how they ran both the Inn and the kitchen and just how bad they let things get before he got there. The fact that everyone went along with it and the owner believing there was nothing wrong with it, I would never stay there, and I definitely would NEVER eat there. People like that don’t change and any cook that didn’t immediately walk out, but who continued to serve up that crap I would not trust ever.
Sooooooooo right !
Oh we stayed there. My done got us a gift card fir a two night stay for a Christmas present in 2018 and we booked it for February 2019.
It was the scariest night of my life. I couldn’t wait till morning to get the hell out. The shower, sink, toilet was disgusting. I felt as if bugs were crawling on my at night. Our bed was near the door, mind you the door had cracks all around that left air in and ya could see outside.
Karen was scary as well. I went upstairs to her office in the morning to get a refund for the second night and she refused.
We had no idea this was a Hotel Hell or no way would I of even thought of staying there. My husband is a big Coal Miner and he was just as anxious to get out as I was. I can’t believe people actually give it anything above a one star!!!
you filthy animal!!!
Karen why would you say something like that? Don’t you accept criticism?
What is important as a hospitality owner is to listen to criticism, adjust and comment, if you can’t you are in the wrong business. I know Hotel Hell might have portrait you as mentally ill, but are you?
I agree. I was thinking the same thing. These people had no problem “scamming” people for YEARS.
The one to blame for all this is the son. I don’t see him eating or staying there at all. This never should have happened. What was he thinking?
The son is irresponsible and the cook is full crap.Those people working for her didn’t care.They just wanted to collect a pay check
you people are assholes
You’re not spelling her name right…people know you’re not the lady from the show.
Of course it’s not her. She barely knew how to operate a phone or computer
I managed popular large restaurants, microbreweries for over 20 years and I want to know how even one health inspector conducted a single inspection without shutting down the kitchen immediately and didn’t allow it to reopen without gutting the place. Serving a chicken that was in a freezer for 6 mos, you can’t freeze any proteins for that long, then they microwaved them? I guarantee every guest who ate that would have become ill, if not severe food-poisoning. OSHA would have shut them down for storing food outdoors, piles of microwaves run with an extension cord that ran into the ceiling? Major fire hazard. Pathetic.
Harper’s Ferry, WV: population 269
It’s probably a town where everybody knows everybody, the inspectors are probably her friends.
That population is for the city ‘proper’ which is a very small area. However, residents with the Harpers Ferry address spread out many, many miles. So, what I’m saying is, not everyone knows everyone and the health inspector comes from Jefferson County or elsewhere. That means she’s not passing because she knows someone… she’s passing because someone either f’ed up on their job as an inspector or Karan managed to clean things up for inspection. I guarantee no one who lives here, stays there; we know better! It’s tourists who don’t do the proper research before booking.
As a Harpers Ferry resident I’m always appalled at the poor quality and the lack of effort most of the restaurants and shops in Harper’s Ferry proper (the historic section put into their establishments. They take advantage of the heavy tourism and lack of competition in the area. If these shops were anywhere else they’d be out of business by now. It’s a shame such a jewel of a town has such subpar amenities.
Disturbing episode. Karan clearly displayed mental health issues. Not out of place as an episode of Hoarders, as has been said in other comment. More going on than that though. Uncomfortable viewing. TV show if course, but if that bad Ramsey’s producers should have had place fumigated top to bottom instead of humiliating a vulnerable woman. Ghastly to hear about her loo problem.
Karan has been running this business for years and it is still open. Apart from the hoarding, I don’t think she is mentally ill, I think she is just eccentric. I wonder if she was on mood altering medication though? Hoarding is a mental illness and she’s obviously a hoarder but it is well known that many (not all) hoarders are extremely intelligent people.
Having worked in hospitality for many years, I would be very surprised if there have been any health or council inspections on that property as that kitchen was very much illegal and a death trap. Fridges and freezers stored outside/ near a dumpster would never have passed inspection. I really question whether or not she received those awards and if she did, they obviously did not inspect the entire premises.
Even a kid would be well aware that the chicken has been frozen then heated in a microwave. The chicken would have been dry, the skin would not have been crispy… It would be obvious that it was not just cooked in the oven that day.
The chef should be ashamed himself dishing up that muck to paying clients. I can only assume that jobs in that area are very scarce because no chef who actually cares about their reputation would put their name to the food served up in this episode.
I really don’t know what to think about this episode. There is so much that just does not add up.
Jessica Klein
Qualifications:
Hospitality 1990 -2004
Clinical Psychologist (specialising in Hoarding Disorder) PSYD. MA. BAAP.
2004 – 2019
Hospitality: 2020 – present
You included your CV in a comment? Lol.
Haha I was wondering the same ! Like did she really put up her cv in a comments section on a website !! It’s is funny 😄
The comments sections here are serious business 😉
So weird!!! Lol
Lmao, my thoughts exactly. I did find it funny though.
Lmao, my thoughts exactly. I did find it funny, though. They sure are “uniquely qualified” to comment, haha
Dr. Klein ended her comment with her credentials. This is a far cry from a CV. She provided her credentials because her comment is not simply her personal opinion. Her comment is based on her *education* and experience. People can have “an opinion” about anything, but when a person with educational qualifications comments, it is diagnostic. As well, Dr. Klein has experience in the hospitality sector. These are precisely the qualifications needed to diagnose the woman running this establishment.
I agree with the others, her comment addition is weird. PRO, you’ve earned a weird simp chair right next to her with your oddly defensive comment. She’s not a Dr., she only has her Masters degree, not a Doctorate (PhD) or MD. She’s a psychologist/therapist (MA/PhD – can’t write Rx), not a Psychiatrist (MD – can write Rx). Her opinion is still just her opinion, it isn’t special nor “diagnostic.” Her boasting of supposed qualifications was to make her opinion seem more important to people like you that simp for authority figures. Plenty of others have said what their expertise is without feeling the need to give a partial CV for “proof.”
Social Worker here. Definitely something more going on here with Karan. And with her son.
And with her friend.
This really was difficult to watch.
No CV attached. Not credible.
ROFL! <3
I’ve met her; the others are absolutely correct!
I feel ashamed for the son that enabled Karan and the situation. I wonder how often he visited, any loving son with some backbone should have stepped in earlier.
And the chef i feel acted and didnt take responsibility. Just seeing the black water they soaked the french Fries in shows he didnt care at all. Many things could be blamed at Karan but hardly not changing water.
This was a very disturbing episode. I seriously think that Karan IS suffering from some mental illness other than hoarding. This goes beyond being eccentric.
Her son should be made to live in and run that inn himself for a week….maybe he would get his head out of his ass and help his mom get the help she needs. If there was ever a time when no one was there, someone should burn it down.
You can NOT tell me that there have been any rewards won by this place…….not honestly anyway.
I am not from the united states, but I have heard that people who are that delusional can be committed without their consent, and that’s what should be done with Karan.
Someone is going to end up getting very very sick having anything to do with that place.
Gordon should have made some discrete calls……instead of doing renovations to enable Karan to keep the place open.
Where are all the health inspectors??? Haven’t any ever inspected this place??
I felt sick to my stomach after watching this episode….not only by the filthy disgusting rooms, or the expired,rotten, freezer burnt food…..but because of all the people who participate in enabling this disturbed woman to continue……..
American chiming in — she’s not even close to out of touch enough to be involuntarily committed. She’d either have to be actively a danger to herself or completely incapable of routine activities (and I don’t mean “having floors that aren’t disgusting” I mean “eating food” kind of stuff).
Being committed without consent is incredibly traumatizing. In this case, placing blame on the son seems more fitting – where the hell was he? How is this a retirement plan?
Agreed wondering where the health inspectors were but America, they’re often understaffed and overworked as hell. I don’t blame folks trying to make a living – the waitress and the 17 yo staff seemed like they absolutely knew but just doing their best to get by. But the actual owner, the son, should’ve had better damn sense. And actually taken care of his mother. Buy the property have a fun thing for her to do? Fine, you’ve got the money for that, hire a proper manager to let her have fun but keep it – and effing food safety – in check.
In America you have to be really mentally ill and disabled in the mental capacity to not be able to take care of yourself to be committed involuntarily I don’t know about the state’s laws where Karen lives but here in California you can’t commit someone without proving they are a danger to themselves or others so you got so many crazy people walking around the streets and nothing can be done about it
I’m sorry but did you actually say to burn it down?!?! This is an historic building in a very historic town! Do you realize what you’re implying?
It was said by an employee in the episode lol.
I’m not really sure why they thought that Gordon suggested a gourmet bistro menu (unless he did so behind-the-scenes). He only suggested a small menu that could change over time, focusing on fresh ingredients.
apparently a burger that’s not boiled is “gourmet”. Freaking McDonald’s is gourmet.
My grandmother passed when I was 18 years old due to Severe Cognitive Decline, and my Mother is now going through the same symptoms of Cognitive Decline. I have worked with the mentally impaired and Developmentally Disabled Community for years now, until I had to quit my job to care for my mother.
Watching this episode I notice little things Karen would do that are some of the hallmarks of Cognitive Decline. Now, I am not saying that is what is going on nor am I diagnosing her just pointing out that there are similarities there. Denial being chief amongst them, due to the fact that this is typically a coping mechanism for loss of Cognition. “If I think positively things will go back to being alright again.”, “This is just a bad day.”, or “Everyone forgets things, everyone has problems.”
Hording is connected with this affliction as those that suffer from it “horde” items because they fear if it is not there with them they will forget about it, or worse they will lose the only thing that will help them remember; such as bills, important documents and other sentimental items. Food items because they fear they may not remember to purchase the things they need while out, or worse they forget they have already purchased them while out and purchase more which adds to the horde.
They have difficulty keeping track of all the minutia of the day to day as it becomes increasingly more difficult for them to focus on one task at a time. My mother will start a project then her mind will wander and the task her mind wanders to becomes the task at hand and so nothing is ever completed and tasks begin to pile up without constant help and refocusing.
For the individual suffering from Cognitive Decline they become defensive of others trying to help because they are frustrated by the fact they can no longer do what needs to be done without assistance. I understand Karen’s frustration but her Son should truly be managing the business and allowing Karen to simply put minor touches here and there and greet guests.
Cognitive Decline or not a Lady of Karen’s life experience should be enjoying her retirement and not having the weight and burden of finances, expenses, and life altering decisions being placed squarely on her shoulders. Retirement should be an achievement and reward for years of hard work and dedication. She should be enjoying the hotels, inns, and B&B’s of America, not trying to run one.
how did no one mention the fries and that liquid, man. absolutely disgusting. one of the few times I’ve physically retched looking at a show.
Yes. Another disturbing thing. That whole kitchen and freezers outside, etc. The food, fry water. Ugh!
So the health department was fine with things and those that award hotels thought things were award worthy?
All ofd, huh?
I am watching this show now.
I can’t believe this place is still open! OMG!
This woman has such a bland affect and they way she replies to Gordon without any emotion is bizarre. I thought it was weird when Gordon mentioned her having a spa day and she made an off-hand comment about being Mennonite or some such. Maybe in her mind she thinks of herself as a Mennonite and that’s the reason for wearing only two outfits?
By the way, I have no problem wearing a sort of uniform. Most of the clothes people have they never wear.
This woman’s son letting her live in a closet is pathetic.
As far as this woman she claims to have lost 100s of thousands of dollars? Yeah, right! The little gift shop Gordon created and the minimal menu were simple fixes but too much for this place to continue?
How in the heck do places like this stay in business? I would have given this place 1 star or a minus star, if possible.
Delusional son and owner.
She was not Mennonite by any means, she said “Mennonite lifestyle” meaning she thought that being hillbilly hippy was Mennonite. Anyone knows, you go to an Amish restaurant (yes, there are some) or an Amish grocery, they keep those places clean.
You can buy cider or apple butter at an Amish store and you know they are going to sell it clean, because they won’t sell what they won’t eat themselves. And the arts and crafts? They make really nice stuff, not old baskets for nothing but looking at.
After seeing this update and Karan’s response, I will make a comment, even though I have never been there. From what I saw on the show is that Gordon Ramsay gave very good advice that was not followed. Not his problem.
I worked many years in the fast food industry and even though that is not inn/hotel, we still had to maintain a clean restaurant and serve food quickly and correctly. Every franchise has years of experience from chefs and managers just like Gordon Ramsay who are always seeking new and exciting food products and decorations for the restaurants. That is why people keep coming back and franchise fast food is actually a huge part of the American economy.
That being said, you have a place that you charge $80-$130/night and you could not even clean your own diarrhea up. And you think somehow that makes you qualified to claim you hate Gordon Ramsay?
If a fast food worker has to keep a restroom clean every hour, and serve customers with a smile, then you with your how many little tables, could not even fix a hamburger properly because you treated your cooks like crap and your waitresses had to struggle to even stay working there, lady, you certainly need to sell it to someone else.
Honestly, people would rather eat at McDonald’s and stay at the Motel 6 if this is what you expect them to pay, even after your inn was fixed. You should have kept Gordon Ramsay’s advice because he was right. So no, not a bit of sympathy from me.
Remember, it is fast food that people turn to when they find it so disgusting at inns like this. Believe me, 25 years in fast food, I know what works and what doesn’t and lady, yours doesn’t.
Get over your pride, go back to what he said to do. Treat your employees right and stop trying to poison all the customers.
I worked with dementia patients for years in a healthcare setting. My father had dementia and I took care of him. This lady has all the classic signs. She seems barely able to take care of herself, let alone take care of a hotel
Did anyone notice that the River Room, $80/night used the same picture as the Potomac Room (Gordon Ramsey’s room)? Very fishy.
I have stayed in Harpers Ferry, quite often at a number of bed-and-breakfasts, small hotels, and even the Hilltop Hotel way back when. I actually would much rather stay at a primitive campsite than at Town’s Inn. It’s bad.
The Town’s Inn is not only run down, but dirty, and is actually filthy in some parts. I stayed there about six or seven months after Chef Ramsey’s makeover and never knew he had been out there until after my visit to the inn. I did not see Karan at that time. Maybe that was a good thing.
My two main thoughts are: 1) the inn should be renovated properly, strictly adhere to health codes, and be run with sufficient and capable staff. It could really make a good amount of money. 2) When the show came in to “do their thing” the producers did no or very little research on the area and the needs of the inn. I don’t know what’s going on with Karan or what her diagnosis is, but putting her in this unfortunate position was a mistake.
It sounds like Town’s Inn is now truly Hotel Hell and I’m fairly sure I’d prefer be staying at the Hilltop House in its current state!
This episode just made me sad. Karan honestly seems to have something going on with her mental health, and it is abysmal that Gordon Ramsey and her son put her on display for their own benefit. Instead of calling Hotel Hell, her son should be talking with her physician. I hope someone gets her the help she needs. The hotel isn’t important, but she is.
One of the most interesting Hotel Hell episodes I’ve watched. A nasty dated hotel owned by a Salem Trial witch and another granny who enjoyed showing off her art skills by painting ugly murals all over the place. Those two hags are nuttier than a fruitcake. Absolutely have no business running a hotel or any kind of hospitality service. How that place is still open under their ownership will always be a mystery to me.
Probably money and Health Inspectors not doing their jobs right
There weren’t any actual witches killed in Salem. Also, that’s Massachusetts, not West Virginia.
Thank you! I hate it when people use witches in a derogatory way, like that’s acceptable!
I think Gordon asking: Are you okay? several times shows that he saw something very off. Karan reminded me of someone with a personality disorder (waif); when she started talking about looking out her window seeing the Potomac and the mountains~ that was a complete disconnect from reality and what the hotel is for (her customers’ experience).
I am thinking her friend influenced her comments about Gordon but also people with those disorders can turn on a dime.
I was also thinking about the scarcity of jobs and that being the reason people continued to work for her.
Wow, son should be ashamed. Karan is a bit strange in her thinking…I would never stay there. Awful.
This episode was very disturbing. I have mix feelings and so many questions. Many of the comments here are very well put. Gordon did a great job with what he’s got. Karan is Bat Sh*t Crazy.
“For a woman who lives and Amish Mennonite life style” this is a period Inn. It’s done in a “traditional” style. She is very obviously, not someone who judges herself based on material goods, but character. Then judged by the masses, who don’t honor that.
Those who go to dinner theater and complain because the talking is too distracting.
Being on the show was a risky gamble, for someone that prefers “Go-Fish”. Looks and feels like Las Vegas, flashy and dirty.
People write that maybe she has mental issues, but I must say it’s not unusual for a certain teacher/professor type to be like this. Well-spoken and intelligent on the surface, but complete mess and dirt at home. Plus hoarding. This type has a disdain for cleaning, they see it as manual work not worthy of their effort. They’re just comfortable with dust, dirt and trash at home. Notice how she talked to the chef outside of restaurant, at the late night staff meeting. He brought up a problem, she deflected to the topic of his working hours instead, and smiled with satisfaction when she rendered him speechless as he was too frustrated to reply. Deflecting and gaslighting. That’s not mental decline, that’s manipulation and no cruelty to her staff. And what does ‘theoretically, dusted every day’ mean ?? Only a teacher could say such a thing. She’s so well spoken and arrogant that her own mind doesn’t let her admit any wrongdoing at all.
What happened to the cook Jeff? I kind of felt bad for him. Hope he’s well!
I kept hoping Gordon or the son was going to pay for a psychologist. She clearly needs help.
I felt really sick watching this episode, and at first just felt really bad for Karan, who obviously has mental health issues. Her son should have taken her out of that awful little room and rented that house for her, but he clearly doesn’t care about his mother. I felt bad until I saw this update and read that she went back to her old ways and blames Gordon for his “unhelpful changes.” The whole thing is a disappointment, but I knew she would never keep up the changes – she just wants to live in her little comfort zone and keep things as they are. The son is an enabler, and that “friend” Sarah probably keeps telling her what to think. It’s creepy how she’s always lurking in corners.
I’m genuinely concerned. I’ve seen the comments and I have to agree Karan is suffering mentally. Her son, I think is trying to deny it by giving her this place as a way to “help” her decline. He loves her but he doesn’t want to admit or accept she needs help. That’s shameful. I can understand reality hurts. But he’s only making it worse by refusing to help her properly, to consider the staff, visitors that go there. He’s created a little world for her where everything is fine. Mr. Ramsay could help with a great deal involving the business but in the sense of her personal needs that’s not his responsibility. Do I believe he should have spoken to her son about seeking therapy for her and getting her checked? Absolutely. Was he permitted to given the show? That’s where I’m not sure.
I hope someday, Karan gets help. I hope her son breaks free from denial and takes charge. For both their sakes I hope they wake up.
I found this page after talking to someone today about the Towns Inn, and I did a web search on it, wondering if it is still around. My family and I stayed at this Inn in 2019 for 2 nights. I did not know the inn had been featured on Ramsay’s show until after we left. If you are wondering if the horrors you saw on those episodes are accurate, I can tell you that they are. I can only speak for the hotel part, as we decided we would not eat any food prepared there.
Just as Ramsay’s rented room did, our room was filled with the owner’s personal items. There were large framed posters and paintings shoved behind furniture, and other personal items shoved into corners and every other nook and cranny, collecting dust. There were cobwebs above my son’s bed. I removed them, and then grabbed a canister of Lysol disinfectant wipes from my car to wipe down many surfaces in the room. One should not feel they have to clean/disinfect a room in order to stay there.
The bathroom was one large “wet room” with a shower head coming out of the wall on one side of the room, a toilet on the other side, and shelving with towels near the toilet. There was no ventilation in that bathroom, so all of the towels felt damp. The hand soap containers had a tiny bit of soap, and were filled the rest of the way with water. They had probably been there a while, as they had stuff floating in them (gross!).
The most disgusting thing we experienced was WORMS coming out of the drain in the floor of the bathroom! We woke up in the morning and found them crawling up the walls of the bathroom, and a couple of them had made their way into the sleeping area! My husband went to find Karan (she was on-site the whole time we were there) to tell her about the worms, and she replied, “oh yes…we usually have a man who comes to spray for them, but he’s sick right now.” What???? She knew this was a problem, and yet expressed no concern whatsoever that a paying guest was standing before her telling her of worms crawling around the room and up the walls.
The only reason we didn’t leave immediately was that, as others have mentioned, there are not very many places to stay in HF, and this was the only one we found that could accommodate our family of 5. My husband found this place through a 3rd-party site, and even noted the good reviews on a few travel booking sites he looked at. I don’t know if the reviews were fake, if that many travelers to that area have extremely low standards, or if they ignored the awfulness of this inn because of the “charm” and “quaintness” of the historic building. I’m shocked that this place has not been shut down.
Thank you for sharing your experience! It’s sad to hear that they haven’t fixed some of these things.
I don’t think she’s mentally unwell, I think she’s a retired teacher who’s always wanted to live in that old inn and run the hotel like her house.
When she was outside talking to her staff, she basically said that they didn’t need to bring in Gordon Ramsey because they could have brought in any other consultant to help them. I think her game plan was to smile through his act, and then come away with business tips and some renovations. I don’t think she expected him to threaten to leave.
She is one of those people who thinks that if the dirt isn’t obvious, then the place is clean. She is not a detail-oriented person, these don’t mean that she has mental health issues.
Ramsey failed her because he spoke to her like a business owner, and not like a teacher. He should’ve told her she was cheating on the test and failing the child (child being a metaphor for the building, which she obviously loved). When she said that hikers stayed in the rooms, he should’ve told her that that’s not history to hold onto. Yes, you can tell stories about, but the rug still needs to be cleaned and washed and the floor needs to be mopped every once in a while. Just because the bed is dusted and the sheets aren’t in a pile doesn’t mean the room is clean