The Mansion on Park Avenue - walk to downtown Galena

WARNING - This home rental is misrepresented on Expedia/VRBO, with old pictures featuring a nicer exterior, clean interior, and avoiding eyesores within. Really confused about reviews unless they are old or filtered? The front yard was completely unmaintained, full of tall weeds and had extreme overgrown plants and trees. We were disappointed upon arrival. There were box elder bugs all over the front of the home, and hornets all over the backyard and back windows. There was no way we could go out in the backyard and enjoy being outside. There were several broken windows and many broken mini-blinds. There were large patches on ceilings and walls. The wood floors were dirty, especially along edges. The lighting was so poorly lit in every room, especially the kitchen, which had no real light at all. There were flies inside the upstairs bedrooms, and in two corner rooms there were 10+ flies that had to be caught by our guests before they went to sleep. The furniture was completely dusty and there were cobwebs hanging from the chandeliers. The owner James is rude and uncaring. We started off kind and positive, yet he was cold from start to end. No caring or admitting the issues or any resolve.

This was our second time of staying here. We love it! It’s great location to walk to town and love all the bathrooms, with ten women staying here it works out perfect! We also love the theater room, we watch our hometown football play at state the past two years! James is a great host! Thanks again!

We had a great time

Delightful mansion! Within walking distance to downtown and Grant Park and many other historical markers. Communication with host was good. Cleanliness was good. Lots to enjoy.

Wonderful experience! We were able to walk downtown to all destinations which was amazing!

The location can't be beat. Short walk to downtown, on a hill with a great view and right next door to Belvedere House. The house was full of history and had beautiful furniture and comfortable beds. The ensuite bathrooms were also a big plus.

I will start by saying that the property is beautiful. Unfortunately, our stay turned south when the owner showed up on the second day. He was simply dropping off the guest key card (which other rental homes have available in the rental property, at the renters reach). The most Uncomfortable and alarming situation occured when the owner entered the house without knocking or ringing the doorbell. He simply entered the home and proceeded to yell out my name. He introduced himself and then proceeded to aggressively question the amount of people who were staying. The house is for 10-12 guests. He said I would have to pay 100 more for our stay, since there were 12 guests instead of 10. He later sent a bill for 222.00 instead of the agreed 100 amount.There are cameras outside the doors (I understand that many homes have them) however, based on the blue light that is visible when people are viewing, we noticed that we were being watched during our entire stay. Immediately after our stay the owner sent me pictures questioning some patina, old floor stains. He said they were not there before our stay. The stains are throughout the entire 100 year old home. They are characteristics of an old home; clearly not caused by our stay.I knew then that the owner was just looking to make more money from us I have never felt so uncomfortable and disrespected during a stay. This was a disappointing experience.To the owner, please keep in mind that honesty and respect are for all.

It was a great place for our girls’ weekend of old high school friends, with room for all 10 of us comfortably, including a few others who stopped by for a few hours one afternoon. Only suggestion would be to have one or two more chairs in that front parlor on the first floor. 60 yr old folks can only sit on the floor for so long… Loved the proximity to Main St, too.

James was a great host! Loved his suggestions on places to visit and wine to drink. Very cool building- very clean and well maintained. We completely enjoyed our stay. Two things to be aware of- lots of stairs and lots of traffic on road. It can be quite noisy.

The house was beautiful and in a great location. It had everything we needed.

Great place to stay for our family golf trip.

Property is historical and charming. Love the original decor, location, and size of the home made it really convenient for all our guests. It was great to have privacy and our own bathrooms when needed. I think the home has even more potential for upgrades in the future. TVs in the bedrooms would be a nice touch.

Great stay

My family rented this home to all be together to celebrate my mom's birthday! There was plenty of space, the house is huge. We spent most of our time on the middle level in the kitchen, game room, and theater. The theater seats were very comfortable and it was the perfect place for some downtime. The only negative is the train close by, and with it being an old home, voices travel and the floors creaked, so it could be pretty loud, but that was to be expected. The location was great and close to main st. for shops, bars, and restaurants, our favorite was Fried Green Tomatoes & Miss Kitty's Grape Escape.

Loved this house and location from downtown Galena. It was perfect for our girls weekend. Loved all the bathrooms! Will definitely stay again!?

We had a group of 8 and had a great time. The house was in a perfect location for a short walk downtown. We would stay here again.

Everything was great. One FYI: The stairs

Great location, was awesome having my family all in on big house. Really loved the aged feel of being in such an old historic house. I can’t imagine the original owners and their lifestyle.

The mansion has been wonderfully preserved. Beautiful wood work and architecture. At the same time, it is equipped with ample air conditioning, bathrooms for each bedroom, sufficient electric outlets and nice hot showers. The rooms were spacious and surprisingly quiet from each other and the outside noises. The kitchen is small, but we were able to take turns cooking and the dining room was great. I do have a couple of housekeeping suggestions. We stayed 4 nights and did cook for 7 people each night so 3 dishwasher pods were not enough. Providing one for each day would be reasonable. An indoor recycling receptacle next to the trash would have been nice. The host was responsive to questions and the car charger was an added plus. We had a delightful time in Galena and would recommend the Mansion on Park Avenue.

Cycling group weekend. Trail is right out the door, downtown shopping & eating is a few minute walk, theater room for social evenings and everyone had their own bathrooms! Perfect location and accommodations!