Ben Maddox House

Pros: Greeted with Wine. Breakfast was GREAT. Presentation and service at meal time is excellent.Food was also tasty. Front yard is beautifully landscaped and well kept. The innkeeper did make arrangements to serve us breakfast earlier on Sunday than they usually allow. The house itself is a beautiful relic of history; Decorated beautifully. Central air conditioning and ceiling fan keep us cool. Cons: The pool was filthy (complete with floating pool vacuum, leaves, bugs, and dirt on the pool floor). The lawn furniture cushions were so dirty, they were un-usable. Room needed dusting, floor needed cleaning and the windows so dirty it looked foggy outside. We couldn’t find service or staff when we needed them. We didn't know where to find the innkeeper. We did not receive all that we paid for through our Living Social package. Nor was it ever clearly gone over with us on how it would work once we arrived. Dog barking across the street. Our room was not cleaned/made up upon our return. We were given apologies and excuses but no recompense of any kind was offered. Neighbors played room-rattling music until midnight. Have to park in street…sprinklers will wash your car for you. Huge cracks in bathroom ceiling. Cobb webs in windows. Back yard and patio seating not kept or inviting. Communication was vague and poor and last minute. Overall, experience was disappointing. I also felt the innkeeper could have made it right with a little effort and showed a little more compassion, eagerness to rectify it and could have offered recompense of ANY kind. But I have to be honest and rate it "poor" as it relates to the value we expected for the price: Overall, not worth the $200 a night.

I had no idea what a special treat was in store when we arrived at the Ben Maddox House. I thought it was just a nice place to stay while we visited the Sequoias. But upon returning home when people asked about my trip all I could tell them about was how we were spoiled at our B&B. Lucy is such a wonderful host. The food is incredible. Order the blueberry french toast! Lucy treated us to a special wine and cheese tasting, and the perfect advice on how to best visit the park. You never know how you'll be spoiled.

My husband and I wound up at the Ben Maddox House via a Living Social promo that advertised a 2 night stay, bottle of wine upon check-in, breakfast for two days, a picnic lunch for two, a $50.00 gift cert to a nearby restaurant, and waiver of the usual pet fee. Our experience easily exceeded out expectations and thanks to Lucy, the innkeeper, we had an absolutely wonderful stay. The grounds are beautiful and the room was clean and cozy. We were greeted with a bottle of wine in our room and Lucy made reservations for our dinner in addition to offering a wealth of information about local attractions. Around 6, she served complimentary wine, cheese, and homemade cookies in addition to having a lovely port waiting for us upon our return from dinner. The next morning, she offered a selection of 5-6 entrees for breakfast, each of which she makes herself. I had the veggie quiche both mornings and my husband had the frittata. The breakfast was served in a lovely dining room with soft music playing in the background, fresh OJ, coffee or tea, and seasonal fruit. It was delicious! We couldn't beleive the quality of the food. After our breakfast the first day, Lucy packed us a picnic lunch with vegetarian wraps, homemade cookies, fruit, trail mix, waters, and fruit sodas. We ate it atop a mountain after a lovely hike in Sequoia. Not only did Lucy go above and beyond with the food, but she was kind, cheerful, and sociable. She went out of her way to be attentive and was even kind to our dog! The B&B is walking distance to the center of Visalia, where there are a handful of decent restaurants. Sequoia is about an hour away, but it's an easy and beautiful drive. We cannot say enough about how great our experience was. Definitely recommend the Ben Maddox House as a comfortable place from which to expore Seq and/or Kings Ntl Park.

A fascinating place to visit with a charming hostess. The breakfast choice is very good. The fruit was delicious, the cooked food abundant if rather oily.

Host very helpful for activities in the area. Breakfast was exceptional.

We live nearby but we stayed at the Ben Maddox House for our wedding night and they were so kind to us! Great service, romantic honeymoon night extras, and friendly service!

Interesting house, interesting history and charismatic hostess. We enjoyed our stay very much.

We stayed here for 2 nights during our honeymoon trip across California. I would thoroughly recommend this B&B. Lucy is an amazing, warm host who continuously went above and beyond to ensure our stay was excellent. The breakfasts were lovely and really set you up for the day, the rooms were clean and very comfortable and the pool was a lovely added bonus after a day hiking in the Sequoia National Park!

ganz süße Unterkunft mit außerordentlich herzlicher Betreuung der Hotel-Eigentümerin Lucy! Alles klein, fein und romantisch gehalten. Super tolles Frühstück! Wir wurden so herzlich empfangen, wie noch nie und sind total begeistert.

A spur of the moment decision to get out of Dodge led me to the wonderful Ben Maddox House bed and breakfast inn. The innkeeper, Lucy, is one of those rare people you instantly feel you've known and loved all your life. The house is an 1876 Victorian with the original wood floors and built-in cupboards, a clawfoot bath tub, shuttered windows and a large porch that curves around the front and side of the house where guests can sit and enjoy the lovely roses and green lawn. I highly reccomend the Ben Maddox House for the next time you want to get away and enjoy the varied activities offered in and around Visalia - or just sit on the porch and smell the roses.

We frequently stay at B&Bs and this is ont of the best! The garden is lovely the hottub was great and the room is spacious, roomy and quiet. Everything you could ask for! I want to come back!

it was great Judy was so nice and the food was unbelievable Bert and Katleen from Belgium

Everything exceeded our expectations and we were well taken care of. Lucy is a consummate innkeeper; she thought of everything! The food, music, and room was appealing and delightful - we would definitely stay there again!

In looking for a venue for a small wedding I came across the Ben Maddox House. The house itself was wonderful but the service and warmth of the innkeeper Lucy was beyond any expectations. She made me feel at home and her suggestions and experience were excellent. Lucy was like finding a friend. Our wedding was perfect and our guests enjoyed the surroundings. The catering by Lucy and her team was great and the presentation was beautiful. Lucy was also able to accomadate our out of town family and friends. Not only would I highly recommend the Ben Maddox House I will certainly be staying many times.

Booked a one-night stay on the way up to Yosemite from San Diego. Innkeeper was very friendly and knowledgeable about the area. Great food, beautiful old house; warm and comfortable.

On our way back to Orange County from Northern California we like to give ourselves a break so that we are able to go thru LA in a non-rush hour timeframe. We love eating at the Vintage Press so decided to treat ourselves to lunch. After reading some of the reviews we booked a room at Ben Maddox House. This turned out to be a great decision. Lucy is very welcoming and hospitable. We were sorry that we were too full from lunch to go to Tommy's for dinner. We will return in the fall to enjoy this wonderful B & B and tour Sequoia. If you are looking for a place to relax in Visalia area this is a great spot. Mike and Ann McGlone - Seal Beach, CA

Very friendly, outstanding food, interesting house.

The beautiful craftsmanship in this historic home was second only to the lovely service we received from the most hospitable hostess, Lucy, a charming person and fantastic chef.

This place was quaint, clean and hospitable. Rooms had cable but still old charm.

Lucy and her staff were very warm and accommodating for my wife and I. Not only do we have 2 dogs we are fussy vegans. She willingly rose to the challenge and made unique tasty dishes each morning, going way beyond what we were expecting. Lucy and staff ( and must I not forget a shout out to Lucy's 3 delightful pooches - Franchesca, Oliver and Oscar) go out of their ways to make you feel welcomed and important. Lucy will be first to tell you its a "work in progress", but the warmth outweighs any minor flaws. It is a true b-n-b experience where guests are engaged by the inn-keeper and gather in the main house to eagerly share stories and pleasant conversation. Even though weather prevented our seeing the sequoiahs, we enjoyed our visit and are already talking about returning to Ben Maddox in the future.

My trip to Visalia was work related but I did not want to stay in a boring motel so I booked myself at the Maddox house blindly based on some internet research. Wow, was I pleased to find an extremely old style mansion with old style "period" furniture. beds high off the ground. the bathroom had marble floors and walls. it was really neat. everything was in great condition including the landscaping. love the landscaping! large yard with grass and tons of flowers! dog friendly. great area for walking dogs too. At night, we walked 3 short blocks to an old style main street with a thriving music scene. Mostly jazz and some rock. A guy was touring from Hawaii doing folk/rock stuff. Loretta Lynn had just played at the local theater house called The fox. http://www.foxvisalia.org/ Coming soon is a touring flamenco dancing group then Vince Gill. I really appreciated the variety in music. All of it within a few blocks. for dinner, we ate at Tommy's. the "cedar" smoked steak was very good. they offered a really tasty house cab. After partying at the local pubs we found an old neon lit hot dog stand that had great chili dogs. chili dogs are always great after drinking all night. in the morning, we had a great breakfast prepared by the Maddox house. no simple continental breakfast with Cosco Danishes served here... it was all gourmet; eggs with ham... yummy! Plus fresh fruit. strong coffee. I am a sucker for good strong coffee. weak coffee can put me in a bad mood. during the day, I worked.. But I got back to the Maddox house by 4pm then walked the main street again and found tons of antique shops. The prices were very reasonable. I will be monitoring the events at the fox theater to find a good reason to visit again.

My family and I came to vist the blossom trail and get out of LA for a few days. What an escape!! The Ben Maddox house will sweep you away to another time and Lucy's hospitality makes you feel right at home. We visited with our 4 year old daughter who felt like the water tower room was built just for her. She enjoyed her room so much with all the children's books to read we had a hard time pulling her away from the place. Let's not forget to mention breakfast, it was amazing...you must try the blueberry french toast.

The reviews had given us a high expectations about what we would experience at Ben Maddox House, and we certainly were not disapointed. From the shuttle to and from Fresno Airport, to the outstanding breakfast served by Lucy, the off the scale helpfulness of inn keeper Lucy was outstanding. We would unreservedly recommend Ben Maddox House to anyone looking for a great experience that is a delightful change from the usual "hotel" experience !

Lucy could not make a person feel more welcome! I have rediscovered BMH after more than 6 years away from the region. Wireless internet makes business communication a breeze. The hospitality is outstanding; the breakfasts superb and SO much better than any chain hotel often encountered for business travel. Thank you!

We can't believe our luck, just barging in here, and finding such an ideal B&B! We absolutely loved this place and were spoiled rotten by our lovely host Lucy. Indeed, it was very hard having to leave this place, waking up to the sound of birdsong in the Rose Room. Eating at Tommy's -where they threw in a complimentary dessert :-) here'sto you, Lucy! - proved to be a memorable experience as well. Ben Maddox house alone proved to be reason enough to stay in Vasalia, let alone its proximity to Sequoia N.P. just uphill (or downhill, from where we came..). The next morning, chatting away with Lucy while nibbling at the GREAT (in all senses) breakfast she made us (she'll even give you a menu to choose from, go figure!), it became harder and harder to leave...had a lovely time in L.A. But we didn't find an equal place there... Thanks Lucy. We will not forget your hospitality. Koen and Annoesjka, The Netherlands

We were overseas visitors with no knowledge of the Visalia region. Not only were we magnificently catered for in respect to accomadation and meals, our need to avail ourselves of medical assistance was taken care of by Lucy in an execptional way. Our only regret was that we were not able to stay more than one night. Thank-you Lucy and Crystal.

I can't wait to go back again! Lucy, the innkeeper, went above and beyond to make sure our stay was excellent. The Inn is so charming and the rooms are cozy and comfortable. We were greeted with a glass of wine upon arrival, which was most welcome after a long drive. The morning breakfast was fabulous! You will never leave hungry! Next time you are in Visalia, stay at the Ben Maddox House, you will truly not be dissapointed!

I cannot speak highly enough of the helpfulness of the owner and innkeeper at the Ben Maddox House. We were greeted with a late day drink/cup-of-tea, which was welcome after a long day's drive. The rooms were charming and comfortable. Lucy made a very suitable dinner reservation for us. Most especially, the attentiveness shown by Lucy to one of my traveling companions who became ill was exceptional. She took him to a doctor and picked up his medication: truly amazing. We were extremely grateful for all the friendly extras we received and would certainly return to the Ben Maddox with great pleasure.

We only stayedfor one night here, but our request for a a "healthy breakfast" exceded our imagination. When the plates arrived at the table it was quite evident as to the time the staff put into the preparation and presentation of our feast. The owner and staff made sure that our expectations were exceeded.