“The Cottage?” I asked when my friend Nykki mentioned this great romantic place she and her husband Korey had been near Lancaster, PA. “The owners rent out this cottage exclusively to married couples,” she told me.  “As a ministry.”

Turns out this cottage was quite the lover’s retreat.   Rodney & I spent 2 nights there celebrating our 8th anniversary.  We liked it so much that we booked a return trip!  (Shout out to Nykki & Korey for the recommendation.)

This 3-story cozy cottage greeted us with soft music playing, a handwritten welcome note by candle light, and rose petals leading to the upstairs bedroom.  The bed itself was worth the trip, donned with a partial canopy with the most comfortable pillows ever. On the wall was an inscription in calligraphy that says, “Always kiss me goodnight.”  And on the bed was a printout of a marriage vow… perfect since it was our anniversary. In the basement was a love seat by a fireplace.  And there was also a hot tub on the deck, two bikes, and a massage table.  Plus more.  I won’t divulge every secret in case you decide to go.

This love nest has no television which led to much-needed pillow talk and general intimacy not usually possible with our 3-year-old present (we left him behind with family).  And the cottage has no internet access either (although we “cheated” by tethering in order to update our Facebook statuses to announce our anniversary, which was a lot of fun).  It was so serene escaping the ordinary hustle and bustle of life.

We especially enjoyed the homemade foods provided by the cottage owners, such as the freshly baked loaf of bread (whole wheat), raw cow’s milk, brown eggs straight from the farm (the farm is literally up the street where the cottage owners Roman & Lucy live), cream topped yogurt, and fresh granola.  Delicious.  The food actually matches how we prefer to eat now (organic and locally grown when possible). The farm animals are very healthy and nurtured (for example, cows are grass-fed and get plenty of air and exercise).

My husband Rodney discusses the food in the below video.

This video is actually a clip from a longer video we filmed for Rod’s RLW Fitness series where he discusses how to keep your workout and diet goals while on vacation.  If interested, check it out here.

Roman & Lucy consider the cottage a ministry to married couples. In the “Cottage Manual” that couples must read upon arrival, here is their vision and mission statement:

The mission and vision of The Little Stone Cottage is to provide special, quiet ambience for married couples to reflect on Gods goodness to them. Celebrating marriage by pampering and romancing your life mate is what this place does well. Take time to read one of our large selection of books,or many short articles on marriage to each other, reminisce about your earlier days as a couple or just bask in togetherness. Plan and prepare special meals and serve them formal or casual as you are renewed and blessed by Gods special provision for married couples. We believe that marriage was created by God and His perfect design is one man and one woman for life. Our desire to to strengthen and bless marriages that honor the wise creators design. “

In addition to pillow time and eating meals together, we enjoyed (window) shopping at the nearby outlets and eating out.  We often saw a horse and buggy going down the street when we’d venture out. Definitely a change of scenery from downtown Philadelphia that we see each day going to work!

To give you a video visual of inside the cottage, here’s a random video I found on YouTube uploaded by another couple who stayed there.

  You can also check out pictures of the cottage here.

This whole cottage and all of its amenities is $160 for week nights.  It’s worth every cent.  Weekends are a bit more expensive, and there’s discounts if you stay for a week.  For more information or to book time there for you and your spouse (you absolutely WILL be blessed), click here.  But hurry up.  Summer days get booked quickly! It’s important to do these little getaways in a marriage. Rodney and I were renewed mentally, physically, sexually, and spiritually!

For another getaway in NE Bensalem area, click here to read my review about a romantic package at the Holiday Inn.  Yep, the Holiday Inn. It was the perfect Valentine’s Day surprise for Rodney last year. I hope to eventually compile a list of getaways for couples looking for quick, affordable, and unique getaways.

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Question:  Have you been to The Little Stone Cottage?  What other places have you been that you recommend?  How often do you and your spouse get away? In your own words, why is getting away important? Click here to add your comment.

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