As a kid, I always dreamed of visiting Savannah. It was steeped in magic and history, with the live oaks, Spanish moss, historic houses and beautiful squares. I put it on my mental bucket list. As an adult, reading Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil only cemented that certainty that Savannah was part old World history, part ethereal magic and wholly lovely.
Hemant and I visited Savannah for the first time in April 2016. We walked almost all the 24 squares, ate at the Olde Pink House, took a ghost tour (without seeing any ghosts), and admired the azaleas blooming in Forsyth Park. The city was even more wonderful than I had ever imagined. I knew I needed to find a way to spend more time here.
On our drive back home to Atlanta, I suggested we buy a place in Savannah so we could visit more often and rent it to other Savannah visitors when we weren’t there. We have used Airbnb frequently in the past few years, staying in homes around the world. We love the ease and enjoyment of staying in someone’s home instead of a hotel. But I had never once considered being a host. I think my scheme was born out of desperation to spend more time in Savannah.
Fast forward six months later, and we had toured more places in Savannah than we care to remember. We liked a lot of them, but only loved a few – usually the ones outside of our price range. Then one Saturday afternoon we walked into 20 W Duffy. I stepped inside, surveyed the tall ceilings, the open space, the courtyard (mostly the courtyard), and said, “This is it. I love this place.”
It took Hemant a few more hours to arrive at the same conclusion, but eventually he did. He didn’t really have a choice.
In the months since then, we have had so much fun making this place a home away from home, both for us and for our guests. We love spending weekends here – waking up and walking out into the courtyard, having coffee at the Sentient Bean and strolling through Forsyth Park in the early morning light. There is so much peace and quiet in Savannah; so much beauty and history. It is even more magical than I dreamed as a kid.
We hope you find as much peace and enjoyment here as we do.
The historic Forsyth Park fountain.