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The Inn at Corolla Lighthouse 
The first time Bob White and his family visited Corolla in 1982, they had to pass
through a guardhouse at Sanderling. Only property owners and residents were
permitted to venture up the sandy road north to the Corolla beaches.
"The whole way down from Richmond," he recalls, "I kept telling my wife, there's no
way we're going to be able to retire here, it's too far out of the way... but when we
turned into the stone entry at Corolla Light, the wild horses feeding on the lawn made
the decision for us and we knew where we wanted to be."
Now Bob shares several rental homes in the Corolla area, along with the Inn, with
guests from all over the world. The Inn became a project in 1994 when Bob and his
wife took a six week vacation at Corolla. "We were testing retirement," he laughs, "to
see if we could stand being around each other all the time" They realized they could
be quite happy and Bob recalls, "I had never taken more than a week off at a time my
entire life, much less six weeks."
In 1995, they started renovation, turning the shops and restaurant into 17 rooms
each uniquely different from one another and opened for business in 1996. That fall
they began work on an addition and office complex, eventually ending up with 43
rooms that opened in 1997.
Rooms feature special details such as fireplaces and private whirlpools; even the
"cozy" rooms feature luxurious king sized beds . White's dedication, vision, and devotion is exhibited in every last detail of the Inn.
For example, when he opened the Inn, he quickly discovered that no local laundry
would do the luxurious oversized towels he had selected for his guests. "All we could
get from the laundry rental companies were those scratchy white hotel towels. The
laundry services wouldn't launder my towels at any cost!"
So Bob began transporting the towels and linens back and forth to Richmond each
week, taking care to personally ensure his linens were properly prepared for his
guests.
The weekly laundry trips to Richmond have stopped now that the Inn facilities have
expanded, but Bob's attention to detail and the beautiful surroundings he has
developed, along with the breathtaking beauty of the Outer Banks, keep his guests
coming back year after year.
Bob and his family invite you to join them for your unforgettable Outer
Banks vacation this year...
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