Exploring Life & Business with Dana Maloney of Jubilee Suites Boutique Hotel

Today we’d like to introduce you to Dana Maloney.

Hi Dana, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I love talking to people and hearing their stories and I credit my love of hospitality to both my mom and her mom, my grandma Edna. I think about my grandma Edna every day at Jubilee Suites. She was the best hostess you could imagine. She served five colors at almost every meal, her house always smelled so good, she always had fresh flowers from her garden on the table, and you could feel her joy in welcoming people to her home… I loved going to her house.

My mom, Alice, also had an enormous love of hospitality from growing up at Grandma Edna’s farm. I thrived under my parents’ love and passion for each other and their children. When we were little, my dad was in the military and we moved around quite a bit. But no matter where we lived, “going to Grandma’s house” was always a constant. It gave all of us a sense of home. Mom’s gracious hospitality and her fierce love of family kept us all together during those years. She and my dad had grown up in that small town of Iberia, MO, a place where you waved at every car that went by. So, of course, she missed being home, but she made every place we lived a home, no matter how simple the surroundings.

I believe all the moving and making new friends gave me a lifelong love of travel and meeting new people. Plus, I’ve always enjoyed entertaining friends and family. When I married my husband Jim, a U.S. Navy pilot, the travel and always-new adventures continued until he left the Navy, began working for Microsoft and we settled in Charlotte, NC to raise our three sons, Shane, Dylan, and Zach.

Four years ago, while we were living in Charlotte and running our family home as an Airbnb vacation rental, our now-grown son, Dylan, and his wife, Maegan, announced they were going to have our first grandchild near Fairhope, AL. Jim and I were thrilled and we made the decision to move closer to our son’s family so we could be a part of Beatrice’s life… and now her brand new sister, Ann Alice. We began looking for a home. My daughter-in-law, Maegan, was instrumental in helping me find our property. She showed me the Away At The Bay B&B in a quiet residential community in Fairhope overlooking Mobile Bay.

The building was a bit run down, but with a magnificent view of the bay and we instantly fell in love with it. As soon as it came on the market I knew immediately that I wanted to buy it and continue running the bed and breakfast, which was one of my lifelong dreams. We threw ourselves into renovations and again Maegan helped me plan and execute the first upgrades to luxurious southern hospitality and introduced me to new friends and connections. We opened Jubilee Suites Boutique Hotel for our first guests in March 2018.

Beginning from our opening day at Jubilee Suites, I wanted to create a feeling of abundance for our guests, the feeling of going to my grandma’s house with fresh flowers, homemade muffins and cookies, and over-the-top hospitality. We provide something for everyone with local art in every room, sunset celebrations each evening, kayak tours of the Bay, and loads of local activities in the charming destination town of Fairhope. We’re offering comfort and luxury together in a way that feels like home-away-from-home, only better. It has been so rewarding to bring our dream to life.

From the first guest, I knew we had something special because of our guests’ reactions to our hospitality and their 5-star reviews. Every day we see people surrender to the magnificent natural beauty of our property and emerge refreshed and rejuvenated. There is something magical about watching the ospreys fly overhead with fresh-caught fish, eagles roosting in the trees, hummingbirds by the dozen at our feeders, dolphins playing in the Bay, sailing regattas, cruise ships coming and going from the City of Mobile port, yoga on the bluff, sunsets that dazzle every evening… so much going on if only we’ll slow down enough to observe.

That’s the essence of the Jubilee Suites experience.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Yes, there have been challenges! When we opened Jubilee Suites as resident innkeepers in 2018, Jim was still working for Microsoft full-time. Although we did all the dreaming and planning together, I was the general contractor when we performed the renovations of both the building and the property. As we finished one phase we began the next one and this has continued for four years. Several times we’ve had to move from one suite to another to keep ahead of the work crews.

Jim has since retired from Microsoft and now works full-time with me in the business and I don’t know what I would do without him. Among other things, he makes delicious breakfasts for our guests every morning, keeps the grounds beautiful, and handles all the many maintenance projects! Working together for the first time in 37 years of marriage is of course both a challenge and a blessing. We think our complementary skills are perfect for the business and our marriage.

At the present time, we are in the middle of another construction project, transforming our beachfront to make it, even more, inviting for our guests. Plus we are preparing for hosting Social Feasts 2021 in October, a TV show filming 10 outdoor chefs competing for the win on the grounds at Jubilee Suites. With the perfect weather that October brings and our beautiful new beachfront amenities, we are just about ready to settle down and simply enjoy our guests, our son’s family, and our new life here in Fairhope.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Jubilee Suites is located in a quiet residential neighborhood in Fairhope, AL with 200 feet of beachfront shoreline right on Mobile Bay. We offer our guests an all-suites experience in a luxurious waterfront B&B. Seven of our spacious family-size suites feature a fully-furnished kitchen, dining and living areas, 1 or 2 private bedrooms and bathrooms, linens and toiletries, washer/dryer, wifi, and a smart TV in each bedroom. Five of our luxury suites offer west-facing bay view balconies or a patio, ideal for sunset viewing. Six suites are pet-friendly. All have no-contact check-in and individual air-handling systems for comfort and safety. Social distancing is built into our large property with plenty of room to spread out, gather with fellow guests, or claim as your own happy place.

Jim does a fantastic job making breakfasts for our guests in our large gathering room. I help by baking my grandmas’ chopped apple cake, my mom’s banana bread, and my recipe for baked oatmeal which is both gluten-free and dairy-free. We’ll also stock your suite with the basics for breakfast and a few other surprises in case you’d rather stay in and cook in your full-size kitchen. Always fresh flowers, refreshing drinks, snacks. It’s important to us that we treat our employees as well as we treat our guests. We want to help everyone feel at home. So we also provide breakfast and lunch for everyone who works for us. You can’t go hungry here!

Towards the end of each day, we gather with our guests around the large firepit on our bluff for a Sunset Celebration, to take in the breathtaking view of the setting sun, new every evening. We also offer free use of our kayaks and paddleboards to our guests and schedule guided tours of Mobile Bay with a local expert. The variety of birds, wildlife, and even dolphins is fascinating.

We also supply sanitized yoga mats and equipment in every suite and we are happy to set up our guests with local classes or a private session. Many of our guests ask us to book a local charter boat for sailing, sunset viewing, fishing, or a day-long tour of the Mobile Delta, also called America’s Amazon. We can provide special occasion flowers, charcuterie boards, catered dinner in a guest’s suite, facials, and massages for our guests as well. We try to meet every request.

The town of Fairhope is a delight for locals and visitors alike with its many waterfront activities, art galleries, museums, restaurants, and specialty shops to keep our guests interested for days. The Fairhope Pier, our unofficial town square, is a must-see destination and each evening is a gathering spot for sunset viewing, local music, and fishermen trying their luck. It’s easy to get around Fairhope on foot, by car, bike, or golf cart.

You’ll see it all on Fairhope’s streets. Founded by economic free spirits just over 120 years ago, the original concept had mixed success, but the echoes of those early settlers have influenced our population today with its eclectic population of writers, artists, families, retirees, and vacationers. Fairhope also enjoys the distinction of being named one of The South’s Best Small Towns of 2020 and 2019 by Southern Living magazine.

Intimate weddings, family reunions, corporate retreats, and other gatherings are all welcome at Jubilee Suites. Guests can rent the entire B & B and sleep up to 35 people. We can also rent out our catering kitchen and community / dining room as needed. We offer our huge bay view bluff and beach area for weddings and other events and we can also welcome up to 35 guests inside as a weather backup.

Booking is easy and secure right on our website. Guests can review all the unique features and see pictures of each suite and then check for availability and pricing right on the booking pages. Daily, weekly and monthly rates are available.

Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
We’ve observed this is a true saying… “People who stay with us for at least a full three days leave feeling completely rested and rejuvenated. In vacation destinations, bigger is not better — destinations that are less-crowded and more intimate create richer experiences and better memories.”

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: https://www.jubileesuites.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jubileesuites/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JubileeSuites/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSGIII3iXQvLTqtAt4lsKGw

Image Credits
Frank Modarelli, Charles Hudson Davis, and Saphryn Shizake