Together with her husband, actor Dean McDermott, Spelling is running Chateau La Rue in Fallbrook, California, about 55 miles north of San Diego. Formerly known as Oak Creek Manor, Chateau La Rue was a 4-diamond AAA-rated property. (It's not clear if the inn has been inspected since the ownership change.)
As Spelling and McDermott took over the inn, television cameras were on hand to record the experience for the Oxygen cable network. Every Tuesday night (10:30 p.m. eastern U.S. time), viewers can watch for 30 minutes as the couple tries to turn the inn into "a bed and breakfast for their generation... the hippest B&B in the universe," as a press release puts it.
Chateau La Rue, situated on eight acres of rolling hills, features three or four guest bedrooms (there's conflicting information on that point), a dining room and a high-ceilinged entryway with two large exotic fish tanks.
Room rates when it was known as Oak Creek Manor ranged from $175 to $335. Each room had a private patio and a full bathroom. Each also had either a Jacuzzi tub or a wood-burning fireplace.
So far, the web site for Chateau La Rue doesn't list any rates or amenities. Information from other sources indicate that the inn features Jonathan Adler furniture, a pond and a gazebo.
The duo used Spelling's $800,000 inheritance from her father to buy and renovate the bed and breakfast, according to the Oxygen release. Complicating their efforts is the fact that Spelling was already pregnant when filming began.
The inn's name, Chateau La Rue, was chosen by a viewer. It's named after Spelling's pet pug, Mimi La Rue.
The series debuted on March 20, 2007, and was scheduled for a six-episode run in its first season. A review in The Boston Herald wasn't very kind.
Judging from some of the episode recaps at HotelChatter.com, perhaps Spelling and McDermott should have studied our Worksheets for Aspiring Innkeepers before deciding to jump into this career.
Note: An April 26, 2007, article in the Fallbrook Bonsall Village News reported that Spelling and McDermott had not yet actually purchased the inn.
"A trip down to the San Diego County Assessors office on April 19 proved to be quite interesting," according to writer Christina Macone-Greene. "An assessment clerk, Ms. Lerma, easily pulled up the Chateau La Rue property address and reported that there had been no activity since 2004. There was no new document number and/or transaction for this residence."
The newspaper also reported that the inn, which is for sale, has an asking price well above $800,000. Try $2.6 million.
As of fall 2008, it appeared that Spelling and McDermott had given up the innkeeping profession. The third season of their show was named Tori and Dean: Home Sweet Hollywood (rather than Tori and Dean: Inn Love), and the Oxygen cable network described it this way: "Proud new parents and aspiring entrepreneurs Tori Spelling and husband Dean McDermott are checking out of their bed and breakfast and moving back to Hollywood."
Information for Aspiring Innkeepers
- Aspiring Innkeepers Weekly - This free series of email newsletters gives you an inside view of what it really takes to run a bed and breakfast.
- Aspiring Innkeeper Worksheets - Writen by a pofessional innkeeper, these worksheets will help you prepare for a career as a B&B innkeeper.
- Advice from Professional Innkeepers - Simple tips designed to help aspiring innkeepers.
- Inns for Sale - Browse these listings to get a sense of what's available, and what it would cost to buy a B&B.
