Bear House 1890, Sherfey Suite, Perfect Getaway, Walk to Cafes, Outdoor Activity
🐻 Welcome to the Historic Bear House Circa 1890! The best of everything!! Refined luxury, detailed amenities, large beautiful property. Walk to local restaurants, shops, grocery stores, hiking and biking trails, tourist attractions. Less than 4 miles from Aquarium, all downtown, mountain and waterfront activities.
Beautifully restored 120 year old house and additional Carriage house with beautiful grounds. A rare opportunity to stay in a special historic property that adds to your trip experience; much more than simply a place to spend the night! Centrally located in Chattanooga in the trendy St Elmo Historic District, at the foot of Lookout Mountain.
Private Sherfey Suite (Carriage House 1st floor), with its own entrance, offers historic charm with modern-day amenities. Wonderful, private apartment including one bedroom and full bath. Open kitchen, living, and dining floor plan.
**High quality, fully equipped small kitchen with electric stove/oven, microwave, refrigerator. Small appliances include toaster, mixer, and crockpot. The hospitality center comes equipped with Keurig and a well-stocked variety of coffee, teas and hot chocolate, and related condiments. The basics are kept stocked for your convenience: paper towels, garbage bags, cleaning supplies, laundry detergent, foils and plastic wrap, salt and pepper, spices, olive oil, canola oil, sugar and some breakfast items. Chocolates and fresh fruit are always included! **Beautiful living room with ample seating, dining, games, high speed Wifi, large smart HDTV with Amazon Prime and Netflix - a wonderful gathering space for you to relax and enjoy your visit. **Resource center in living room with office supplies, vacations guides, reading materials. **Queen bed, luxury bedding and linens, iron and ironing board, full length mirror, luggage racks, bedside radio/clock with 2 outlets and 2 ports for charging your devices, Smart TV with Amazon Prime and Netflix. **Spacious full size bathroom with bathtub/shower combination (rain head faucet), hair dryer, and specialty toiletries from nationally known local store Good Fortune (soaps, body wash, bath salts, lotion), luxury towels and numerous amenities. **Separate laundry room with large capacity washer and dryer. Laundry room located in the main house (Bear House). Shared between the Carriage House (Sherfey Suite & Lilly''s Loft) and Stinson Suite in the main house.
Our spacious property offers many opportunities for gathering spaces outdoors. The large old-fashioned front porch, courtyard garden and gazebo are wonderful spots for morning coffee, a special evening meal, or a place to relax in a comfortable chair with a good book. The special garden areas, and larger outdoor seating areas provide additional space for your enjoyment. Be sure to explore the carved bears placed around the property and hear their story! In the spring and summer, help yourself to the blackberries and small vegetable garden. And don’t miss the scavenger hunt; over 40 sculptured animals roam the property for you to find.
Our beautiful large property sits on an entire block, front to back, in the charming St Elmo Historic District. There is the majestic main house called Historic Bear House 1890 (6500sqft) that consists of 3 other private apartments. My husband and I reside on the private first floor in the main house. Just a hop, skip, and a jump away from the main house, through the luscious courtyard, is the Carriage House (1600sqft) with 2 private apartments. With over 25 years experience in the rental property business, we specialize in a broad spectrum of lodging needs, from quick getaways, to out of town family and friends, to corporate rentals and short term rentals. With pampered on-site attention you’ll feel taken care of from your first inquiry until the end of your stay, whether it is a short trip or a few months.
Be sure to check out our other private apartments located here at the Historic Bear House 1890 property:
Workman Wing, 2 BR, 1BA, #1021491
Wheland Wing, 2 BR, 1BA, #1021450
Johnson Retreat, 4BR, 2BA, #1021232 (Workman & Wheland Wings combined)
Stinson Suite, 2BR, 1BA, #1076824
Lilly’s Loft, 1BR, 1BA, #1324077
Sherfey Suite, 1BR, 1BA, #1172405 UN
Our prices include all fees. No hidden fees.
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St. Elmo
Bear House 1890, Lilly's Loft, Delightful, Upgraded amenities, Walk to Cafes
Events allowed: family gatherings, birthday parties, weddings
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Pets
No pets allowed
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Smoking
Smoking is not permitted
Inquire owner about event details and attendees
Important information
You need to know
This property is managed by a private host (a party not acting within their trade, business or profession). EU consumer law, including the right of withdrawal, will not apply to your booking. The cancellation policy set by the private host will cover your booking.
Extra-person charges may apply and vary depending on property policy
Government-issued photo identification and a credit card, debit card or cash deposit may be required at check-in for incidental charges
Special requests are subject to availability upon check-in and may incur additional charges; special requests cannot be guaranteed
Parties and events (including family gatherings, birthday parties and weddings) are allowed on site. Maximum attendees: 4
Host has not indicated whether there is a carbon monoxide detector on the property; consider bringing a portable detector with you on the trip
Host has indicated that there is a smoke detector on the property
Safety features at this property include a fire extinguisher and a first aid kit
About the area
Chattanooga
Located in Chattanooga, this apartment is in the city centre. Lookout Mountain Incline Railway and Chattanooga Choo Choo Historic District are notable landmarks, and the area's natural beauty can be seen at Ruby Falls and Rock City. Consider Camp Jordan for a night out or Tennessee Aquarium if you're travelling with kids. Jet skiing and kayaking offer great chances to get out on the surrounding water, or you can seek out an adventure with hunting and rock climbing nearby.
Moccasin Bend Brewing Company - 5 min walk - 0.4 km
Lookout Mountain Incline Railway - 6 min walk - 0.6 km
St. Elmo Park - 17 min walk - 1.5 km
Ruby Falls - 3 min drive - 3.1 km
Point Park - 7 min drive - 4.1 km
Getting around
Chattanooga, TN (CHA-Chattanooga Metropolitan) - 27 min drive
Restaurants
Taco Bell - 2 min drive
Little Coyote - 8 min walk
Domino's Pizza - 10 min walk
The Tap House - 10 min walk
Wendy's - 2 min drive
Frequently asked questions
Is Bear House 1890, Sherfey Suite, Perfect Getaway, Walk to Cafes, Outdoor Activity pet-friendly?
No, pets are not allowed at this property.
How much does it cost to stay at Bear House 1890, Sherfey Suite, Perfect Getaway, Walk to Cafes, Outdoor Activity?
As of 14 Apr 2026, prices found for a 1-night stay for 2 adults at Bear House 1890, Sherfey Suite, Perfect Getaway, Walk to Cafes, Outdoor Activity on 10 May 2026 start from £78, including taxes and fees. This price is based on the lowest nightly price found in the last 24 hours for stays in the next 30 days. Prices are subject to change. Choose your dates for more accurate prices.
How much is parking at Bear House 1890, Sherfey Suite, Perfect Getaway, Walk to Cafes, Outdoor Activity?
On-site parking is available at the property.
What time is check-in at Bear House 1890, Sherfey Suite, Perfect Getaway, Walk to Cafes, Outdoor Activity?
Check-in begins at 3:00 PM.
What time is check-out at Bear House 1890, Sherfey Suite, Perfect Getaway, Walk to Cafes, Outdoor Activity?
Checkout is at 11:00 AM.
Where is Bear House 1890, Sherfey Suite, Perfect Getaway, Walk to Cafes, Outdoor Activity located?
Located in the centre of Chattanooga, this family-friendly apartment building is within a 10-minute walk of Moccasin Bend Brewing Company and Lookout Mountain Incline Railway. Ruby Falls is 1.5 mi (2.4 km) away.
Reviews
10
Exceptional
Reviews are presented in chronological order, subject to a moderation process, and verified unless otherwise labelled.
The location was a the foot of Lookout mountain. Wonderful experience. Host..steve was friendly and very knowledgeable.
Tom W.
Stayed 3 nights in Mar 2026
Response from VrboOwner on 12 Apr 2026
Thank you for your review! We love providing our guests with info to help ensure they have a great trip. We do have the best location at the foot of Lookout Mountain! Please come again anytime.
This was a cute place, comfortable and well stocked with coffee and snacks.I was only in the Chattanooga area for a couple of days and found so much to do right in the St. Elmo area, so convenient.
This is the second time that my wife and I have stayed on this property and it likely won't be the last! Great location, comfortable accommodations with a lot of character and personal touches and the Sherfey's are great people!
Everything was clean and accessible. They thought of Everything. There was even an animal statue scavenger hunt that my daughter had a blast with! Private area but within walking distance to many restaurants and shops. The water pressure in the shower alone would have me booking again! The hosts were kind and helpful. We would recommend this stay for anyone.
Regina B.
Stayed 3 nights in Oct 2025
Response from VrboOwner on 12 Apr 2026
Thank you for staying with us here at The Bear House. We do our very best to provide a special experience for our guests! Please come again anytime.
Everything about our stay was great! We appreciated all of the little touches and information provided by the owners. The location was so close to all of the things we did! Would definitely stay there again.
Absolutely the cutest little apartment. The pics make it seam bigger so that’s why I didn’t give 5 stars on the description and price. But everything else is definitely a 5 star! The gentleman checking us in had to show us the apartment which I thought was unnecessary. It was very self explanatory. But I did enjoy his conversation. The tub/shower is raised up on a high step that I didn’t notice in the description and that could be a problem for other renters, especially if they are older or handicapped in some way. We had to be very cautious getting out the shower. The pillows are Fabulous! I must get me a set. And in the description there’s no mention of cleaning fees but we were charged 60 for cleaning. So the discount Verbo gave us, we didn’t really get. That was disappointing. Our overall experience was great. I would definitely like to come back.
Tiana W.
Stayed 2 nights in Mar 2026
Response from VrboOwner on 12 Apr 2026
Thank you so much for staying with us here at The Bear House! We’re glad you could stay. That is odd about the cleaning fee. It should have showed up in the detailed breakdown of costs along with the taxes and lodging fee and not affected your discount. It has been the same for 9 years. I will check on it. Thanks for letting us know.
The shower/tub set up has not been a problem in the past. There are grab bars on both sides and nonslip rugs. We will further evaluate it. Thanks for your comments.
Thanks, again, for your stay. Please come again anytime.
We stayed at the Bear House for Covenant graduation weekend as our son and his fiancé both graduated. Both of our families stayed in the spaces at the Bear House and enjoyed being together for meals on the lovely garden patio and playing games. Beautiful gardens and nice place to be together.
Enjoyed location, cleanliness Uneven floor in kitchen was a stumbling item for an older person as were the different heights of the entry into the carriage house
Leon H.
Stayed 2 nights in Sep 2025
About the host
Hosted by Steve and Sharman Sherfey
The Bear House is a beautifully restored property with the 6,500 sq ft main house and 2,000 sq ft Carriage house. We have lived here for 25 years, raising our four children and enjoying this small community (St Elmo) within the city. Our long-term plan has been to share this special property as a B&B/Short Term Rental when we retired.
We opened as The Bear House in March of 2017. It has been a truly special adventure and brought great joy sharing The Bear House and meeting so many wonderful guests.
Steve and I live on the 1st floor of the main house, which is completely separate from the 2nd story listings as well as the basement/lower level listing. In addition, we have the Carriage House with 2 listings. We are proud of The Bear House 1890 property and think you will have a wonderful stay!
What makes this property unique
Beautifully restored 120 year old house and additional Carriage house with beautiful grounds. A rare opportunity to stay in a special historic property that adds to your trip experience; much more than simply a place to spend the night! One of the best locations for a trip to Chattanooga.
Languages:
English
Premier Host
They consistently provide great experiences for their guests