The Castle Rock Country Inn is located in Ingonish Ferry on beautiful Cape Breton Island. The 18-room Georgian-style four-star, boutique inn overlooks the magnificent vista of Middle Head Peninsula, the Atlantic Ocean, and the Cape Breton Highlands Mountain range. This property is located only minutes from the entrance of the Cape Breton Highlands National Park on the legendary Cabot Trail and other nearby attractions like the Highland Links Golf Course, Ski Cape Smokey, and an array of local activities, such as hiking, sea kayaking, whale watching tours, biking, and beaches and it could all be yours if you are looking for your own personal four-season paradise.
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The current owner Kim Magistro was born and raised in New York City, New York. Her journey to entrepreneurship started in a corporate office. She was working in advertising and writing magazine columns, which I can relate to. Kim had a great job, but she realized her passion for food needed to be fed. So, she began working in the restaurant industry, and in no time, she became a restaurant manager and secured her place in the hospitality industry in Manhattan, New York. “I fell in love with the hospitality industry,” she said. “I enjoyed the work; it opened a lot of doors for me.”
Being a restaurant manager allowed Kim to create new connections and rekindle old ones. She was reunited with her friend’s father, who often came into her restaurant after performing next door at Beacon Theater. He was a famous magician, and she remembers watching him on television as a teenager.
One day he offered her a job in the arts, Kim was not going to let the opportunity slip by. Training to become a magician’s assistant part-time while managing the restaurant full-time. “Six months after I started working with him, I was performing a children’s show with the symphony orchestra at Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center. It was unbelievable. It was a great period in my life” she explained. While performing magic shows in the theater, Kim learned about puppets. In the beginning, she did puppetry part-time.
On Kim’s entrepreneurial journey, she completed a culinary degree at The Art Institute of New York City. The restaurant she managed was sold and she struggled to find a full-time position in a new restaurant of similar quality. She knew the industry was changing rapidly, especially with large corporations setting up more and more food franchises. Instead of jumping back into the restaurant setting, she took time to go back to school. Kim took a program to become a super manager, which would later be extremely helpful. “That training was invaluable,” she said.
When 9/11 happened The World Trade Center was approximately ten blocks from where Kim was living at the time. After that tragic event, her life view changed. “It made me look beyond where I was, to where I needed to be,” she said. The air quality changed from the collapse of the Twin Towers. She said she loved living in Manhattan, but a few months after 9/11 she felt she could no longer stay there. Not only because of the trauma of that day but because of the living conditions at ground zero continued to have lingering issues as time passed.
After 9/11 Kim needed a new journey and left New York. Her travel adventures landed her in Geneva, Switzerland for nine months, soaking up every learning opportunity she could find. Inspiration and knowledge from living in Switzerland are something Kim has applied throughout her business journey. After returning to the United States, she moved to upstate New York and bought a puppet theatre. As owner and site performer of Fairy Tale Castle Puppet Theatre, Kim found a new passion and inspiration as an entrepreneur and artistic performer.
Reestablishing a new rural lifestyle, Kim was running her puppetry business when she and her business partner went on a vacation to the beautiful Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. “We stopped at Castle Rock Country Inn to get our bearings and plan our trip around the island. We loved the area so much we decided we would get a place here together” she said. When they came back a year later, Castle Rock Country Inn was for sale. “The overwhelming natural beauty of the region was what sold me on the opportunity. That’s how we came to be here.” Kim and her business partner bought Castle Rock Country Inn and moved to Ingonish Beach in 2007 and put her culinary background and management training into use and dove right into owning and operating the Inn.
In taking over the ownership of the Castle Rock Country Inn, Kim thought her main challenge would be the cultural differences between New York and a rural community in Cape Breton. Kim figured it would take time for the local community and residents to accept her, but that was not the case, as they were very welcoming. Kim was also fortunate that a Nova Scotia Power hydro plant was just down the road and their employees were her first customers and are still customers today. Their stays got her and the Castle Rock Country Inn moving in the right direction and the rest followed. “The people here have been amazing. I wouldn’t have been able to do any of the things I’ve accomplished without the wonderful people that I’ve encountered here in the area.”
Kim describes Castle Rock Country Inn as casual with a European flair and wonderful staff. She used inspiration from her trip to Switzerland for the rooms and offers a European breakfast style. “It’s known as a casual boutique hotel with casual fine dining and amazing scenery,” she said. Guests at the Inn can expect an intimate setting because they only rent out thirteen rooms. “It’s easy to get into conversation with our other guests” Kim explained. “It’s very comfortable. It’s a very simple and casual experience.” Her expectation for the restaurant is good quality food along with engagement between staff and guests for an overall good experience. Plus, its large patio offers a stunning view and the chance to see moose, whitetail deer, bald eagles, and whales in the bay.
If you are looking for an exceptional investment opportunity on the iconic Cabot Trail with this successful hotel property that sits on 4.7 acres of prime real estate, strategically located at the base of the Cape Smokey Mountain, making it the first business traveller’s encounter upon entering the picturesque Ingonish region. Its prime location provides easy access to the renowned and continually expanding Ski Cape Smokey and the world-famous Highland Links golf course within the stunning Cape Breton Highlands National Park, ensuring a steady stream of visitors year-round.
Proudly rated 4 stars by Canada Select, this hotel operates year-round, demonstrating its robust profitability and reliable performance. The charming on-site restaurant can accommodate 40 guests in the dining room, which can also accommodate special events including meal services for up to 60 people plus has a wedding arbour on-site for wedding ceremonies.
This property offers an established and profitable business with numerous guest and industry accolades and a promising growth potential in the burgeoning Ingonish area thanks to Cape Smokey.
So, if you’re looking to take your entrepreneurial journey to the next level and continue the legacy of a thriving hospitality business with unrivalled views and a strategic location then contact your agent today for more information and to schedule a viewing at the Castle Rock Country Inn, and seize this unique opportunity because something tells us that this business and opportunity to own a piece of Cape Breton paradise will not last long.
For all our readers planning their Cape Breton vacation plans this winter and beyond, the Inn is operating as usual and accepting guests, if you are looking for a place to stay.
by Gabrielle Gamblin