8 Beautiful Historic Inns in Manchester Vermont

Hi there! I am squeezing in one last post before Christmas day. I thought you might like to see some of the historic inns that my sweet husband and I toured as part of a driving tour we took in Arlington and Manchester, Vermont. Twelve inns participated in this fundraiser and each provided snacks and beverages for the visitors.

We thoroughly enjoyed the history and beauty of each destination and certainly had our fill of hot apple cider and delicious Christmas cookies. Let’s begin.

Of the twelve inns open for visitors, we managed to hit eight of them, which we felt pretty good about since the “program” ran from noon to 4 pm only. By 3:30, it had begun to snow lightly, making for a few lovely photographs.

West Mountain Inn

Located high atop a steep incline, West Mountain Inn sits in an idyllic location,  nestled in 150 acres of wooded mountainside.

A cheerful fire greeted us in their main sitting room.

We we enjoyed their expertly decorated tree and…

Our first cup of hot apple cider–delicious.

The Inn at Covered Bridge

 

To find The Inn at Covered Bridge Green, one must cross the charming bridge in question.

The landscape is outlined with field stone walls and sprinkled with Vermont cows.

The property itself contains several outbuildings, including a small brick one of unknown purpose. I found the brick exterior and chipped door latch irresistible.

Inside, while taking a short tour, we learned that Norman Rockwell had lived in the house for a decade and that out back we would find his studio. [That’s him on the right.]

They had decorated the interior for Christmas (loving that sleigh coffee table) and learned that it could be rented, in addition to the rooms available in the main house.

They took their time to create a festive atmosphere in each room.

The Arlington Inn

My sweet husband and I stayed at The Arlington Inn, built by railroad magnate, Martin Chester Deming, in 1847 in the Greek Revival style. They offer 16 rooms in four buildings; we stayed in the next door “parsonage.”

We found the entrance very inviting.

The Inn owners outdid themselves with their Christmas decorating, first with a fully decorated foyer, followed by elaborate displays in each room.

Richly decorated garlands festooned the entry into the sitting room off the foyer.

Their style leans toward pretty Victorian.

The magnificent dining room glowed with white lights, golden beads, and crystal.

The Ira Allen House

Down the road, on the way to Manchester proper, we made our fourth stop at the Ira Allen House. Built by Ethan Allen, a Revolutionary War hero, and named after his younger brother who also lived there at one time.

With a nod to Adirondack style, the owners hung a large, snowshoe-decorated wreath on the porch.

A roaring fire greeted us, along with Ethan and Ira, whose silhouettes sit on the mantel.

In a large gathering room the table was laid with Christmas cookies and other snacks. Just look at those gorgeous hand-hewn beams.

Such a nice gesture.

Some beautiful antiques, like these pieces of transferware, decorated shelves and side tables throughout the inn.

A peak into one of the guest rooms revealed more Adirondack style.

Hill Farm Inn

The Hill Farm Inn, dating back to 1799, gave off a ranch sort of vibe with its large red barn and wrap-around porch.

Everyone on Instagram fell in love with this simple but stunning wreath.

Inside we were met with another welcoming fire.

And a tree decorated with Shiny Brites!

We visited one of the rooms–the Saratogian; I really enjoyed the simplicity of the decor.

Through the window we had a view of the lawn and fabulous red barn.

Plenty of Adirondack chairs offered comfortable views of the landscape.

And that barn!

Walking around back, we discovered this wonderful old sign, another big favorite on Instagram.

Equinox Resort

The Equinox Resort opened in 1767 as the Marsh Tavern, and today, over 200 years later, the resort includes 16 buildings with over 300 guest rooms among them.

We learned that Ethan and Ira Allen confiscated the Tavern from its loyalist owner and used it to benefit the Patriots during the Revolutionary war.

One of the staff gave us a tour of the first floor of the main building.

Bright red and white were a decorating theme throughout.

The foyer just outside the Tavern was especially lovely, all in white.

And featuring still trendy deer.

In a tiny decorated alcove we happened upon this darling fawn.

The Taconic Hotel

We didn’t learn a lot about The Taconic during our visit, but the Christmas decor was lovely and a quartet was singing carols when we arrived in the lounge.

Also in the lounge, we found a hot cocoa bar and cookies (for the road) decoratively wrapped in cellophane.

While this hotel did not fall into the category of “historic inn” as the others did, it had a very inviting atmosphere and the rustic wood floors were to-die-for!

The Reluctant Panther

 

Just as we arrived at our last stop, The Reluctant Panther, which dates to about the 1860’s, it began to lightly snow–so romantic!

We were met by a beautiful entryway and a panther-decorated doormat. I found a short article that gets to the bottom of their unique name: Reluctant Panther.

Their Christmas decorations tended toward the understated, which I like.

Mostly gold bulbs and pine cones decorated the tree in the dining room where we found a delicious spread–pumpkin soup, mini carrot cupcakes, a cheese platter, and more. Everything was outstanding.

Final Fabulous Photo: Someone has some serious gingerbread house skills at the Reluctant Panther! It’s simply the loveliest I’ve ever seen. UPDATE: The gingerbread house was created by Dawn Christman.

I hope you enjoyed taking the Manchester historic inn tour with us. As I’m sure you can tell, we loved every minute of it and hope to return to one or two of the inns for an overnight someday.

I can’t sign off without mentioning our dinner at Christo’s Pizza & Pasta, a small Italian eatery in Manchester, where we literally ate the best pizza we’ve ever had, along with some show-stopping lasagna. We chowed down on the many leftovers for several days 🙂

Thanks so much for stopping by–
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Bye for now,

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