The room charge includes three meals a day, with the exception of California's Harbor House Inn, which does not serve lunch, and Florida's Little Palm Island, which charges an additional fee for meals. Most likely these variances can be overlooked when the dining experience at these resorts is taken into account: guests are served at beach tables along the water's edge at Little Palm Island, and the Harbor House serves a full breakfast and four-course dinner with award-winning wines in its Seaside Dining room, overlooking the Pacific Ocean and lovely gardens.
Another fantastic feature of these inns is their "leave the world behind" attitude. Though several are expansive and secluded, these properties offer a great number of opportunities for recreation and relaxation without stepping off their grounds. Depending on the season, guests can go swimming, fishing, canoeing, horseback riding, biking, hiking, cross-country or downhill skiing, snowshoeing, ice skating or sleigh riding. Many of these inns also provide the chance to explore wilderness or observe wildlife.
CALIFORNIA
- Harbor House Inn, The
Elk, California
On the Mendocino Coast about 150 miles north of San Francisco, the 10-room Harbor House Inn sits on several acres that include gardens, redwoods and a private beach. Recommended by Frommer's, this 1916 Craftsman-style house designed by Louis Christian Mullgardt served as a home for the chief executive of Goodyear Lumber Company's milling operation and also demonstrated the beauty of redwood for the company's customers.
- Little Palm Island
Little Torch Key, Florida
A natural white sand beach on a private 5-acre tropical island in the Lower Keys is the setting for this 30-suite resort, which has been praised by Frommer's, Fodor's and Travel + Leisure. Accessible only by boat or seaplane, Little Palm Island is situated 28 miles east of Key West and 120 miles southwest of Miami.
- Lodge on Little St. Simons Island, The
Little St. Simons Island, Georgia
A total of 15 guest rooms are available in the five cottages of this lodge, located on a privately owned 10,000-acre barrier island accessible only by boat. A winner of the Condé Nast Traveler Readers' Choice Award for Best Small Hotel in North America, this inn offers a romantic getaway where guests can explore its beaches, forests, marshes and creeks and observe its abundant wildlife, including American alligators, European fallow deer, dolphins, river otters, armadillos, loggerhead sea turtles and more than 280 species of birds.
- Triple Creek Ranch
Darby, Montana
In the midst of Bitterroot National Forest about 200 miles west of Helena, Montana, near the Idaho border is Triple Creek Ranch, a Relaix & Chateau property. Guests of its 19 log cabins will find amazing scenes of wildlife and wilderness, including mountains, woods, meadows and rivers.
- The Point
Upper Saranac Lake, New York
Situated on a 10-acre peninsula along Upper Saranac Lake, about 150 miles north of Albany, the Point transports guests to a world of rustic luxury amid the Adirondack wilderness. Now providing 11 guest rooms in four buildings, the Point was built in the early 1930s as the home of John D. Rockefeller's nephew William Avery Rockefeller, who dubbed it Camp Wonundra. This Mobil Five-Star and Relaix & Chateau property has received raves from numerous publications, including Andrew Harper's Hideaway Report, Condé Nast Traveler, Forbes Magazine and USA Today.
- Swag Country Inn
Waynesville, North Carolina
With 250 acres at a 5,000-foot elevation and a private entrance to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the Swag Country Inn has been applauded by USA Today, Andrew Harper's Hideaway Report and Condé Nast Johansens. This Mobil Four-Star country retreat about 40 miles west of Asheville is open from spring to fall.
- Glendorn
Bradford, Pennsylvania
A 12-room country retreat on 1,280 acres of woodlands, clearings, hills, lakes, ponds and streams, Glendorn provides the great family camp experience and keeps guests cozy with its 41 wood-burning fireplaces. This Relaix & Chateau property applauded by Andrew Harper's Hideaway Report is located in northcentral Pennsylvania, about 180 miles northeast of Pittsburgh and 80 miles south of Buffalo, New York.
- Twin Farms
Barnard, Vermont
A recipient of the Mobil Five-Star Award and the highest accolades from Zagat and Andrew Harper's Hideaway Report, Twin Farms offers a relaxed country retreat of 15 guest rooms and cottages. The 300-acre central Vermont estate encompasses hills, meadows, orchards, forests, gardens and a 7-acre lake.
