Take Your Valentine to a Romantic New England Inn

There’s no more romantic way for couples to spend Valentine’s Day than a snow-covered winter getaway in a country inn. If you choose one with a good dining room, you don’t have to go outside for dinner and can enjoy a second glass of wine without driving afterward. Here are some of our favorites in New England.

The Inn at Thorne Hill, Jackson, New Hampshire

Beautifully appointed rooms and suites have double Jacuzzis, fireplaces, ultra-plush robes and most have king-sized beds (the rest have queen-sized). While in February you’re not likely to sit on the Inn at Thorn Hill’s broad front verandah with a book in the afternoon, you can enjoy the same view of the snow-covered White Mountains from the large guest parlor, where you can sip a hot toddy in front of the huge field-stone fireplace or play a cozy game of Scrabble of rummy in a quiet corner. Book a couples massage at the in-house day spa, where you can also book body wraps and facial therapies, and ask for the fireside table in the dining room for an especially romantic dinner for two.

Inn at Thorn Hill, Jackson, New Hampshire © Stillman Rogers

Snowvillage Inn, Eaton Center, New Hampshire 

Views don’t get any better than those from this White Mountain inn set high on a hill with the entire Presidential Range spread out before it. To wake up facing this 180-degree view from a solid wall of windows, ask for the King suite, but any of the king rooms in the main house have beautiful mountain views. Relax in front of the wide fireplace before dinner at Max’s, where you can savor the specialties of an award-winning chef without having to go out in the cold to get there. Save your outdoor time for the next day, when you can borrow the inn’s snowshoes and enjoy the quiet of the snow-covered forests that surround the Snowvillage Inn.

LimeRock Inn, Rockland, Maine  

Spend a weekend immersed in art and good living in the coastal Maine town of Rockland. Along with two art museums and several fine art galleries, a good selection of shops and cafés are just down the street from the elegant Victorian mansion that’s now LimeRock Inn. Breakfast is a culinary event worth leaving your four-poster bed for, and the engaging hosts can suggest more local diversions. Or just curl up with good books and luxuriate in place. Scattered among the Main Street galleries and shops, a number of good restaurant choices are a short stroll from your door.

Emerson Inn by the Sea, Rockport, Massachusetts

Snuggle up and watch the winter sea crash against the rocky shore of Cape Ann, north of Boston, where this seaside hotel has been refurbished to modern standards without losing any of its historic charm. Emerson Inn owners opted for a crisp retro look instead of old-fashioned, and large, double-glazed windows keep rooms bright and warm at the same time. Feather-light duvets covering the exceptionally comfortable beds add extra coziness. Rockport is a different place in the winter, but enough of the little shops and galleries on Bearskin Neck are open to make browsing fun — and with luck, one of the fudge shops will be open. If you happen to be there during a Nor’easter, the inn is the ideal place for storm watching and the excellent menu at the in-house Pigeon Cove Tavern means you never have to venture outside.