Located only five miles from the historic Mystic Seaport, the Stonecroft Country Inn, once the estate of sea captain, Shubel Smith, sits on six and a half acres of gardens and outdoor space, featuring a lovely terrace, fire pit and koi pond.
The family owned and operated bed and breakfast is kept by Jim and Marcie Townsend, who pay close attention to insure that each guest of the inn is treated like a family member who has come home for a long-awaited visit. The inn was named Best of New England: Country Comfort by Yankee Magazine in 2012.
The 1807 House
The Georgian Colonial main house, the 1807 House, with original historic features, offers four guest rooms with private baths, six working fireplaces and three wood-burning fireplaces. The home is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Our room was located in the Yellow Barn. Formerly called The Grange, the Yellow Barn is an 8,000 square foot converted post and beam barn, which houses six suites, including two master suites that offer privacy from all other rooms, perfect for honeymoons or special occasions.
The Yellow Barn
The Señor and I stayed in the Orlando Suite, named for Smith's youngest son, who, with his mother, Sarah, was responsible for the area's granite industry that provided building stone and monuments, including national monuments sent to Washington, DC and Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.
The Orlando Suite features a queen-size, walnut sleigh bed, a gas-lit fireplace, leather love seat, a dark wood armoire with two soft, plush, monogrammed robes, and a small writing desk with captain's chair. French double doors open onto a deck and sitting area.
The spacious bathroom, the size of some standard hotel rooms itself, features a heated towel rack with plush Turkish towels, a coffee service, a jacuzzi tub for two and a separate, walk-in shower.
All rooms in the barn are air-conditioned, have wifi, and have wide-screen TVs with DVD players. A library of movies and books are available in the main lobby for guests to peruse and borrow for their enjoyment.
Guests love the Stonecroft Country Inn. An endearing feature of our room was a journal left for guests to write notes about their stay. From romantic weekends away to weekend getaways for an event at the nearby Foxwoods casino, every note expressed the highest level of gratitude for the experience at Stonecroft. Here is one example.
Each morning, guests of the inn are treated to a homemade, full country breakfast. Intimate tables in front of a grand stone fireplace fill the dining room, located on the first floor of the barn, overlooking a terrace, gardens, a koi pond and a grapevine-shaded pergola. Treats, like homemade brownies and snacks accentuate the welcoming feel to this home-away-from home.
The Stonecroft Country Inn is a member of Select Registry, a portfolio of more than 300 quality assured, premier bed and breakfasts, inns, and select hotels. Each property is held to a 200 point inspection, insuring that guests are treated to the highest quality experience, and Jim and Marcie provided that and more.
Anyone can stay at a chain hotel that offers an impersonal front-end experience; but if you're looking for more...a place where you are welcomed as if you were coming home, then choose a Select Registry property like the Stonecroft Country Inn. It's well located, accessible from anywhere in the Northeast. Visit for a weekend away or as a halfway point for a girls' weekend away.