The Best B&B Getaways: Bowman’s Hill
38 miles from Philadelphia (50 minutes by car)
Compared to many local inns and B&Bs, Bowman’s Hill is just a baby — not a renovated Victorian manse nor a 19th-century farmhouse, but a palatial stone colonial that was built as a private residence during the Carter administration. Which makes it that much more of a pleasant surprise to find a distinctive English-manor vibe about the expansive grounds: The place is ripe with forested hills and garden hideaways and a gazebo, a pond, even an orchard. The elegant bedchambers are all open and airy (two include your own private terrace for soaking in the scenery); breakfast is a three-course affair, a traditional English fry-up with eggs, baked beans and bacon rashers (along with simpler Continental fare on offer); and the house as a whole is a mix of crown moldings and hot tubs and cathedral ceilings and Venetian plaster finishes and an African parrot in the office that together add up to a dreamy, otherworldly sort of getaway.
Book it: 518 Lurgan Road, 215-862-8090, theinnatbowmanshill.com.
Rooms: 6.
Rate per night: $325 to $555; 2-night weekend minimum, 3-night holiday minimum.
Snacks: Afternoon tea and coffee and pastries daily; soup service once the winter chill hits.
Meals on-site: Breakfast.
While away the hours: It’s New Hope, so there are funky bars, galleries and shops, plus kayaking, tubing and hot-air ballooning nearby.
Insider tip: If you can spring for it, reserve the new Manor Suite, with the best bathroom in the place: his-and-hers walk-in showers, 11 showerheads, and a mounted TV screen over the bath.
Don’t miss: The fragrant indoor garden in the Orchid Conservatory, where exotic flora bloom year-round.
