Sprinkle in beautiful surroundings, hot drinks, decadent cookies, inns trimmed in holiday decorations and you have a wonderful (and caloric) cookie tour, filling guest rooms with cookie aficionados squirreling away bags of delicious treats. Not to be missed are the gingerbread sculptures at each of the 17 inns; all are donated by local businesses who sponsor a non-profit organization.
Be sure to vote for your favorites as the winners receive a donation of up to $500 for the non-profit that each creation represents.
The Bartlett Inn’s large, comfortable rooms are ideal for families and their snug two-room cottages are perfect for a romantic weekend. Indulge in chocolate yum yum cookies by the fireplace in the living room.
The Old Red Inn’s rooms are filled with four-poster beds and handmade quilts. The innkeepers decadent chocolate surprise cookies with melted marshmallow centers and cocoa icing are enough to satisfy the chocoholic in anyone.
Nibble on chocolate toffee bars while touring the Inn at Jackson. Built in 1902 by renowned New York architect Stanford White, this was the summer home of the Baldwin family, which made its fortune manufacturing pianos. Nowadays this elegant inn boasts 14 well-appointed guest rooms.
Farther north, in Hart’s Location, is the Notchland Inn. This 1860’s granite mansion, in the middle of the White Mountain National Forest, boasts elegantly decorated rooms, suites and cottages, all with wood burning fireplaces. Silver trays holding holiday cookies are placed throughout the lobby.
Two quaint inns in Eaton Village, the Inn at Crystal Lake and the Snowvillage Inn, both offer spectacular views of Mt. Washington towering over Crystal Lake, the ideal setting for sampling chocolate espresso cookies and maple meringue puffs.
The Riverbend Inn’s 10 guest rooms are a stunning color palette of reds, oranges, blues and greens. The entire inn is brimming with Asian art. The window seat overlooking the Chocorua River is a cozy spot for munching several lemon poppy seed ice box cookies.
Prices for Cookie Tour packages range from $171 to $545 and include two nights lodging for two with breakfast each morning and two tickets to the tour.
The day ticket price of $25 includes a cookbook and map. You won’t get lost in the mountains; just follow the aroma of baking cookies and the trail of crumbs from inn to inn.