The Elegance of Georgia’s Historic Bed & Breakfasts/Country Inns

Ah, the old South: Where else can you find so many fine examples of genteel living, wonderfully alive in unique bed and breakfasts and country inns? Here are four that caught our fancy at iLoveInns.com, the premiere online destination for B&B lovers.

Want to live like American financial aristocracy? Then stay at the Greyfield Inn, Cumberland Island; a 1900s-era mansion built by the Thomas Carnegies. Now operated as an inn by their granddaughter Lucy R. Ferguson and her family, the Greyfield Inn sits on 1,300 private acres on this barrier island. Outside, enjoy the sea air and the dunes. Catch a glimpse of wild horses, deer, bobcat, boar, turkeys, armadillos and birds, all of which live here. Inside, the Greyfield Inn offers truly elegant bedrooms and common rooms plus fine dining. This is a must-see destination!

1884 Paxton House Inn in Thomasville is a Victorian dream, complete with central turret, grand circular staircase, and wonderfully-decorated period rooms, some with four-poster canopy beds.  The inn is set on two acres in old Thomasville, and is on the National Register of Historic Places. For lovers of all ages, the 1884 Paxton House Inn offers an 18th Century Romance Package that comes with long-stemmed red roses, champagne, fruit and cheese tray, and decadent chocolates. You can spend your weekend enjoying this picturesque locale … but then, you may not want to leave your room.

True luxury: that’s the only way to describe Savannah’s Ballastone Inn. Located inside a restored 1838 town house, the Ballastone’s appointments have to be seen to be believed. Imagine  Antebellum-styled drawing rooms and bedrooms, with the perfect antiques, silver plate, and even a harp, all close to Savannah’s historic district. Celebrity watchers, take note: both Matt Damon and Academy Award Winner Kevin Spacey called Ballastone their home-away-from-home during the filming of Savannah-based movies, namely Baggar Vance and Midnight In The Garden of Good & Evil.

Haunted hospitality: That could be what you will experience at the Kehoe House B&B in Savannah. Set in a restored 1892 Queen Anne-style mansion, the Kehoe House is reputed to be haunted by the ghosts of twin Kehoe children who, some say, died while playing in one of the house’s fireplaces (now blocked up). The inn’s web site speaks of many reported sightings of the ghosts and the sound of children laughing and playing in the dead of night. But ghosts aside, the Kehoe is a beautifully-restored period piece that offers its guests a true window into the past, with gorgeous bedrooms and grand common rooms in the true southern style.

For more one-of-a-kind getaways, Browse through the 19,000 B&Bs and country inns that specialize in other events and locations that may interest you. Many of the properties listed above are also in the best-selling bed and breakfast guidebook Bed & Breakfasts and Country Inns with a Buy-One-Night-Get-One-Night-Free Certificate. ILoveInns also offers Bed and Breakfast Gift Certificates, a perfect solution to help celebrate any occasion!