Recession within Reason:

How to save Money in Style at an Illinois Bed & Breakfast

This year, check Illinois off your list of places to see without breaking your New Year’s resolution to save money.  Many of the bed and breakfasts on www.iloveinns.com offer luxurious accommodations and extra amenities at a lower cost than the chain hotels. Use these savings to make sightseeing in Illinois more affordable.  The following inns also accept the free night certificates included in Bed and Breakfasts and Country Inns, published by American Historic Inns, Inc., essentially providing guests with 50% off a two-night stay.

Luxury for Less
For fine dining on a budget, make a reservation at The Chestnut Street Inn. This Colonial Revival Style home rests on a tree-lined residential street in Sheffield, which is about fifteen minutes away from Princeton.  Here guests can trade a night out at a pricey, exclusive restaurant for an affordably elegant meal in an intimate setting.  Gourmet four course candlelight dinners are available most nights for $25 per person.  For $95-$175 per night with a second night free, all guests are pampered with bathrobes, toiletries and full breakfasts.

Bed and Breakfast travelers appreciate the finer things in life, from fine dining to fine linens.   Feel like a millionaire at Beal Mansion, An Elegant B&B, set in Alton’s Millionaire’s Row.  Renowned architect Lucas Pfeiffenberger designed this blend of Neoclassic, Georgian and Greek Revival styles as a wedding gift to Mary Drummond, heiress to the Drummond Tobacco fortune.   Guests can opt for a lighter breakfast at a discount and still enjoy the ambiance of marble statues and crystal chandeliers.  Rates are  $119-$328 (cost for 2 nights when you use the certificate!) Take your free night savings to the nearby Alton Belle Casino or the Rock Spring Golf Course.

History and Culture

Like historical artifacts and great works of art, the memories collected while traveling can be priceless and timeless.   The Market Street Inn in Taylorville is as rich in amenities as it is in history.  Guests in this 1892 Queen Anne Victorian home wake up to a candlelit, fireside breakfast and relax in whirlpool tubs. The inn is close to the Abraham Lincoln Museum and is within walking distance of the historic Taylorville Town Square.  Rates range from $125-$235 for a two-night stay when you use the  Free Night Certificate.

Starving artists might try the House of Two Urns Bed and Breakfast in Chicago’s trendy Wicker Park neighborhood.  Formerly a Polish bakery, this restored 1912 Brownstone now lures in travelers with artistic touches and the smell of baked goods.  Stay inside and enjoy your room’s Jacuzzi and fireplace or head downtown to experience the nightlife.  Chicago’s best art museums are a few metro stops away.  This big-city find is only $119-$189 for a two-night stay when you use the  Free Night Certificate.

Hospitality with a personal touch is perhaps the greatest amenity a bed and breakfast has to offer.  Innkeepers will gladly steer their guests away from costly tourist traps and send them to a favorite local restaurant or shop for priceless memories at a reasonable price.

Still undecided? 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.