A fixture on campus since 1780, the oldest continuous hotel in New Hampshire has recently been refurbished and welcomes guests with comfortable accommodations, innovative hearty cuisine, and a myriad of indoor and outdoor activities.
Owned by the university and a mainstay for alumni and guests, the historic inn has been transformed by a 40 million dollar renovation into rooms and suites offering traditionally modern accommodations overlooking the college’s historic red brick buildings.
Cucumber or fruit flavored waters and homemade chocolate chip cookies welcome arriving visitors into the lobby where a 2,800 pound granite table rests on the black walnut floor and paneling behind the check-in desk is painted the college’s trademark shade of #369 Dartmouth green. There is a sign up board for Dartmouth alumni to post their names when in residence, and throughout the halls, handsome paintings by local artists are curated by New York City and local gallery Cynthia-Reeves.
Guests are escorted to classic rooms or junior suites tastefully decorated in shades of black and grey with accents, of course, in the college’s green. Each suite is fitted with a sliding pocket door that can separate the sitting and sleeping areas for privacy or meetings. There is a flat screen TV on each side of the door and plenty of drawers in wooden bureaus built by local furniture firm Pompanoosuc Mills. All of the lamps were designed by Simon Pearce, a local glassblowing firm.
A helpful card enclosed with a keycard explains how to operate the lighting and ventilation systems. Efficient Wi-Fi is provided password-free and arrangements can be made to hook directly into the college’s system. Across the foot of the bed is a throw blanket, white with a green stripe, in a cable knit that recalls the college letter sweater.
The accommodating bathrooms have slip-resistant granite floors, molded marble consoles and Gilchrist and Soames amenities. Evening turndown presents a tiny vial of lip balm and a chocolate bonbon or a tastefully arranged plate of homemade macaroons.
Those treats and all the catering are overseen by executive chef Justin Dain who works with Boston signature chef Michael Schlow to supply foods to the rooms, hotel events, and the versatile Pine Restaurant off the lobby, cozily done up in antique barn wood and upholstered chairs.
Besides a signature “Arrow in the Gale” and other cocktails at the popular bar, Pine’s farm to table offerings for lunch might include cold Duxbury oysters, slow roasted salmon or the renowned Hanover burger enhanced with bacon, crispy onions, Vermont cheddar and chipotle sauce. Potato crusted halibut and lemon thyme basted chicken, are popular dinner entrees, and the banana phyllo strudel with ice cream and caramel sauce is an irresistible dessert.
Literally interconnected to the college’s Hopkins Center for the Arts, the hotel provides “one-stop” cultural opportunities with the museum, auditoriums and movies literally steps away. Dancer Bill T. Jones, violinist Joshua Bell, filmmaker Werner Herzog, TV documentarian Ken Burns, and the Barbary Coast Jazz Ensemble are among this season’s bookings.
Besides its collections of paintings, Assyrian and Native American artifacts and American portraits, this fall’s exhibits at the Hood Museum of Art include Picasso’s Vollard Suite etchings. And art lovers should be sure not to miss seeing the landmark Orozco murals in the basement of Baker Library a straight walk from the hotel’s doors, directly across the Green.
Shoppers can browse through boutiques in the Nugget Arcade Building, stock up on sporting goods at Zimmermanns The North Face, pick through used and rare volumes at Left Bank Books. Bella’s and Talbot’s sell up to date fashions, and there are high-end consignments at the Pink Alligator. Pick up a green college tee shirt at the Dartmouth Co-op and don’t overlook the dense, creamy Italian gelato at Morano’s, which is considered a “must.”
Besides the 24-hour, in-house fitness room equipped with Cybex treadmills, the hotel can help arrange for golf, bicycle rentals, canoeing and kayaking on the Connecticut River. A section of the Applachian Trail runs through town, literally along one side of the hotel building, giving hikers the option of admiring nature’s autumn palette afoot.
For visitors who prefer to omit leaf-viewing traffic congestion, optional transportation includes dedicated Vermont Transit (Greyhound) bus services from Boston and New York and Avante limousines. There is air service to Lebanon from Boston and White Plains and Amtrak’s daily Vermonter delivers passengers to nearby White River Junction.
