In short… The Inn at Hancock is a playfully chic, newly renovated historic coaching inn that punches far above its weight when it comes to food, service and design.
The surroundings… The inn anchors the photogenic little New England town of Hancock, in southwestern New Hampshire, about 20 minutes east of Keene. Settled in 1764, the town was named for Founding Father and local landowner John Hancock. At one time a major cotton producer, Hancock later became a whistle-stop on the railroad, shipping local produce to the cities and welcoming fresh-air seeking visitors. Today it’s in a pocket of southwestern New Hampshire—including nearby Peterborough, Harrisville, and Dublin—filled with antiques shops, independent bookstores, galleries, and restaurants. Hancock’s own Main Street is lined with Georgian Revival-style clapboard and red-brick buildings, the Hancock Meetinghouse and First Congregational Church, and Hancock Market, which sells provisions including fresh eggs and excellent bread. A short walk from the inn, the town lake has a sweet little beach with a float you can swim out to in summer; in winter, family-friendly ski areas, like Sunapee and Crotched Mountain, are an easy drive away. In the middle of town, the three-story inn announces its bold new identity with two stacked pink doors framed by tall white columns.
The backstory… The inn was bought in 2022 by a Boston-based couple who own a home in neighboring Dublin. As Kerri Landry, the inn’s co-owner and creative director told it, she and her husband were driving their young son to a ski lesson when they noticed a for-sale sign. Weeks later, offer accepted, they became proprietors of the landmark formerly known as the Hancock Inn. Built in 1789, it’s the oldest continuously operating inn in New Hampshire, where both President Franklin Pierce and Mark Twain once stayed. The renovation took them three years, as the goal was to preserve the building’s bones while undertaking extensive upgrades behind the walls. Kerri considers themselves stewards who are reviving the inn’s long tradition of hospitality without changing its character (they kept the rambling 18th-century floor plan, for instance). The Inn at Hancock reopened in May 2026, with a second phase set to add a pool and tennis court next year.
The vibe… The interiors are a joyfully maximalist feast of color, pattern, whimsy and layered detail. Everywhere your eye lands there’s another fun surprise: painted trays, ceramic animals, vintage mirrors, taxidermy. Kerri—formerly Reebok International’s global head of PR—led the redesign with her longtime interior designer Jeffrey Delvey to create the inn’s eccentric English country house-meets-Americana aesthetic, sourcing many of the antiques and treasures herself, much of it from shops in the area. (And her sharp eye for branding extends to the smart 1789 logo on the custom china to the stationery and LL Bean Boat Tote I received.)
The entryway is flanked by a cobalt-blue lacquered sitting room wrapped in flora-and-fauna wallpaper and a striped ceiling—a masculine-feminine motif that recurs throughout the inn—a baby grand piano (for live performances on Fridays), zebra-striped rug, cluster of vintage Chinese ginger jars, and a taxidermied fox. Opposite is what appears to be a traditional American tavern known as the Hunt Bar with original wooden beams, leather seating, and fireplace… then you notice the wink: a raspberry-colored Aga stove behind the bar, an amusing collection of carved walking sticks hanging from the ceiling (which Kerri says she keeps having to replace as guests have been buying them).
A hallway leads to three distinct dining spaces, each with its own personality. There’s the intimate Formal Room painted Pepto-Bismol pink (technically Farrow & Ball Nancy’s Blushes) accented with a taxidermied peacock and a vintage pink push-button phone; the Reading Room, lined in vintage leather-bound books; the light-filled Garden Room, hung with vintage French botanical prints; and the most eye-popping of them all, Pink’s Lounge. Despite its name, it’s lacquered in fire-engine red and feels like a British hunt club with a twist: celadon armchairs upholstered in Linton (aka Chanel) tweed, stag’s antlers and a hog’s head mounted over the bar. Despite the meticulous décor, the atmosphere is warm and relaxed rather than stuffy or precious.
The rooms… There are 15 rooms, and no two are alike. We stayed in Room 1, a suite wrapped in woodland-scene wallpaper and outfitted with antiques ranging from chinoiserie to faux-bamboo carved furniture and a Chippendale sofa. I especially loved touches like monogrammed stationery on the writing desk and cabinet stocked with Zane Grey novels. The bathroom was compact but lovely, with the inn’s only bathtub, Frette towels and (in a nod to the owners’ anglophilia) Floris amenities.
Because we stayed on a Sunday night, the inn was largely empty, so I was able to peek into a few other rooms. Each had its own bold personality, dressed in floor-to-ceiling toile or Indian silk print; some bathrooms are tiny and others are larger. Rooms 9 and 10 occupy their own little alcove, one with princess-y twin beds, making them an especially good option for families.
The food & drink… The culinary team is led by chef Michael Chandler, who spent roughly five years with Jean-Georges before bringing his refined and seasonal approach here. The signature experience is the $125 prix-fixe dinner served in the pink Formal Room, which we loved for its fresh and unfussy (for a set menu) approach—dishes ranged from scallop crudo in watermelon aguachile to summer squash with tiny gnocchi, and lobster with corn and shaved truffles—a plate that tasted like summer itself. We paired everything with wines from the owners’ own Santa Ynez Valley winery, Time’s Arrow, though the list is quite deep. Because the inn has long been a special-occasion destination for locals (my college roommate from Keene grew up coming here!), they also offer a more approachable $49 prix-fixe dinner in the Library Room on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Sunday is pizza night and Monday is burgers.
There are two bars: one in the tavern, where I ordered a delicious “Baby Bouquet” (a floral cosmo with elderflower, magnolia, lime and lavender), alongside crispy deviled eggs; the other is in Pink’s Lounge. Breakfast is served in the Garden Room, where the lobster eggs Benedict were outstanding.
The wellness… A Pilates studio is under construction on the second floor and, as mentioned, a pool and tennis court are slated to open by next summer.
Is it kid-friendly? Surprisingly, yes. Because the owners have a 10-year-old, the whole place feels welcoming rather than precious, and children would likely get a kick out of the whimsical décor.
Extra tip goes to… Emmett, who met us at our car, checked us in, and happily shared local recommendations. And I loved his dapper uniform of suit and tie, which perfectly captured the inn’s polished but playful spirit, and which he said a staff member had custom-tailored.
Be sure to… Ask whoever is at reception for the notebook filled with recommendations for local cafes, restaurants, antiques shops, bookstores, galleries, theaters, parks, beaches, hiking & biking trails, fishing & shooting, golf and skiing across Peterborough, Dublin, Jaffrey, Hillsborough, Keene and others. Also stop by Main Street Cheese next door, where artisan goat cheeses are sold from an honor-system fridge. You can hear the goats bleating from the inn.
Parting words… The Inn at Hancock may be tiny, but it is very much a destination hotel. Between the inn’s public spaces, excellent dining and nearby explorations, it would be easy to fill a whole weekend here in any season.
Date of stay… July 12-13, 2026
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.