Pondside independent inns

Set along Quechee-Hartland Road just outside the village of Quechee, this small Vermont bed and breakfast takes its name from the pond it sits near, a quiet stretch of countryside in the town of Hartford. Guests are unanimous in their praise — a perfect 5-star average across 26 reviews is a rare thing, and it suggests the kind of place where the host knows your name by the second morning. It's an unhurried base for the Upper Valley, with its own website rather than a booking-engine listing.