Behind the scenes at a Distinctive Inns of New England meeting

Distinctive Inns of New England meetingIt’s difficult to know all that goes into making a New England Inn association successful.  It takes a hard working group of innkeepers, 12 distinctive and dedicated inns, and an esprit-de-corp dedicated to quality and professionalism. The Distinctive Inns of New England (DINE), a consoritium of luxury inns, all geographically based around the six New England states, have established a brand that’s synonymous with haute hospitality, kindness and comfort. Throw in fabulous food and you have the formula for a fabulous New England inn experience. Add innkeepers who genuinely respect one another and admire each other’s properties, and you have a great working group called Distinctive Inns of New England.

Twice a year, the innkeeper members of Distinctive Inns of New England meet at one of the member properties.  This allows all members to experience each property and serve as a referral to travelers seeking distinctive inns around New England.  Meetings are focused on creating promotions for guests who visit DINE properties, and also on helping travelers discover the joy of choosing a distinctive inn. With so many options ranging from New England hotels to Cape Cod motels, New Hampshire or Vermont vacation rentals, Rhode Island and  Connecticut  campgrounds or RV parks and Massachusetts resorts, the innkeepers for the 12 DINE properties know that travelers today have many choices for accommodations.  During the DINE meetings, innkeeper members explore developing ways to help New England travelers realize all that Distinctive Inns of New England offer.

Distinctive Inns of New England meeting at Rabbit Hill Inn

Angela from Grafton Inn and Carolyn from Harbor Light Inn offer the perfect millennial addition to the DINE membership.

Jill and James from the Captain’s House Inn are joined by Nancy and Deb from the Cliffside Inn during the DINE meeting at Rabbit Hill Inn.

Then, at the end of the meeting, it’s time to celebrate another successful six months.  Each DINE meeting includes a wonderful dinner created or coordinated by the hosting inn.  At the end of a productive meeting and six months of time spent focusing on taking the best care of guests, the members of Distinctive Inns of New England take an evening to reward themselves and share innkeeping tips and ideas. The photos probably reveal that while the meeting is always productive, the fun-time is a highlight of the DINE meetings.

Distinctive Inns of New England dinner

Roberta from Camden Maine Stay Inn is joined by Brian from the Rabbit Hill Inn and Sarah from the Captain Jefferds Inn at a lovely dinner in Camden.

DINE meeting at Harbor Light Inn

And DINE meetings are a great place to catch up too – this time at the meeting hosted by Harbor Light Inn.

Like any small industry group, the success of this inn association is in the camaraderie between members.  Each member serves as a referral source for the other members, and since DINE members meet at DINE properties, you can count on the fact that the innkeepers will know the properties well, when you ask for ideas for your next romantic inn getaway.  And as you can see, everyone in the group gets along well!

DINE meeting at Cliffside Inn.

Leslie from Rabbit Hill Inn offers a big thank you to Dave from Inn at Harbor Hill Marina for his term as President of DINE.

As in any endeavor in life, if it’s fun, positive, productive and filled with a few laughs, it’s worthwhile.  Perhaps its the smiles and laughs that make this group so successful. After all, it’s a scientific fact that positivity breeds success.  There are always plenty of laughs and good memories to fuel success for the Distinctive Inns of New England.

Judy Heuber from Chesterfield Inn

Judy from the Chesterfield Inn gets a good laugh at a meeting hosted by Captain Jefferds Inn.

Brian Shields, Manor On Golden Pond

Brian from Manor on Golden Pond gets a good laugh at a DINE meeting.

And each meeting ends with a group photo to insure that everyone is captured in the photos.

Cliffside Inn DINE meeting

Group photo of DINE members at Cliffside Inn meeting.

DINE meeting at Rabbit Hill Inn

Group photo taken at the DINE meeting hosted by Rabbit Hill Inn.

There you have it – the inner workings of Distinctive Inns of New England’s meetings.  You’ve seen photos of them posted on social media.  Now you know what keeps this association ticking and clicking…and smiling.

Next week we’ll resume our blog series on New England honeymoons and mini-moons with a story about waterfront romantic getaways in Connecticut. Plan your New England honeymoon getaway at the 12 Distinctive Inns of New England by clicking below on links that will take you directly to each of their websites.

In Rhode Island: Cliffside Inn in Newport

In Connecticut: Inn at Harbor Hill Marina in Niantic

In New Hampshire:  Manor on Golden Pond in Holderness & Chesterfield Inn in West Chesterfield

In Vermont:  Rabbit Hill Inn in Lower Waterford & Grafton Inn in Grafton

In Massachusetts:  Harbor Light Inn in Marblehead, Gateways Inn & Restaurant in Lenox, Deerfield Inn in Historic Deerfield and Captain’s House Inn in Chatham on Cape Cod.

In Maine:  Captain Jefferds Inn in Kennebunkport & Camden Maine Stay Inn in Camden.