About the inn
A farmhouse, a barn and two people who couldn’t say no
The Alder Inn is run by the people who live here. Here’s how it started, and who you’ll meet.
Dan and Ellen Whitcomb
How we ended up with an inn
Dan taught high school shop for 27 years, and Ellen managed the front desk of a Burlington hotel for 20. In 2009 they found an abandoned farmhouse on Hollis Hill with a leaning barn and an apple orchard, and bought it with a lot of optimism and a small loan.
They opened in the spring with four rooms. In 2013 Dan rebuilt the old carriage house into four more, and in 2016 he and a crew of carpenters finished the barn’s restoration. The first wedding was in 2017. The second was the next weekend. The inn has stayed small on purpose, and the two of them still live in the house across the yard.
- Opened as an inn in 2009 with four rooms
- Eight rooms and the cottage since 2013
- The barn’s first wedding was in 2017
- 2009opened as an inn
- 17years of breakfast
- 61weddings in the barn
- 1dog named Biscuit
Who you’ll meet
Four people do nearly everything here, and we’re glad to talk to you before you’ve decided.
- EW
Ellen Whitcomb
Co-innkeeper
Bought the Alder with Dan in 2009. Ellen takes the reservations, plans the packages and answers the phone most mornings.
- DW
Dan Whitcomb
Co-innkeeper
A retired shop teacher who rebuilt the carriage-house rooms and the barn’s timbers himself, and still lights the fire pit every evening.
Margo Pelletier
Breakfast cook
Has cooked breakfast at the Alder since 2011. Known for her blueberry-ricotta pancakes and for remembering who doesn’t eat eggs.
- TB
Tess Bergeron
Events manager & front desk
Runs the barn calendar, the tours and the tastings, and has seen 61 weddings from the back of the room.
Around the inn
The lounge, the porch and the lit windows in winter.
What guests say
- ★★★★★
“We came up for our tenth anniversary and it was exactly the weekend we needed. The room was warm and quiet, Dan had the fire pit going when we got back from dinner, and Margo’s pancakes ruined every other breakfast for us.”
Priya & Daniel R.Anniversary stay, King roomReview on Google - ★★★★★
“We were married in the barn last October with 104 guests. Tess answered every question twice, the barn looked like a dream under the lights, and our grandmother slept in the Alder Suite. Three of our guests have already rebooked for ski season.”
Beth & Tom S.Wedding in the barnReview on Google - ★★★★★
“Rufus the lab got his own water bowl, a biscuit at check-in and a spot by the cottage woodstove. We have stayed in a lot of “pet-friendly” places, and this is the first that actually felt happy to see him.”
Joel A.Cottage with a dogReview on Google
Come say hello
Stay a night, tour the barn or come to a fireside concert. We’d love to meet you.