Inn at Tacaro Estate, Tracy’s Landing MD: A Most Romantic Escape
The 8-guest-room Inn at Tacaro Estate, could well have been the 1700’s Virginia home of a Founding Father. Surprisingly, it was built in 1940 by “Clay Barron,” E. Taylor Chewning, as a retreat and gift for his wife, Caroline, using architectural renderings of an 18th Century manor home. Ergo the Colonial-Era Georgian-Style Manse vibe.
The Tacaro Estate overlooks Herring Bay, “one of the cleanest parts of the Chesapeake,” in the town of Tracy’s Landing, (where you’re more likely to encounter a horse than another human being). The land was part of a settlement that dates back to the late 1500’s.
It’s now a sought-after wedding venue and quiet romantic hideaway just 35 minutes from Annapolis MD, 45 minutes from Washington DC, and about an hour from Baltimore.
History of the Inn at Tacaro Estate
E. Taylor Chewning owned United Clay Products in Washington DC – and built Tacaro and several outbuilding with the bricks and tiles from his own kilns. An industrialist who wore multiple hats, Chewning hobnobbed with the movers and shakers in DC. At least two US Presidents – notably John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson – escaped the pressures of the country’s Capital at Tacaro Farm.
The Chewnings owned Tacaro – an amalgam of Taylor and Caroline – until Caroline’s death in 1977: at which point their children subdivided the original 450 acres and sold off much of the farmland, preserving 74 acres of what is now the current estate and all of its buildings.
In 2022, California-based attorney, Susan Holley, purchased the property and, with her partner, Luca Luciano, spent 1 1/2 years replacing the HVAC system, toilets, and sinks; installing a pool and hot tub on the front lawn; and repainting, renovating, updating, and refurnishing Tacaro Estate into a romantic retreat.
A DC hideout for people in the know, the Tacaro Estate is open all year. Some would say, with fireplaces blazing and snow softly falling, winter is the best time for a romantic escape.
Getting to Tacaro Estate
Your GPS might drop you off a few houses away but just know that the Tacaro property is not directly on the waterfront (no matter what AI says), although there are Bay views from every room.
Look for stone columns identifying Tacaro Farm, drive up the long, graveled road past a massive front lawn, until the colonnaded brick mansion atop the hill comes into view.
Welcome to the Inn at Tacaro Estate
Lodging guests (including yours truly) love being greeted with a welcoming smile and a treat. And the Inn at Tacaro Estate delivers on both counts. Susan or Luciano receive you warmly into their home. Cookies, fruit and flowers are arranged on the entryway table. It’s a first touch that sets the tone for an uplifting, gorgeous, (and very yummy) stay.
“This Place Could Be A Museum” – S.H.
From the 1847 Willard Hotel’s mahogany bar and barback in the downstairs “speakeasy,” to rooms festooned with furnishings and murals both staid and wild, the Inn at Tacaro Estate could well be a museum. Each room holds a cabinet of curiosities – especially the eccentrically furnished Library – and are a delight to explore.
Wander the Grounds
Speaking of exploring, wander the expansive grounds to find hidden gardens, brick walkways and staircases, thickets of shade trees, and several brick buildings – including stables, a chicken coop, a tobacco barn, and a shack where workers once lived.
You can walk down the driveway, across the road, and to the waterfront. Or jump on one of bicycles complimentary for guests to use. (Just FYI – it’s hilly here). Or in season, just hang out by the pool/hot tub.
On many evenings, guests can sit around a firepit and trade stories of the day. Just another way to find tranquility in this rural, bucolic place.
The Belle-Époque Period Speakeasy
Celebrate the Prohibition-Era on Friday and Saturday nights, when a bartender serves up your favorite drinks from the circa 1847 mahogany bar salvaged from the Willard Hotel, in the underground Speakeasy. Even when not open, ask to see both the bar and the spicy, rather risqué-for-its-time dancing girls mural, painted in the early 1940’s.
New Mural of Old Tacaro Farm
For a sense of what Tacaro Farm was like when a working farm, look no further than the 3nd floor Grandma Moses-esque mural, painted in 1944. A pastoral scene of sheep and cows, hilly pastures, and brick barns overlooking the Chesapeake Bay, it’s a beautiful depiction of Tacaro Farm as it looked when rendered.
Rooms at The Inn at Tacaro Estate
All eight rooms and suites are individually, eclectically, and elegantly furnished.
Mine, the Rose Room, invited me in immediately: with a cloud-like four poster canopy bed, cushy chaise lounge, fireplace, chandelier’d floor lamp, recessed makeup table, and a collection of unique fixtures I can only describe as “elegant Steam Punk.” (The faucet fixture in the bathroom is especially cool). Oh, and rare for an antique filled B&B – a large flat screen TV.
The 40’s-style bathroom, with updated sink and toilet, retains Chewning’s original tilework. And the expansive balcony is the perfect place to sip a glass of wine while watching far-off sailboats on the Chesapeake.
On the early spring morning I visited, the sun rose up from the Bay. Sunlight poured in though dormer windows, casting the room in a honey glow. It was calming and beautiful: wrapping me in a blanket of peace.
Breakfast at Tacaro Estate
It’s tough to pick a highlight of the Inn at Tacaro Estate, but breakfast here is definitely one. Soothing music, roaring fireplace, formally set tables, Susan and Luciano in chef’s whites – this is a breakfast to linger over, and one of the most romantic I’ve ever experienced at a luxury B&B.
Each morning, choose from a selection of nine hot menu items, including Dutch Baby Puff Pancake, oatmeal, and various egg dishes.
Croissants (made by Luciano) seem just flown in from Paris: the perfect ratio of flaky crisp exterior to tender inside, and served with a side of Nutella. I ordered the lemon curd and blueberry Dutch Baby – which came to the table in a cast iron pan. Outrageously good.
I do declare, it’s worth staying at the Inn at Tacaro Estate for the breakfast alone. But of course, the full experience provides the ultimate romantic getaway.
