Hotel at a Glance: The French Country Inn

Set on the pristine shores of Lake Como—just three and a half miles from Lake Geneva—the century-old French Country Inn boasts exquisite architecture. The resort’s buildings were transported from Chicago after being featured at the Danish Pavilion during the 1893 Columbian Exposition. Since then, it’s amassed a colorful history: the inn served as a discreet getaway during the height of Prohibition for gangsters such as Bugs Moran and Baby Face Nelson, who holed up at the hotel and partied in the basement speakeasy.

• Recent renovation: The inn reopened after extensive redecorating and refurbishing of all rooms.
• Literary legacy: The inn’s gangster history inspired the innkeeper’s murder-mystery novel, Murder at the French Country Inn, released in 2012.
• Where you’ll stay: Each standard room is outfitted with a Euro-style fireplace and a private balcony that overlooks Lake Como. Luxury rooms have traditional gas fireplaces, jetted tubs, private balconies, and additional space to spread out.
• Indulgent amenities: The innkeepers lay out a continental breakfast spread in the lakeside dining room each morning.
• Downtown Lake Geneva features quaint streets lined with antiques stores, art galleries, and curio shops.

Lake Geneva, Wisconsin: Lakeside Mansions and Historical Museums

Located within 90 miles of Chicago, Milwaukee, and Madison, Lake Geneva has become one of the Midwest’s most popular destinations for recreation. Geneva Lake—a gaping gulf of fresh water ripe for swimming, leisurely sails, water skiing, and tubing—is the resort town’s biggest draw in the summer. Admire the scenery by taking a stroll on the Geneva Lake Shore Path, a 21-mile walkway planned by early settlers that stretches around the entire lake. Along the way, you’ll pass expansive gardens and the opulent estates that helped the town earn the nickname “Newport of the West.”

In the winter, outdoor activities range from sledding and cross-country skiing in Big Foot Beach State Park to ice-fishing on Geneva Lake. There’s also plenty to do indoors. The Geneva Lake Museum takes visitors back in time with re-created late 19th- and early 20th-century shops, and the nearby Yerkes Observatory is home to the world’s largest refracting telescope.