Deer Path Inn
About
Deer Path Inn opened in 1929 as an English-style country inn built on the grounds of Colonel William Sage Johnston’s 1857 home, and the half-timbered building still anchors Illinois Road two blocks east of Market Square. The hotel joined the National Register of Historic Places and Historic Hotels of America in 1992 and marked 95 years in 2024. Day visitors come for The Brasserie, The Bar and the White Hart Pub, and for afternoon tea in the lounge, which is a Lake Forest tradition around the holidays. Travel and Leisure readers voted the inn the best resort hotel in the Midwest in 2019.
What to know
- Opened in 1929; the site dates to Colonel William Sage Johnston’s 1857 home.
- Added to the National Register of Historic Places and Historic Hotels of America in 1992.
- On-site dining includes The Brasserie, The Bar and the White Hart Pub, plus afternoon tea.
- Named best resort hotel in the Midwest in Travel and Leisure’s 2019 World’s Best Awards, per Patch.
- Located at 255 E Illinois Rd, two blocks from the Lake Forest Metra station.
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