Under $100

The family-owned 1848 Inn and Motor Resort (258 Endicott St., North Weirs Beach, 603/366-4714, Apr–Nov., $80–110) has clean rooms as well as cottages with kitchens and an outdoor swimming pool, game room, and picnic area. It’s located within walking distance to Weirs Beach.

$100–150

Open year-round and located five minutes away from Weirs Beach, the Lighthouse Inn (913 Scenic Dr., Laconia, 603/366-5432, www.lighthouseinnbb.com, $90–180) sits on five nicely maintained acres. Rooms are equipped with fireplaces (and one has a whirlpool tub) and private patios. There are also four newly renovated one- and two- bedroom cottages directly on Weirs Beach. The full breakfast comes with very good homemade pastries—as does afternoon tea.

Also near Weirs: spacious, comfy rooms are available in and around Grand View Motel & Cottages (291 Endicott St., North Weirs Beach, 603/366-4973, www.grandviewmotel-nh.com, Apr–Oct., $123–150), which also offers neatly kept cottages with views of the lake.

It won’t win any design awards (at least not for the rooms’ wall-to-wall carpeting), but the setting of Squam Lake’s Boulders Motel (981 Rte. 3, Holderness, 603/968-3600, www.bouldersmotel.com, $115–145) is hard to beat. Private porches are attached to each room, where guests can relax, listen to the loons cry across the lake, and watch the sunset. The property’s cottages, meanwhile, come with kitchens, living rooms, and porches. Open June to August only.

$150–250

Decorated with grandfather clocks, maple wood floors, and tufted sofas, Cozy Inn-Lakeview House (12 Maple St., Weirs Beach, 603/366-4310, www.cozyinn-nh.com, $65–210) offers 16 cottages (either poolside or with lake views) and rooms in two separate buildings. Rooms in the main houses are simple but functional enough, and are outfitted with quilts and futon seating.

You’ll find eight very pretty guest rooms (each with lake-themed decor) at Squam Lake Inn (Rte. 3 & Shepard Hill Rd., Holderness, 603/968-4417, www.squamlakeinn.com, $160–180). The century-old Victorian farmhouse building outfits each chamber with exceptional linens and Wi-Fi, and offers a full breakfast (from four-grain blueberry pancakes to eggs Benedict). Common areas include a charmingly decorated library and a lovely wraparound porch.

$250 and Up

If there’s such a thing as sleek country, it’s found at The Inn & Spa at Mill Falls (312 Daniel Webster Hwy./Rte. 3, Meredith, 800/622-6455, $129–279), offering the ultimate in comfort and relaxation. Three lovely distinctive inns each offer spectacular lake views, private balconies, in-room fireplaces, black wood furniture, sumptuous tapestries, fireplaces, and fresh flowers. Five wonderful restaurants are also on-site. The lakeside spa is phenomenal, with deluxe, world-class treatment rooms, indoor and outdoor pools, and steam rooms. There’s also a first-rate (and enormous) buffet brunch.

© Michael Blanding and Alexandra Hall from Moon New England, 2nd Edition