The Story Of… The Cherry Tree Inn in Woodstock, Illinois
Exclusive Interview with Innkeeper Extraordinaire Lori Miarecki
By Karen Beishuizen
Photos courtesy of The Cherry Tree Inn
The Cherry Tree Inn is a lovely B&B in Woodstock, Illinois which has that sense of deja vu since it’s the place where Bill Murray woke up over, and over, and over in the movie “Groundhog Day”. The Inn has five dedicated guest rooms with private bathrooms, seating areas TV & lexa. One block from The Inn is The Cherry Branch Guest House which features three guest suites complete with private baths and walk in showers. The Cherry Tree Inn creates memories & stories & a bit of joy for people every day. Go Check It Out!
KB: Describe to the RSR readers when and by who The Cherry Tree Inn was founded?
The house was a private residence from 1894 built by a lawyer named CP Barnes. Epic history story that would make its own amazing movie. He sold it in 1948 when it became a convalescent home. It only had 9 owners. Many come back to stay with us now. It was opened as a B&B in 2011 after 2.5yrs of reno with 8 bedrooms & 9 private bathrooms.
Carla & Everton Martin bought the house in 2009 but being Innkeepers was not what they expected. They tried to sell in the first year & it took almost 6 years before we came along. We stayed as guests for June 5-10th 2017 & I saw everything I ever dreamed of doing: gardens, weddings & hosting people from around the world. I spent my whole life in hospitality & love it! Opening the doors & giving tours on our first day as owners on Aug 31st ensured our success from the start. We still invite in visitors that stop by from all over the world every day to take pictures when we see them out there. If there’s time we often give inside tours.
KB: The Inn was used in “Groundhog Day” as the hotel where Bill Murray lives in repeat. How was The Inn asked to be part of the movie?
This is a long story and there are different versions from movie people & The Frank Family that lived here. The location scout Bob Hudgens worked on “Planes, Trains & Automobiles” with a few shots filmed in Woodstock too. He suggested Woodstock to Harold Ramis who turned it down because he wanted to do the whole movie in Punxsutawney, Pa. After visiting it didn’t fit the look they needed with a town square. After 60 other towns were passed on, Bob got Harold to Woodstock Square where he saw everything he imagined for the movie scenes in the idyllic little town with gazebo, bank, Opera House & Old Court. The town always feels like you’re on a movie set. Driving to the train tunnel where Phil takes the Groundhog, they saw this house at the end of the street & it was just perfect!
KB: Which room did he stay in?
The honest answer is none & several. It was a movie magic situation. Harold loved the house so much he recreated most of the rooms & designs you see on a set in a warehouse nearly to scale. They filmed in here several times over 3 months. I still can’t tell what’s here & what isn’t. They used the Magnolia, Black walnut & our now apartment on the 3rd floor as Phil’s bedroom layout. When he looks out the window that’s our 3rd floor turret. Fan’s favorite rooms are The Magnolia since it offers seating area looking down the iconic archway & “Cherry Street”. It’s actually Fremont St. The Black walnut same view but king bed sits in the bay window so you see the iconsvene from there. It’s so close that even Bill Murray said it was surreal. It was like stepping back in time 30 years to being on set.
KB: How many rooms are there and what do they look like?
The house has 4 floors of living space. We reserve 1st & 2nd floor for guest spaces with Bistro, Parlor & Diningroom. They are beautiful & cozy for guests to spread out, play games & relax & sit and have a drink. The wraparound porch & gardens are lovely. We have 5 dedicated guest rooms. All are beautiful & unique with private bathrooms, seating areas, TV & lexa. They can be seen on our website.
KB: What amenities does The Inn have?
#1 Amenitie is every guest room has a private bathroom. Guests have a bistro room with free snacks & drinks free anytime. We serve a big breakfast every morning at 9. Almost all dishes are homemade & feature local ingredients from the Farmer’s Market & makers in the county. Our sausage biscuits & gravy most Sundays. Barked brioche with my homemade salted carmel bourbon sauce are often requested by return guests. My Cherry Chocolate Scones are my most requested treat. When guests book the whole house for events & weddings they can opt for a brunch buffet, catered dinner or full parties. We even do intimate weddings. We offer charcuterie & wine, chocolates & flowers for guests to pre-order for special occasions. There is a list of fan made merchandise guests can buy too. Now we have perfect mini clock that plays ‘I’ve got you Babe’ with the radio intro.
KB: Which famous people stayed at The Inn over the years?
So many! We keep our guests coming for personal stays private. Others that have come to do shows, I can reveal. Woodstock Opera House & surrounding venues means we get musicians, comedians & actors year round. Guests are often surprised by performers at the breakfast table.
Obviously Stephen Tobolowski has come a few times to celebrate Groundhog Day with us. He was here this year to do the Feb 2nd Prognostication. He’s such a wonderful guy! He graciously gives guests time to chat & get photos. He was here with Bill Murray to film the Jeep GHD Super Bowl commercial Jan 2020 just a week before it aired. They didn’t sleep over that time though.
Danny Rubens, the writer of “Groundhog Day” stayed a few years ago too. I can’t possibly remember every performer we’ve hosted. Guests are often surprised to show up to the breakfast table & see familiar faces. Some of our guests include Caroline Rhea, Iliza Shlesinger, Corky Siegel, Emo Philips, Simon Taylor , Tammy Pescatelli, Justin Furstenfeld, Joe Piscopo… so many more!
KB: Did The Inn appear in series or movies other than “Groundhog Day”?
We’ve been approached a dozen times for shows, movies & commercials, but it doesn’t often fit into our pretty busy guest calendar. You can see the B&B on Hulu & other streaming services in ‘Reporting For Christmas’ from 2023. We just finished filming another Christmas movie in April called ‘Exes of Christmas Past’ which was released last month. We have appeared in John McGivern’s Main Streets & a bunch of YouTube series like “Beyond the Backlot”, “Geocache Blogger” & more than I can recall.
KB: Describe to the RSR readers what they can expect on a visit to The Cherry Tree Inn.
You approach through the iconic archway & up the flower lined path to an inviting wrap around porch with several seating areas. The first door you walk trough brings you into our fancy breezeway with original tiles, hand painted wallpaper & original art glass window. We have brochures & cards of local businesses & activities for visitors to grab & go explore. Then the main door with keycode opens into a grand hall with original oak wood floors, hand carved fireplace & grand staircase. The 1900 article that describes the house in is entirety hangs by the entrance. You see it in “Groundhog Day” when ‘Phil Connors’ walks out. The B&B is filled with warmth, charm & history. It’s not what people perceive a Bed & Breakfast to be as old & stuffy.
KB: Why should people stay at The Cherry Tree Inn and visit Woodstock?
We are so much more than just the “Groundhog Day” movie spot! We offer a beautiful experience for everyone. Most people come to have a little getaway & fall in love with the experience here & keep coming back. We create memories & stories & a bit of joy for people every day. We have hundreds of repeat guests now. People often feel like a part of our family from the the start. I feel like the Cooky Aunt people didn’t know they had & can’t wait to visit again. The house has amazing history & stories about the original owner’s. Even some friendly ghosts.
The property is very large with gardens to explore seasonally. Our Christmas decor is absolutely magical! Woodstock is filled with great events & activities year round including Farmer’s Market with live music Sat & Tues in summer. Winter market 2x a month. Practically festivals, shows & events every week. It has a lot of historic buildings & endless nature preserves in the area to explore.
Now we just added beautiful small garden pond on the side yard. Then a 30ft long waterfall, large koi pond & patio out back for guests to explore.
For more information check out The Cherry Tree Inn’s website: HERE
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