Virginia Hotel
25 Jackson St., Cape May
(800) 732-4236
virginiahotel.com
Cost: Rooms run $100-$345 in December.
Drive time: Two hours.
Amenities: Impeccably restored 19th-century charm dating back to 1879; plasma TVs; free wireless hi-speed Internet; in-room mini-bar; Bulgari bathroom amenities; all-cotton Belgian sheets; Italian duvet covers; bathrobes; free continental breakfast.
Holiday for two: The Yuletide Getaway Package (Nov. 28-Dec. 23; call for price) includes dinner for two, champagne, tickets for a Christmas Inns tour and in-room continental breakfast. Or try the Christmas Day Package ($590/two nights, $816/three nights), with accommodations for two, four-course Christmas dinner and in-room continental breakfast.
Don’t miss: After a memorable dinner at the Ebbitt Room and a dip into its award-winning wine cellar, slink across Jackson Street to the basement of Congress Hall for martinis and live jazz or blues in the Boiler Room. The hotel’s original boiler pit sits right next to the stage. Talk about hot.