HotelChatter

Of course, if you're at school, it's mandatory to go to detention -- that is, The Detention Bar, which features single malts and scotches, and an array of cigars. No need for smoking in the boys' room.

Then there's The Honors Bar, offering mixed drinks, coffees, wines, and liqueurs. And at the Concordia, the hotel's on-site micro-brew, the brewing tanks are decorated with the portraits of former principals. Bueller? Anyone?

If you crave still more extra-curricular activity, take your drinks and munchies over to the hotel's movie theatre, showing first-run and arthouse films, complete with shabby-chic couches and old auditorium seating.

Plug in your laptop at WiFi hotspots all over the hotel. Or settle in for a groovy gig: eclectic musical groups play regularly. The Hunger Mountain Boys are next to perform, August 16 at 7pm. (free, all ages).

The owners also ripped out the Teachers' Lounge (stifle your cheers) and put in a massive tiled outdoor bath, deliciously heated for evening soaks. The pool is also open to the general public for a $5 fee.

While there were one or two asides about no tvs in the room (this is a school, after all), uneven service, a few rooms with shared bathrooms and "unconventional accomodations," Tripadvisor Reviews almost universally give the school gold stars -- from "cool" and "funky" to "memorable" and"unforgettable." Sounds like a no-brainer.

[Photo: Melissa Soltis]

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