Modern Inns
Modern Inns have come to be more like businesses that serve alcoholic beverages, particularly in North America.
Alcohol is served in restaurant-style surroundings that don’t provide anything in the way of lodging for travelers.
In Europe, it’s the provision of lodging that identifies an inn as opposed to a tavern, alehouse or pub. The latter tend to provide only alcohol and sometimes a nominal supply of food and soft drinks. Inns of the modern age tend to be grander and more long lived establishments.
A couple of famous London Inns are the George Inn and the Tabard Inn. In any event, there is in actuality no distinction between an inn and other kinds of establishments and many pubs will use the name “Inn” even though they don’t cater to travelers.
So, in recent times inns have often come to denote a business serving alcoholic beverages.
This is especially true in North America, where inns are usually alcohol-serving restaurants that nothing to do with lodging services and are not entirely servicing the desires of travelers. In Europe, it is the provision of accommodation, if there is something that differentiates inns from taverns, alehouses and pubs, these later tended only to provide alcohol.
Inns then, tend to be grander and more long-lived establishments compared to old modest ones in early times. Yet, there is no longer formal distinction between inns and other establishments of similar kinds, and many pubs will use the name inn, either simply because they had been long established, or just to summon up a particular kind of image; however, if one will follow, originally an inn had to provide not only food and lodging, but also stabling and fodder for the traveler’s horse(s) if there are any, that he carries with his journey.