In the United Kingdom, from approximately the mid-seventeenth century for a period of about 200 years, the Coaching Inn was a vital part of the inland transport infrastructure.

It was the place the stabled teams of horses for stagecoaches and replaced tired teams with fresh teams. Traditionally they were seven miles apart but this depended very much on the terrain. Some English towns had as many as ten such inns and rivalry between them was intense, not only for the income from the stagecoach operators but for the revenue for food and drink supplied to the wealthy passengers.

A lesser-used alternative phrase to describe such an establishment is "Staging inn"