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Most hotels are just a place to sleep. A few are the reason you took the trip in the first place. The ones on this list have been around for a century or more, or sit somewhere so wild that the room itself becomes the experience. You will not want to stay at all of them every year, but you should sleep at one of them at least once.
1. The Plaza, New York City
Opened in 1907 and sitting right between Central Park and Fifth Avenue, The Plaza is the hotel most people picture when they imagine old New York glamour. The lobby, the tea service and the corner towers all feel exactly the way they do in the movies, and yes, it has been in plenty of them. Even if the room rate is out of reach, you can stop by for afternoon tea and see what the fuss is about.
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2. Grove Park Inn, Asheville, North Carolina
Built in 1913 from huge granite boulders pulled off the mountain, this hotel looks like something that grew out of the hillside. The main lobby has two fireplaces so big you can walk into them, and in winter they are burning all day. It is cozy, a little dramatic and a great base for exploring the Blue Ridge Mountains, especially in fall.
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3. Hotel del Coronado, San Diego, California
The red roofed Victorian “Del” has been standing on the beach since 1888, and it still looks like it belongs to another century. It has hosted presidents and movie stars, and the classic comedy Some Like It Hot was filmed here. Stay in one of the older rooms if you can, take a walk on the sand at sunset and look back at the building glowing against the sky.
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4. Old Faithful Inn, Yellowstone, Wyoming
This is the largest log hotel in the world, and the lobby is the reason to come. The ceiling rises seven stories, with huge beams and balconies made from local pine and a massive stone fireplace in the center. It sits steps from Old Faithful, so you can watch the geyser go off and then walk back to your room. It is only open in the warmer months, usually from spring to early fall, and rooms book up long in advance.
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5. The Broadmoor, Colorado Springs, Colorado
A pink Mediterranean style resort opened in 1918, sitting beside a small lake with Cheyenne Mountain rising right behind it. It has spa days, golf, horseback rides and a few restaurants that feel properly old school. It is the kind of place where you can disappear for a long weekend and not feel the need to leave the property.
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6. Mohonk Mountain House, New Paltz, New York
Just a couple of hours from New York City, this Victorian castle sits on the edge of a glacial lake, surrounded by cliffs and forest. It has been run by the same family since 1869, which is rare for a hotel of this size. Days here are about hiking, rowing on the lake and eating big meals together, and the whole experience feels like a very well organized summer camp for adults.
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7. The Royal Hawaiian, Waikiki, Hawaii
Nicknamed the Pink Palace of the Pacific, this hotel opened in 1927 and is still painted the same bright coral color. It sits right on Waikiki Beach, with tall palm trees around the courtyard and a slow, old Hawaii feel that is hard to find in the busy neighborhood around it. Ask for a room facing the ocean and start your morning with coffee on the balcony.
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8. Amangiri, Utah
Amangiri sits in the middle of the desert near Lake Powell, built into the rock so that the walls almost disappear into the landscape. From the pool you can see huge sandstone cliffs in every direction, and at night the stars are ridiculous. It is expensive, no question, but if you have one big splurge in you, this is one of the most striking places in the country to spend it.
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9. Post Ranch Inn, Big Sur, California
On a clifftop above the Pacific along Highway 1, the Post Ranch Inn has rooms built into the hillside, with glass walls looking out over the ocean and a few that sit in the trees like treehouses. It is quiet, grown up and very romantic, and you wake up to fog rolling over the water. Pack a book, bring a warm jacket for the evenings and plan to do nothing at all.
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10. Hotel Monteleone, New Orleans, Louisiana
Opened in 1886 and still owned by the same family, the Monteleone sits at the edge of the French Quarter with a famous bar in the lobby that slowly rotates like a carousel. Have a drink there, listen to the live music drifting in from the street, and then take the elevator up to a room that may or may not be haunted. The staff will gladly tell you the stories.
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How to actually afford one of these
Not every hotel on this list needs a luxury budget. Visit in the off season, when rates can drop by a third or more, and try midweek instead of weekends. If a night is too expensive, you can still enjoy the place by having lunch, afternoon tea or a drink at the bar and walking around the grounds, which costs a fraction and still gives you the atmosphere.
Book early for the popular ones, especially Old Faithful Inn and anything in Hawaii or Big Sur, where the best rooms go quickly. And if you can only pick one, choose the place that matches what you actually love: history, mountains, ocean or a little bit of everything.
A good hotel is something you remember long after the photos stop being interesting. Pick one that makes you want to stay a little longer than you planned.