Mama Shelter
Hollywood, California
Rooms from $159/night*
Mama Shelter LA, a six-story hotel at the oh-so-Hollywood corner of Selma and Wilcox Avenues, was designed by Thierry Gaugain. It's the first American outpost of the "quirky chic" Mama Shelter boutique hotels, which originated in Paris. Hotel owner Benjamin Trigano commissioned local artists to run wild on the ceilings, adding an only-in-Los Angeles feel to the colorful, Parisian chic decor.
Photo courtesy Mama Shelter LA
*Room rate assessed at the time of publishing, for a two-night weekend stay within 60 days.
Kimpton Goodland
Goleta, California
Rates from $234/night*
Santa Barbara and the surrounding area has long represented the best of what California has to offer—the beach, bohemian art and architecture and an understated, easygoing elegance that is miles, literally, from the glitz and glam of Hollywood. All of that is captured in the Kimpton Goodland, where the LA-based design firm Studio Collective helped transform an old Holiday Inn into a beacon of California cool.
Photo courtesy Kimpton Goodland
*Room rate assessed at the time of publishing, for a two-night weekend stay within 60 days.
The Saguaro
Palm Springs, California
Rooms from $178/night*
Yet another Holiday Inn revitalization, but in full technicolor, The Saguaro Palm Springs was the brainchild of the New York-based design firm Stamberg Aferiat & Associates, which also designed The Saguaro in Scottsdale, Arizona. The vibrant, pop exterior—and matching interiors—lie in contrast to the stark desert and nearby mountains.
Photo credit Josh Cho, courtesy The Saguaro Palm Springs
*Room rate assessed at the time of publishing, for a two-night weekend stay within 60 days.
Hotel Indigo Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara, California
Rooms from $185/night*
Hotel Indigo stands out from the traditional Spanish architecture that dominates most of downtown Santa Barbara. But the most unique design element of this boutique hotel comes from the rotating gallery of art and site-specific installations, curated by the Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum.
Photo courtesy Hotel Indigo Santa Barbara
*Room rate assessed at the time of publishing, for a two-night weekend stay within 60 days.
El Cosmico
Marfa, Texas
Rates for a trailer from $81/night*
Few things are as quintessentially Marfa as El Cosmico, hotelier Liz Lambert's foray into upscale glamping, with retro trailers, yurts and tents spread across the West Texas desert. The decor is a riot of color, with aggressive nods to the nearby Mexican border and 1960s Americana, all done with a nomadic-minded, vintage modern touch.
Photo credit Nick Simonite, courtesy El Cosmico
*Room rate assessed at the time of publishing, for a two-night weekend stay within 60 days.
Hotel Havana
San Antonio, Texas
Rooms from $221/night*
Four hundred miles away, and yet a world apart, aesthetically, is another Liz Lambert property—the Hotel Havana in San Antonio. In this re-imagining of a historic, 1914 Mediterranean revival building, San Antonio's Cuban and Mexican history are celebrated in the décor and amenities.
Photo credit Nick Simonite, courtesy Hotel Havana
*Room rate assessed at the time of publishing, for a two-night weekend stay within 60 days.
Freehand Miami
Miami, Florida
Private rooms from $185*
At the Miami outpost of the boutique Freehand hostel chain, the design firm Roman and Williams transformed a 1930s-era building, formerly known as the Indian Creek Hotel, to embody a "camp cabin feel with a 1960s, bohemian backdrop."
Photo credit Adrian Gaut, courtesy Freehand Miami
*Room rate assessed at the time of publishing, for a two-night weekend stay within 60 days.
The Asbury
Asbury Park, New Jersey
Rooms from $165/night*
Think of a classic East Coast beach hotel—only eminently better. The Asbury is billed as a celebration of the Jersey Shore, bringing elements of the area's Victorian past together with its rock 'n' roll, Bruce Springsteen credibility. The touches are quirky, yet thoughtfully done—like the understated plywood headboards, handcrafted by Amish carpenters, or the off-the-shelf rattan pendants used throughout the lobby. For Dominic Kozerski, part of the design team behind the hotel, the goal was "smart, casual beauty"—on a budget.
Photo credit Nikolas Koenig, courtesy The Asbury
*Room rate assessed at the time of publishing, for a two-night weekend stay within 60 days.
The Anvil Hotel
Jackson Hole, Wyoming
Rates from $88/night*
The New York-based design firm Studio Tack worked hard to give The Anvil Hotel a look and feel far different from the "mountain modern" aesthetic common to popular ski towns like Jackson Hole. Instead, they looked backward, imbuing the 49-room hotel with a classic, Gold Rush-era feel, right down to the general store-like lobby. The guest rooms evoke the period with navy wainscoting and rustic, iron bed frames.
Photo credit Read McKendree, courtesy The Anvil Hotel
*Room rate assessed at the time of publishing, for a two-night weekend stay within 60 days.
Scribner’s Catskill Lodge
Hunter, New York
Rates from $200/night*
Similarly, Studio Tack took a 1960s-era motor lodge near the ski resort at Hunter Mountain and re-imagined it with both modern touches and a nostalgic, midcentury homage to the original architect. Guest rooms are relatively spare and painted Benjamin Moore Cloud White, as a blank canvas for subtle, bohemian decor.
Photo credit Douglas Lyle Thompson, courtesy Scribner's Catskill Lodge
*Room rate assessed at the time of publishing, for a two-night weekend stay within 60 days.
