Why it’s cozy: In the West, we have a thing for
revamped motor lodges. What this 1957 motel-turned-eco-mod retreat lacks in sparkling ocean views, it makes up for with the kind of rare, woodsy quiet that comes only from snuggling under a Pendleton wool blanket by the crackling fire. The cabins’ radiant-heat floors, cast-iron stoves, and ready-to-go s’mores make it a little too easy to hunker down instead of hike.
What’s out the door: Ancient, soaring redwood trees (that includes the 500-year-old, 12-foot-wide, 100-plus-foot-tall Grandmother Pfeiffer Redwood, the second-largest in all of Big Sur).
The Big Sur Roadhouse restaurant is just steps away too, which means you can dine on grass-fed steak and stumble back to your bed instead of cooking in your (sparse albeit cute) kitchenette.
Best time to go: September and October, for
Big Sur’s sunniest, warmest weather.