This New Book Explores the Most Iconic Vintage Hotels in the West

There’s something undeniably romantic about a neon-lit motor court. Call it nostalgia, but these old timey motels drum up the feeling of freedom only a wide open road and hum of the highway can bring. That spirit is captured in Vintage Motels: America’s Most Iconic Motels, Beautifully Restored, a richly photographed new book from writer Ellie Seymour that spotlights 40 mid-century motor lodges lovingly revived for modern travelers. Equal parts design study, road-trip inspiration, and cultural history, the book shows how these once-forgotten roadside relics have become some of the most character-filled boutique stays in the country. And it should come as no surprise that many of the best are located right here in the Western U.S.

Visit the Santa Ynez Valley

Motor courts first emerged in the 1920s and ’30s as America fell in love with the open road. These simple drive-in accommodations grew alongside the expansion of Route 66 and the postwar boom in family travel. By the 1960s, their neon signs and geometric Googie facades had become icons of roadside Americana. Many eventually fell into disrepair, but over the last decade, design-forward hoteliers began reclaiming them.

Courtesy of Jay Carroll

California emerges as the star of Seymour’s book, appearing more than any other state. (Being the capital of car culture, this should come as no surprise.) The ever-iconic Madonna Inn in San Luis Obispo anchors the lineup with its maximalist charm, while Malibu’s breezy Hotel June and Central Coast favorites like White Water, the Pacific Motel, Farmhouse Paso Robles, and Skyview Los Alamos showcase a softer, coastal-modern approach. Inland, Ojai Rancho Inn leans bohemian, the Alamo Motel embraces unfussy design minimalism, and Palm Springs’ Trixie Motel—dreamed up by drag superstar Trixie Mattel—adds bubblegum glamour to the mix.

Courtesy of The Ingalls

Seymour also includes the Cuyama Buckhorn, the high-desert motor lodge that reignited my love of the genre and reaffirmed my love for slow-travel culture. This nostalgia wave extends well beyond the countless motel revamps to America’s grand national park lodges, which serve as enduring symbols of rustic architecture and Western heritage.

Thomas J. Story

The book’s Western picks beyond California feel like postcards from the open road: The Best Bet Motor Lodge in Reno, Nevada, the Stardust Motel in Wallace, Idaho; Egyptian Motor Hotel in Phoenix, Arizona; and a string of Route 66 legends including El Rey Court in Santa Fe, New Mexico; the Blue Swallow Motel in Tucumcari, New Mexico; and the storied El Rancho Hotel in Gallup, New Mexico; Mellow Moon Lodge in Del Norte, Colorado; and Anvil Hotel in Jackson, Wyoming, are just a few worth noting in the book, which would make an excellent coffee table addition for any design-minded loved ones. You can check it out here.

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Courtesy of Amazon

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