Historic Hotels & Lodges

The Zion Lodge

& Historical District

Zion National Park, Utah

Bretton Woods, New Hampshire.

The Mount Washington Hotel is located in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. The hotel opened in 1902, and was built to be a luxurious hotel for the wealthy. Many famous people have stayed at the Mount Washington over the years. A major $50 million renovation of the property started in 2007 that will upgrade the entire hotel, add new convention and spa facilities, and rebuild the golf course. The Mount Washington Hotel is a National Historic Landmark, a recognition only given to properties that have made significant contributions to both architecture and history. While not on a major tourist route, the Mount Washington Hotel is a truly impressive hotel that is well worth going out of your way to visit!

The Chateau at Oregon Caves

Cave Junction, Oregon

Photo taken in June 2004.

The Oregon Caves Chateau or The Chateau at Oregon Caves, (both names are used and there's a big debate about which is correct) is located adjacent to the cave entrance in the Oregon Caves National Monument. This has to rank as one of the best historic hotels I have every visited, not because of it's elegance, but because I have never found anything else remotely like it! The Chateau is a time machine set to take you to the 1940's.

Oregon Caves Chateau - Page 1

(Continued from previous page.)

Pages: Intro & Index 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Photos taken June 2004.

Getting Oriented:

The 10-sided Oregon Caves Chateau building straddles a creek bed, with both ends dug into the side of the creek bed. If you think of how a dam is constructed in relation to a creek, the Chateau is essentially across the creek in the same manner. The Chateau building has 6 floors, the rear of the building is 6 floors above the creek bed. However due to the steep slope of the creek bed, the front of the building is only 4 floors high at the creek bed, and each end of the building is only 3 floors high. The result of the steep site means that every floor except the 5th and 6th floors has a ground level entrance. So there are 2 "basement" floors below the main Courtyard level! To help clarify, here's what's on each floor of the Chateau:

3rd floor. Small "attic" economy guest rooms.
2nd floor. Standard, deluxe and suite guest rooms, manager's apartment (now used as a suite.)
1st floor. Hotel lobby, standard, and deluxe guest rooms.
Courtyard level.* Dining room, coffee shop, kitchen, and gift shop.
Upper basement. Laundry, storage, employee dining room (community room), and employee rooms.
Lower basement. Equipment room, workshop.

*The naming of the Chateau's floors varies depending on the source. The naming scheme I have used here is based on the room numbering, rooms numbered as 100's on 1st floor, 200's on 2nd floor, 300's on 3rd floor.

Paradise Inn, Mt. Rainier National Park. Page 1

These are photos of historic Paradise Inn at Mt. Rainier National Park in the State of Washington, USA.

The front of the Paradise Inn

The Paradise Inn is a classic example of National Park Rustic Architecture, with giant fireplaces, and huge exposed log beams. These photos were taken September 5-8, 2016. I've added a brief history of the Inn as well as detailed descriptions. As always I will point out things not noticed by most visitors and discuss the architecture a little.