Restored Motels in the Northeast

Bluebird Spa City Motor Lodge

Saratoga Springs, NY

A midcentury motor lodge on downtown Broadway reimagined in black-and-brass minimalism, where the old outdoor pool has become a plant-filled atrium and a coffee bar pours around the clock. Park at your door and walk straight into Saratoga, with Congress Park, the restaurants, and the famous racecourse all close by.

Camptown Catskills

Leeds, NY

Heated bathroom floors, a 24-hour honesty pantry, and quality linens throughout a 1930s frame that was transformed, not renovated. Casa Susanna restaurant and a saltwater pool round out a property that earns every mention it gets.

Colony House Motor Lodge

Roanoke, VA

A 1959 Googie design on the National Register of Historic Places, fully renovated in 2025 with the original neon, folded-plate rooflines, and pool intact. Mid-century roadside architecture at its most specific.

Daunt's Albatross

Montauk, NY

Three generations of the Daunt family have held this downtown Montauk landmark, reworked in 2021 by Brooklyn's Home Studios into something rooted rather than rebranded. Days run from the saltwater pool to the fireside courtyard, and dinner is a stroll across the street to the family's own restaurant.

Dogfish Inn

Lewes, DE

The craft brewery behind it stocked every room with a growler, a beach chair, and a canvas tote, then parked cruiser bikes out front for the ride into town. A fire pit, chicory coffee, and a paneled lobby full of board games make it the kind of coastal basecamp you plan a whole weekend around.

Hotel Dylan

Woodstock, NY

A bohemian-sophisticated hideaway at the base of Overlook Mountain, where a record player and a stack of 1960s vinyl wait in every room. Days unwind on a central lawn with a saltwater pool, ping-pong, and fire pits, with the village of Woodstock and its music history just down the road.

Pier450

Ridge, MD

A 1940s fishing camp reimagined with individually themed rooms, a scratch-kitchen restaurant, a 450-foot pier, and a private beach with fire pits. Adults 25 and older only.

Reclaimed Motel

Red Hook, NY

A 1960 roadside stop rebuilt almost entirely from salvaged tiles, doors, and vinyl, so every room tells a different Hudson Valley story. Private decks face west to sweeping Catskill views, and evenings settle into a record on the turntable and a fire pit out back.

Silver Sands Motel

Greenport, NY

A 1957 waterfront property with a long stretch of private beach, a working oyster farm, and a salt marsh wellness sanctuary with sauna and cold plunge. A mid-century diner on site.

Spruceton Inn

West Kill, NY

A defunct 1960s valley motel reborn as a bed-and-bar, where a low strip of simple, screen-free rooms opens onto eight acres of creekside meadow ringed by mountains. Days run up to Diamond Notch Falls and back to a fire pit in the grass, then into Room One for a whiskey by the fire.

TOURISTS

North Adams, MA

Reborn on 80 acres with woodland trails, a saltwater pool, live music, and farm-to-table dining. MASS MoCA is a short walk away.

The Nevada

York Beach, ME

Completely restored in 2024, with every room having a private wraparound terrace and direct ocean views. Art Deco interiors, pop-art murals, and Lulu's tiki bar on site.

The Starlite Motel

Kerhonkson, NY

A 1960s roadside relic reborn in pink, aqua, and mint, where original tiled baths meet hardwood floors and a pour-over coffee waits in every room. Days run out to the Shawangunk trails and back to a saltwater pool ringed with retro loungers, with the ridge glowing at dusk.