Crest Country Inn
340 W Evans St
Williamsburg, IA
Gary Stake is a fourth-generation hotelier whose family ran the Stake Hotel on the Williamsburg town square before his father built this one on a hilltop with a view of the rolling Iowa countryside in 1966.
This property is an Honorable Mention. It has been vetted and approved for our highest standards of cleanliness, safety, and operational excellence. While it is still evolving toward our full design-led designation, it is a proven, reliable anchor for any road trip. We recommend it with confidence.
About Crest Country Inn
Gary Stake's family has been running lodging in Williamsburg, Iowa since the late 1800s, when Harry and Florence Stake operated the Stake Hotel on the corner of the town square. Gary's father built the Crest Country Inn in 1966 on a hilltop site off what is now Interstate 80. Gary is the fourth generation to carry the name and the approach: American-owned, family-operated, personally present. The rooms are individually decorated with distinct themes. The inn occupies sixteen hilltop acres seven miles from the Amana Colonies, a cluster of seven historic German communal villages known for their restaurants, craft breweries, and furniture shops.
What Crest Country Inn Is Known For
The Crest Country Inn earns Honorable Mention as exactly what it is: a fourth-generation family motel on a hilltop with a sixteen-acre view of Iowa farmland, thirty individually themed rooms, genuine dog-friendliness, and four decades of consistent cleanliness. The themed rooms are hospitality-grade decorating rather than a design vision rooted in the Iowa landscape, and the breakfast is continental in the basic sense. These are the gap. What earns it a place on Boutels is Gary Stake's four-generation ownership and the specific combination of a clean family motel on sixteen hilltop acres above the highway, where the same welcome has been extended for four generations. That is not a chain motel. It is not trying to be one.
Amenities
- Pets Welcome
- Breakfast Included
- WiFi
- 16-acre hilltop grounds with 360-degree Iowa countryside views
- Individually themed rooms
- Pet-friendly (designated canine rooms; contact the property to confirm current amounts and restrictions)
- Continental breakfast included daily
- At-door parking with winter block-heater plug-ins
- Refrigerator and microwave in every room
- Free WiFi
- TV cable
- ADA-accessible room available
- The Gathering Barn event venue on property
What Guests Love
- Gary Stake is a fourth-generation hotelier whose family has run lodging in Williamsburg since the late 1800s. That continuity is visible in the operations: consistent cleanliness, a top ranking in town, and a fifty-year track record that recently renovated properties cannot replicate.
- The sixteen-acre hilltop setting produces a specific quality of stay that a highway motel at exit level cannot. Deer and pheasants are documented on the grounds. The picnic tables face west across rolling Iowa farmland. The Gathering Barn on the property is a 500-person event venue. None of this is visible from I-80.
- Dogs under 80 pounds are welcome in eight designated canine-friendly rooms, with a limit of two per room. The canine policy is specific, consistent, and clearly posted. Multiple reviewers traveling with dogs name the welcome as the reason they return.
Worth Knowing
- WiFi is included but can be inconsistent due to rural signal conditions. If stable internet is essential to your stay, confirm connectivity when booking.
- The continental breakfast is basic: yogurt, Danish, fruit, coffee, and juice. It runs in the morning. The Amana Colonies, seven miles away, have substantially more substantial breakfast options at Colony Inn and Ox Yoke Inn.
- The property is on a hilltop behind a Casey's convenience store at I-80 Exit 220. Follow the signs; the hilltop location is not immediately visible from the highway.
- Pets are welcome. A pet fee applies; contact the property directly to confirm current amounts and any restrictions before booking.
The Room
All rooms are on the first floor with exterior corridor access and at-door parking. Each room is individually decorated with a specific theme: options include Deer Lodge, Safari, Beach, Tropical Birds, Oceanic, Victorian, Patriotic, Winter Chalet, The Hunt, Travel The World, Boat, Cabin/Bear, Flamingo, Gone Fish'in', and Equestrian. Beds are king or two-queen configurations depending on the room. Every room includes a TV cable, refrigerator, microwave, and self-controlled heating and cooling. Complimentary high-speed WiFi is standard throughout, though rural area conditions can affect signal strength. Rooms are designated canine-friendly; dogs under 80 pounds are permitted for a nightly fee, with a maximum of two dogs per room. Contact the property to confirm current pet fee amounts. One ADA-compliant room is available.
The Grounds
The Crest Country Inn occupies sixteen acres of hilltop above Williamsburg, with 360-degree views of the surrounding Iowa countryside and documented sightings of deer, rabbits, and pheasants on the grounds. Picnic tables and chairs are positioned for sunset views across the rolling farmland. At-door parking runs along the building face with winter block-heater plug-ins for cold weather stays. The Gathering Barn, a 500-plus capacity event venue on the property, serves as a wedding and gathering destination for the region. The hilltop setting keeps the motel visually separated from the highway commercial corridor below.
The Experience
A stay at the Crest Country Inn is organized around the setting and the simplicity of what it is: a clean, well-run family motel with a view, seven miles from the best restaurants and craft breweries in the Amana Colonies. Continental breakfast runs each morning with coffee, juice, yogurt, fruit, and Danish. Check-in is straightforward and the staff is noted across reviews for being genuinely helpful rather than merely transactional. The grounds invitation to sit outside, watch the sunset, and listen for nothing in particular is the activity that fits the property's pace. The Amana Colonies, seven miles west on Iowa Highway 6, are the primary draw in the area. The seven villages have been operating since 1855 and the current economy runs on restaurants (the Colony Inn and Ox Yoke Inn are both long-standing), the Millstream Brewing Company, the Amana Woolen Mill, and the Amana Furniture and Clock Shop. Kalona, fifteen miles south, is quieter and less touristically developed: the Thursday farmers market, the Kalona Cheese House, and the quilt shops are the main reasons to stop. Neither excursion requires more than a half day. For I-80 travelers who need a night between Chicago and the Missouri River, the Crest Country Inn is the stop that is consistently better than what the exit would suggest.
Details
Williamsburg, IA 52361
The Boutel designation is earned, not purchased. Boutels is editorially independent and has no financial relationship with any listed property.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Crest Country Inn have EV charging?
No, Crest Country Inn does not have EV charging.
Does Crest Country Inn have WiFi?
Yes, Crest Country Inn has WiFi.
What is there to do near Crest Country Inn?
Amana Colonies: 7 miles, about a 15 minute drive. Kalona: 15 miles, about a 30 minute drive. Lake Macbride State Park: 20 miles, about a 40 minute drive.
How far is Crest Country Inn from Amana Colonies?
7 miles, about a 15 minute drive.
How far is Crest Country Inn from Kalona?
15 miles, about a 30 minute drive.
How far is Crest Country Inn from Lake Macbride State Park?
20 miles, about a 40 minute drive.
Is Crest Country Inn pet friendly?
Yes. Crest Country Inn welcomes pets. A pet fee applies; contact the property directly to confirm current amounts and any restrictions before booking.
What is the breakfast at Crest Country Inn?
A complimentary continental breakfast is included each morning. It includes coffee, juice, yogurt, fruit, and Danish. It is a light offering; the Amana Colonies, seven miles away, have substantially more dining options.
What is the Gathering Barn?
The Gathering Barn is a 500-plus capacity event venue on the Crest Country Inn property, used for weddings and regional events. It is separate from the motel operation but on the same sixteen-acre hilltop.
Is there a pool?
There is no pool at Crest Country Inn. The property offers sixteen acres of hilltop grounds with countryside views, picnic tables, and access to the Gathering Barn venue.
Is parking available at Crest Country Inn?
Yes. Free on-site parking is available at Crest Country Inn.
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Things to Do Near Amana Colonies
Amana Colonies
7 miles, about a 15 minute drive.
The Amana Colonies are seven historic villages established in 1855 by a German communal religious society, now operating as a living history and tourism destination with restaurants, craft breweries, a woolen mill, furniture and clock shops, and the Millstream Brewing Company. The Colony Inn and Ox Yoke Inn are both long-established communal-style restaurants serving family-style German-American cooking. The Colonies are the primary reason most guests stop in Williamsburg rather than continuing on I-80.
Kalona
15 miles, about a 30 minute drive.
Kalona is home to one of the largest Old Order Amish and Mennonite communities in Iowa, with a Thursday morning farmers market, the Kalona Cheese House, and a concentration of quilt shops and craft operations that reflect a working community rather than a tourist reconstruction. The pace is quieter than the Amana Colonies and less commercially developed; a half-day excursion from the Crest Country Inn.
Lake Macbride State Park
20 miles, about a 40 minute drive.
Lake Macbride State Park operates around a 812-acre reservoir northwest of Iowa City with boating, fishing, swimming beaches, hiking trails, and a campground. The park is the largest recreational water area in the immediate region and is a reasonable half-day excursion for guests who want outdoor activity beyond the Amana and Kalona corridors.