P.A.L.M. Motel & Cottages
1065 Siskiyou Blvd
Ashland, OR
The garden, the pool, and the sign the community refused to let go.
About P.A.L.M. Motel & Cottages
The building at 1065 Siskiyou Boulevard was first called the Palm Motor Court when it opened in 1944. In 1966, a palm-shaped neon sign went up on the property that immediately became part of Ashland's visual identity. In the late 1990s, three new luxury cottages were added and Ashland's only heated saltwater pool was installed. When the owners considered removing the vintage sign, a community survey collected thousands of signatures to keep it in place. The sign is now protected and permanent. The current owners of Rancho Relaxo Resorts, LLC chose an acronym for the name: Peace And Love Matter. It is not a marketing slogan. The P.A.L.M. operates across from Southern Oregon University on the main corridor into downtown Ashland.
What P.A.L.M. Motel & Cottages Is Known For
The community voted thousands strong to keep the palm-shaped sign. That does not happen for a building people feel neutral about. What it reflects is that the P.A.L.M. has been woven into Ashland's identity since 1944 in a way that earned affection rather than simply accumulated years. The current owners, who renamed the property with an acronym chosen for what it means to them about this community, have continued that relationship. The award-winning gardens are maintained to the standard of a destination in themselves. Ashland's only heated saltwater pool is a specific and substantive contribution to what the property offers. A guest who stayed on the road between Seattle and San Diego described it as by far the best value on the whole trip. For a property with an outdoor pool, private cabanas, award-winning gardens, and cottage accommodations in a theater town, that assessment is not hard to understand.
Amenities
- Pets Welcome
- EV Charging
- WiFi
- Heated saltwater pool with private cabanas
- Award-winning gardens with lawn seating
- Fire pit and grill station with pergola
- Mosaic tile courtyard
- Hammock
- Chocolates in every room
- Tuesday night movie nights in summer
- EV charging
What Guests Love
- Brittany gives restaurant recommendations the way a local does: specific places she eats at herself, not a printed list. Multiple guests across different stays credit her specifically for making their evening meal one of the highlights of the trip. This is the kind of local knowledge that a property earns only when its staff are genuinely part of Ashland rather than just employed in it.
- The saltwater pool is Ashland's only heated saltwater pool, and it comes with private cabanas and water features. Guests mention the evening soak and the morning garden coffee as a sequence that defines the stay.
- The cottage kitchenettes are stocked with coffee and tea supplies, making the early morning before Ashland's cafes open a managed experience rather than a waiting game. Full kitchens in the larger cottages extend this to guests who want to cook.
- The grounds have received award recognition and the reviews reflect it. Guests who arrive in winter, when the pool is not the draw, describe the gardens and lawns as still fully worth the stay. The property invested in the grounds as a year-round experience rather than a summer amenity.
- Every room has its lights turned on before guests arrive. Chocolates on the pillow. These are small details that register in reviews because they signal that someone thought about what a guest feels in the first thirty seconds inside the room.
Worth Knowing
- The P.A.L.M. is 0.7 miles from the Oregon Shakespeare Festival theaters: a fifteen-minute walk through the SOU campus and into downtown Ashland, or a three-minute drive. OSF runs February through November and fills Ashland considerably. Book well in advance for spring, summer, and fall stays.
- Breakfast is not served on property. Morning coffee and tea are stocked in the rooms. Ashland's independent breakfast scene is strong: the Morning Glory Cafe is a short drive and a frequent staff recommendation.
- The saltwater pool operates seasonally. Confirm open dates if swimming is part of your plan for a spring or fall visit.
- Rooms near Siskiyou Boulevard can carry some traffic noise from the main road. Quieter rooms are deeper into the property. Worth specifying when booking.
- Pets are welcome. A pet fee applies; contact the property directly to confirm current amounts and any restrictions before booking.
The Room
Sixteen individually numbered rooms and cottages in a range of configurations: standard rooms for the solo traveler or couple, cottage-style rooms with kitchenettes stocked with coffee and tea supplies, and three full cottages added in the late 1990s renovation with access to stovetops and full kitchen amenities. Fireplace suites are available for guests who want a more luxurious stay. All accommodations have been renovated with retro character intact: the design has a bit of whimsy and tastefulness beckoning back to another era, yet modern in every way, as one repeat guest described it. Every room has a different door color, each one part of the upbeat retro palette the current owners committed to when they took over. Chocolates are placed in every room. Staff turn on all the lights before guests arrive so the cottage feels ready and inhabited from the first step inside. Beds are consistently praised in reviews as genuinely comfortable.
The Grounds
The grounds are the argument for the P.A.L.M. that no other property in Ashland can make. Award-winning gardens surround the motor court: mature trees, vibrant seasonal flowers, cheery flower sculptures, and lawn seating areas that function as outdoor living rooms. A covered pergola and grill station were added in recent years. A mosaic tile courtyard. Fountains. A hammock. A fire pit. Ashland's only heated saltwater pool anchors the warm-season experience, with private cabanas and soothing water features adjacent. Pool towels are provided. The parking lot is free and on-site. EV charging is available. The grounds are maintained as a year-round experience: guests who visit in winter describe the gardens as lush even in the off-season.
The Experience
Brittany has been described in reviews from different years by guests who remember her name because she gave them specific restaurant recommendations she frequents herself: not a list, but opinions. That is what staff do when they are genuinely part of a community and not performing hospitality. Nathan has also been named. The Tuesday night summer movie nights on the property are the kind of programmed touch that distinguishes a managed experience from a managed building. Guests returning for a second or third time consistently use the phrase felt like coming home. One guest who stays on every drive between Oregon and California described it as a genuine stop rather than a compromise. For guests at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, the P.A.L.M. is 0.7 miles from the OSF theaters: about a fifteen-minute walk through the SOU campus and into downtown, or a three-minute drive. For guests at Southern Oregon University, it is across the street. For guests who want to sit in a garden by a saltwater pool in Ashland, it is the only address.
Details
Ashland, OR 97520
The Boutel designation is earned, not purchased. Boutels is editorially independent and has no financial relationship with any listed property.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does P.A.L.M. Motel & Cottages have EV charging?
Yes, P.A.L.M. Motel & Cottages has EV charging on site.
Does P.A.L.M. Motel & Cottages have WiFi?
Yes, P.A.L.M. Motel & Cottages has WiFi.
What is there to do near P.A.L.M. Motel & Cottages?
Oregon Shakespeare Festival: 0.7 miles, about a 5 minute drive, or you can walk. Lithia Park: 0.9 miles, about a 5 minute drive, or you can walk. Rogue Valley Wine Country: 5 miles, about a 10 minute drive, or you can bike there.
How far is P.A.L.M. Motel & Cottages from Oregon Shakespeare Festival?
0.7 miles, about a 5 minute drive, or you can walk.
How far is P.A.L.M. Motel & Cottages from Lithia Park?
0.9 miles, about a 5 minute drive, or you can walk.
How far is P.A.L.M. Motel & Cottages from Rogue Valley Wine Country?
5 miles, about a 10 minute drive, or you can bike there.
Is P.A.L.M. Motel & Cottages pet friendly?
Yes. P.A.L.M. Motel & Cottages welcomes pets. A pet fee applies; contact the property directly to confirm current amounts and any restrictions before booking.
Is the P.A.L.M. close to the Oregon Shakespeare Festival?
About 0.7 miles, a fifteen-minute walk through the Southern Oregon University campus and into downtown Ashland, or a three-minute drive. The Oregon Shakespeare Festival runs from February through November on three stages at the center of downtown. It is the primary reason most visitors come to Ashland, and the P.A.L.M. is one of the most recommended properties for OSF stays.
Does the P.A.L.M. have a pool?
Yes. Ashland's only heated saltwater pool is on the property, with private cabanas and water features. The pool operates seasonally in summer and fall. Confirm open dates for shoulder-season visits.
Does the P.A.L.M. have free parking?
Yes. Free off-street parking is available on-site for all guests. EV charging is also available on the property.
Does the P.A.L.M. serve breakfast?
No. Morning coffee and tea are stocked in the rooms. Ashland has a strong independent breakfast scene within a short drive: staff can recommend their current favorites.
What is Ashland, Oregon like beyond the Oregon Shakespeare Festival?
Ashland is a small city of about 21,000 in the Rogue Valley of southern Oregon with an independent restaurant and cafe scene, Lithia Park (a 100-acre park along the creek designed in the tradition of Golden Gate Park), Southern Oregon University, and access to the Rogue Valley wine appellation. It sits 15 miles north of the California border and is a natural stop on I-5 between the Bay Area and Portland.
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Things to Do Near the Rogue Valley
Oregon Shakespeare Festival
0.7 miles, about a 5 minute drive, or you can walk.
One of the largest and most celebrated theater festivals in the United States, running February through November in the heart of downtown Ashland. The Festival operates three stages including the outdoor Allen Elizabethan Theatre, the Angus Bowmer Theatre, and the Thomas Theatre. It has been a defining institution of Ashland since 1935, drawing audiences from across the country and making the city one of the most unusual small theater destinations in North America. The walk from the P.A.L.M. through the SOU campus and into downtown is worth doing on foot at least once.
Lithia Park
0.9 miles, about a 5 minute drive, or you can walk.
A 100-acre park along Ashland Creek designed in part by John McLaren, who also designed Golden Gate Park, running from the OSF theaters into the hills above town. The park has Japanese garden elements, a duck pond, a bandshell, trails through old-growth trees, and the lithia water fountains that gave Ashland its identity as a health resort in the early 1900s. The water from the fountains tastes strongly of minerals and almost nobody likes it on first sip. Nearly everybody tries it.
Rogue Valley Wine Country
5 miles, about a 10 minute drive, or you can bike there.
The Rogue Valley is one of Oregon's established wine appellations, producing Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Tempranillo in a warmer, drier inland climate than the Willamette Valley to the north. Ashland sits at the southern end of the valley with tasting rooms in and near the city and the broader appellation stretching north toward Medford and Jacksonville. Staff at the P.A.L.M. recommend specific wineries the way they recommend restaurants.