Some travelers like to stay in five-star resorts. Others prefer some grit with their lodging – motels with fun history, quirky charm and plenty of “character”(that’s what they call those mysterious carpet stains).
With a car culture and natural beauty that encourages roamin’ around, California is full of such unpolished gems. The Los Angeles Times recently rounded up a bunch of them for its “34 coolest, kitschiest, most fascinating motels in California.” These are motel-style accommodations between San Francisco and San Diego, built between the 1930s and ’70s, many with recent renovations.
The moon sets over the Sand and Sea Inn in Santa Cruz, Calif. (Shmuel Thaler/Santa Cruz Sentinel)
The hospitality industry “might tiptoe around the m-word, but they’re bringing those properties back,” writes the paper’s Christopher Reynolds. “Every week, it seems, another revived California roadside lodging reopens, many of them festooned with the bold, space-age shapes and signage that mid-century design geeks know as Googie.”
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Want a motel with a story to tell? Here are 10 listed in order of driving distance from the Bay:
The Los Angeles Times’ coolest and kitschiest motels in California (Bay Area edition)
1 Motel Capri – San Francisco (Marina District)
2 Hotel Del Sol – San Francisco (Marina District)
3 Phoenix Hotel – San Francisco (Tenderloin)
4 Beck’s Motor Lodge – San Francisco (the Castro)
5 Sea & Sand Inn – Santa Cruz
6 Le Petit Pali Ocean Avenue – Carmel
7 Glen Oaks Resort Adobe Motor Lodge – Big Sur
8 Cambria Beach Lodge – Cambria
9 Melody Ranch Motel – Paso Robles
10 Pacific Motel – San Luis Obispo
Source: https://www.latimes.com/travel/list/best-motels-california-guide