Back in late April, I shared several chains of hotels/motels as well as the KOA chain that I look to first when making reservations. However, there are a few mom and pop establishments along the way that I’ve discovered over the last seven years that I’d easily stay at again …
Oh, and after you read about these five establishments, there’s a $110 paypal cash giveaway at the end to make it worth your while!
Blue Swallow Motel – Tucumcari, New Mexico
When planning my May 2012 New Mexico travels, Route 66 was a big part of the trip’s itinerary. So it was a given that we had to stay in at least one of the motels from the Mother Road’s glory days. The Blue Swallow Motel is a full day’s drive from East Texas, a good 10-11 hours with breaks — thank goodness for crossing into the Mountain Time Zone at the Texas-New Mexico state line. After our first stay there, I loved it so much that I made it the nighttime stop for the first day of the 2013 roadtrip as well.
The Blue Swallow dates back to 1939 although the sign has been fully restored and the rooms updated with some modern conveniences — that said, the rooms & bathrooms are cozy (read: smaller than a chain motel room — the showers aren’t for the claustrophobic!) and if you’re lucky, you’ll get a garage to park inside of like we did the first time we stayed. Even if you don’t get a garage, check out the Cars themed murals inside of them. Before you finalize your stay, Kevin or Nancy, the owners, will take you over to your room to make sure you’re satisfied with it.
The rooms are decorated as they would have been in the 1940s and 1950s, although you will have tv and wi-fi! Breakfast is free coffee and muffins from the office — which also has a variety of souvenirs to choose from, including retro key rings to commemorate your stay. Bonus, you’ll be welcomed by one of their gorgeous canine companions — the big guy pictured in this past post has sadly passed away.
Rates start at $69.95 a night. You can book online or via telephone.
Half-Way Motel – Essex, Montana
The Half-Way Motel‘s name originates from the fact that Essex is located halfway between East Glacier and West Glacier (two of the entrances to Glacier National Park) on US Highway 2. At the time I made our travel reservations in 2009, I could only find two affordable places to stay between the two towns, this one and the Izaak Walton Inn.
The Half-Way Motel is simply two cabins split into a total of four rooms. The room we stayed in had two comfortable beds, a tv, and a full bath. The wi-fi internet (back in 2009) was a weak signal that was difficult to stay connected to for more than a few minutes at a time, but I only logged on long enough to clear out some junk mail, make sure there wasn’t any critical client emails from my business, and to post a quick update on FB since I was about to be internet-less for another two or three days.
Along with the motel, as indicated by the photo above, was a second building that houses the restaurant/store/post office. If you’re in the area, stop in for a buffalo burger and a slice of huckleberry pie. Oh, and they were the most affordable place in the state of Montana for all things huckleberry flavored that I could find. I might have stockpiled a lot of huckleberry flavored candy while staying there …
The only negative I had for this place is to bring insect repellant, the mosquitoes were swarming like crazy when we went outside! But that’s not the motel’s fault!
While I couldn’t get the motel’s site to load, here’s a listing for it on the Visit Montana website that contains contact information. We made our reservation via telephone and received an emailed confirmation.
I have no idea about current room rates, but according to the email confirmation I still have (!!), we paid $89.00 a night + 7% accommodations tax for a night in June 2009.
Vahalla Resort – Estes Park, Colorado
During our May 2010 visit to Rocky Mountain National Park, we decided we didn’t want to stay at one of the motels/hotels in town, but instead see if we could find an affordable cabin a bit closer to the park. The Vahalla Resort ended up fitting both our budget and our needs. Estes Park is a bit pricier of a destination as it’s a resort town, but by staying in a cabin and hitting up the local Safeway, it made our stay far more affordable than if we’d stayed in a motel or hotel in town and ate out instead.
We ended up choosing their smallest two bedroom cabin (pictured above; view the interior of the cabin on their website), which was perfect for four people. It had two small bedrooms (not much maneuvering space around the bed), a full bath that was a little larger than mine at home, and a full kitchen with a gas stove. The living room had a tv + a wood burning heater. At the time we stayed, the resort did not provide internet, but according to their website, they now do so. Additionally, there are a number of activities at the resort to keep busy with if weather keeps you out of the park or town or you have children that need to burn off some energy.
Rates start at $126 a night for a one bedroom cabin & go up from there; summer stays appear to require a four night stay. Offseason rates for late 2015 start at $95 a night with a two night stay required. In 2010, we paid $215.00 (including tax) for two nights for the two bedroom cabin above near the end of the ‘off season.’
El Colorado Lodge – Colorado Springs, Colorado
In May 2010, we stayed at the El Colorado Lodge in Manitou Springs (we spotted it the year before and detoured by to get their info) … we loved these quaint adobe cabins!
We stayed in a two bedroom/one full bath adobe cabin for three nights. We didn’t need the fireplace that’s in the main room as the bedding provided was sufficient to keep warm when it was in the 30s overnight despite the fact I’m cold natured! The only ‘bad’ thing was the wasp that got into my room that we had to get the office to come over and get out (as one of my travel companions is allergic to them and we lacked wasp spray/flyswatters!). I didn’t use the pool while there, but many others did. Some of the cabins do have kitchens/kitchenettes in them, but ours didn’t.
The only negatives I had for the El Colorado Lodge was the smelly trash that wasn’t picked up from behind our cabin while we were there (other cabins were dumping their trash in our can too) + the location of the ice maker. Also, we didn’t have a continental breakfast that I recall seeing. We drove to a local McDonald’s (nearby in the Old Colorado City area of Colorado Springs) for breakfast two mornings and a nearby donut shop for the other day.
When we stayed here they didn’t have free wi-fi (we knew this ahead of time and had no problem with that fact) and still don’t appear to based on the info on their site. During our stay, I took advantage of the wi-fi at McDonald’s both mornings we ate there to check email and to tweet updates from the iPod I had at the time.
Current rates range from $75.00 to $182.00 a night. I honestly can’t remember what we paid back in 2010 as we made a phone reservation & I don’t have an email confirmation for it.
LaSalle Hotel – Bryan/College Station, Texas
(photo credit: LaSalle Hotel)
Several years ago, we spent a long weekend in the BCS area — and because of a sports tournament going on over at Texas A&M, we really didn’t want to stay in College Station, so Bryan it was. I found the LaSalle Hotel in an internet search and booked it.
This boutique/restored hotel is actually quite cozy and has an old-fashioned elegance to it. While we never popped into the cafe or bar, they are open at various times of the day. Free wi-fi is available. They have also added evening milk and cookies as a perk since our stay.
The only downsides to the LaSalle is the parking situation + the fact the downtown area pretty much shut down earlier than we thought most food establishments would have on a weekend. It’s in downtown Bryan, so parking is a premium. There are a few parking spaces in the courtyard that’s to the left of the hotel in the photo above, otherwise the best place to park is on the street behind the hotel since it has less traffic.
Rates start at $149.00 a night for double occupancy; cheaper if you have a AAA or AARP membership. I have no idea what we paid back in May 2008 as I apparently deleted the email confirmation after our trip.
(PS … I do have a photo of my own of the LaSalle, but was too lazy to go get the external HD stored offsite that contains photos from that trip!)
What affordable mom & pop motels, cabin ‘resorts,’ or boutique hotels have you come across in your travels that you’d recommend? Share in the comments below — I might end up staying at one of them on a future trip!
PS … want to win $110? Enter below!
Traveling this summer? How about entering to win some cold hard paypal cash to help pay for those adventures. Or you could treat yourself to some new summer clothes! I’m teaming up with 9 amazing ladies to give you the chance to win $110 paypal cash! Good luck!
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