Upscale Bohemian.
Upscale Bohemian is the opposite philosophy of the Scandi-minimalist tier on this site. Instead of clearing the room, the owner fills it — velvet, rugs, collected objects, painted murals, brass, lamps with actual shades. The Maker is the Hudson reference; Foxfire is the Catskills reference; Urban Cowboy is the theatrical extreme. These are hotels where the room matters more than the view.
The Henson
A 2024 16-room reimagining of a 1918 Windham hotel — by the team behind Contra and Wildair.
The Reform Club
Seven rooms and a private-club energy in the middle of Amagansett. The rare Hamptons hotel that actually feels like a clubhouse.
The Whitehall
An 1834 sea-captain's home where Edna St. Vincent Millay was discovered — restored 2015, 36 rooms.
The Landsby
Solvang's design-forward Scandi boutique — 41 rooms, Mad & Vin restaurant, contemporary Danish-modern.
250 Main Hotel
A modernist boutique in the Rockland art district — 26 rooms, Farnsworth Museum across the street.
Albert Hotel
A new design-forward boutique on Main Street — 113 rooms, the Hill Country's biggest independent.
Amara Resort & Spa
A modern boutique on Oak Creek's edge — 100 rooms with red-rock views, mid-century-modern aesthetic.
Hotel Wailea
Maui's only adults-only Relais & Chateaux — 72 suites on 15 acres, treetop dining, ocean views.
Mojave Sands
A five-room former 1950s motel reimagined as a design-forward retreat — courtyard pool, cacti.
Ten Thousand Waves
A Japanese onsen spa-hotel in the foothills — 13 suites, Izanami restaurant, outdoor ofuro tubs.
The Society Hotel Bingen
A 1908 schoolhouse converted with cabins and a Japanese-style bathhouse — Columbia Gorge spa-hotel.
Anvil Hotel
A 1950s motor hotel reimagined in 2017 — Filson-collab aesthetic, Glorietta Trattoria, rooftop patio.
86 Cannon Historic Inn
Eight suites in a restored 1862 mansion — adults-only, Cannonborough-Elliotborough, deeply romantic.
ARRIVE Wilmington
A 1956 motor-lodge-turned-boutique — 56 rooms, rooftop pool-bar, design-forward downtown.
Caravan Outpost
An eleven-Airstream village in downtown Ojai — bocce court, fire ring, communal breakfast.
Dawn Ranch
22 redwood-shaded acres on the Russian River — 55 cabins, Agriculture Public House, organic farm.
Doctor Sax House
A 1874 Prohibition speakeasy turned nine-room boutique, run by Kelly and Bryan Binder. Café on the ground floor.
Doe Bay Resort
Cabins, yurts, and tent platforms on Orcas Island — saltwater hot tubs, Doe Bay Cafe, the cult Pacific NW retreat.
El Cosmico
Liz Lambert's nomadic hotel — tents, trailers, yurts, and the occasional teepee, 18 acres outside town.
El Monte Sagrado
An eco-resort built around a sacred-circle pond — 84 themed rooms, the Taos sustainable luxury option.
Foxfire Mountain House
Layered, lived-in, and photographed a thousand times on Instagram — but earns it.
Grand Bohemian Asheville
A Tudor-revival in Biltmore Village with a red-blues-jazz interior — 104 rooms, Red Stag Grill.
Granville House
Five rooms, Michelin Key, run by former New York restaurant pros. George Bailey's house, sort of.
Heron House
Four restored Conch houses — 23 adults-only rooms, three pools, in the historic district.
Hibiscus Coffee & Guesthouse
Eight rooms above a coffee shop in Grayton Beach — the original Old Florida 30A.
Historic Taos Inn
Built 1936 — 44 rooms, Doc Martin's restaurant, the Adobe Bar's red-or-green-chile margaritas.
Hotel Blue
Fourteen rooms in historic Lewes — family-owned, boutique, walking distance to the canal.
Hotel Casablanca
Moroccan-Spanish-styled colonial — 30 rooms, walking distance to the cathedral.
Hotel Dylan
A Woodstock native's Novogratz-designed revival of a '70s bi-level motel. Turntables in every room.
Korakia Pensione
A Moroccan-Mediterranean compound from 1924 — 28 adults-only rooms, two pools, candlelit pathways.
Lumeria Maui
Twenty-five upcountry-Maui rooms on a 7-acre yoga-retreat estate — adults-only, vegan-friendly.
McMenamins Old St. Francis School
A 1936 Catholic school converted — 19 rooms, on-site brewery, Turkish soaking pool.
Olive Boutique Hotel
Fifteen Mediterranean-themed rooms in Condado — adults-only, restaurant on the rooftop.
Perry Lane Hotel
A design-forward addition to the historic district — rooftop pool-bar, Emporium Kitchen, curated art program.
Sacred Sands
A two-suite architect-designed B&B at the park gate — straw-bale construction, outdoor shower, adults only.
The Asbury Hotel
A 1962 Salvation Army building reimagined in 2016 — rooftop bar, live music, bowling alley downstairs.
The Attwater
Saturated-color, playful, 17-room boutique a block from Bellevue — formerly a Lark property, now independent.
The Black Sheep Inn & Spa
An octagonal 1859 house turned wine-country inn — seven rooms, a spa, and properly eccentric decor.
The Bungalow Hotel
Pier Village's art-centric boutique — each suite has a fireplace and a kitchenette, rotating artist showcase.
The Castle House Estate
A sculptural stone-and-steel compound on 10 desert acres — six rooms, infinity pool facing the park.
The Christopher
Nine rooms in a white-clapboard historic, reworked with Art Deco geometric wallpapers and aqua tile.
The Herwood Inn
Four suites named for iconic female musicians — Carole, Aretha, Joni, Stevie.
The Hudson Milliner
A guesthouse run by two Brooklyn artists — original work in every room.
The Lark Bozeman
A 1950s motor court reimagined — 38 design-forward rooms on Main Street, taco truck out front.
The Laylow
A retro-Hawaiian-design boutique — 251 rooms, banana-leaf wallpaper, Waikiki's design escape.
The Line DC
A 1912 church in Adams Morgan — restored with organ pipes, vaulted ceilings, Erik Bruner-Yang's restaurant.
The Maker Hotel
Theatrical, layered, and collected — the Maker is a mood you can book.
The Mermaid & The Alligator
An 1904 Queen Anne mansion — nine adults-only rooms, walking distance to Duval Street.
The Parker Palm Springs
Jonathan Adler's design tour-de-force — 144 rooms on 13 acres, Mister Parker's restaurant.
The Pig & The Farm Inn
A 10-room farmhouse inn on working cattle land — farm-dinner ethos, 20 minutes from Healdsburg plaza.
The Pomegranate Inn
West End 1880s mansion, hand-painted walls, and eight rooms run by owner-innkeepers.
The Restoration Asheville
Bryan Batt-designed — maximalist interiors, rooftop bar, Grand Bohemian-adjacent but independent.
The Sands Hotel & Spa
A 1940s motor court reimagined as a Moroccan oasis — 46 rooms, mint-tea-on-arrival, hookah lounge.
The Sentinel (at Hotel San Jose)
A six-room guesthouse and cafe in a restored adobe — books, coffee, listening room.
The St. Laurent
Adults-only, 16-room boutique in downtown Asbury — Heirloom restaurant does the cooking.
The Tabard Inn
D.C.'s oldest continuously-operating hotel (1922) in Dupont — 40 mismatched-antiques rooms, beloved restaurant.
Twin Gables
Woodstock's community-minded eclectic — like staying with an artist friend.
Urban Cowboy Catskills
A 19th-century Alpine Inn reborn as Nashville-in-the-Catskills. Copper tubs included.
Zey Hotel
Zach Erdem's art-forward 10-room boutique — the opposite of generic Southampton chintz.
Garden Gables Inn
An 18-room classic on five acres walking distance from Lenox Village, recently freshened up.
Guild House Hotel
A 19th-century former women's club in Rittenhouse — twelve rooms, female-forward design, under-the-radar.
Ivy Manor Inn
A 1939 English Tudor-style home converted into 18 period-decorated rooms, steps from the water.
The Adelphi Hotel
An 1877 Broadway grand-hotel restored 2017 — 32 rooms, Salt & Char steakhouse, the Saratoga icon.
The Charm on Main
An adults-only 22-room historic, originally built as a school for charm and personality. We are not making this up.
The Mansion on Forsyth Park
An 1888 Romanesque Revival mansion facing Forsyth Park — 400+ original paintings, 700 Drayton restaurant.
The Reluctant Panther
A 100-plus-year-old inn at the heart of Manchester Village — the region's most serious small luxury hotel.
The Stewart House
An 1883 Italianate boarding house on Athens's waterfront. Nine rooms, Art Deco bar, wood-fired tavern.
Adobe Grand Villas
Sixteen themed adults-only suites — each different, all maximalist, all with private patios.
Hotel Californian
A Moorish-Spanish design hotel by Martyn Lawrence Bullard — 121 rooms on the Funk Zone.
Inn of the Five Graces
The Seret family's adobe-and-Silk-Road compound — 24 rooms, Forbes 5-star, Tibetan rugs and carved doors.
Mabel Dodge Luhan House
Where D.H. Lawrence and Georgia O'Keeffe stayed — 17 rooms in Mabel Dodge Luhan's 1922 hacienda.
Milliken Creek Inn
Twelve adults-only suites on three creekside acres — Asian-influenced, breakfast-on-the-deck format.
Ace Hotel & Swim Club
A 1965 Howard Johnson reimagined — 180 rooms, two pools, Kings Highway diner, the Palm Springs scene.
Coachman Hotel
A 1972 motor lodge reimagined — 41 design-forward rooms, sauna, walking distance to Heavenly.
Earthbox Inn & Spa
A 1960s motor lodge reimagined — 18 rooms, indoor pool, family-owned.
El Rey Court
A 1936 motor court on old Route 66, reimagined 2018 — La Reina bar, saltwater pool, mezcal-scene.
Hangar Hotel
A WWII-era airfield hangar reimagined — 50 art-deco rooms, Officers' Club bar, runway-side balconies.
Ojai Rancho Inn
A turquoise-and-adobe 1940s motor lodge — 19 rooms, outdoor fireplace, cruiser bikes free to borrow.
Skyview Los Alamos
A 1959 motor lodge reimagined 2018 — 33 design-forward rooms above the Santa Ynez Valley.
The Surfjack Hotel & Swim Club
A 1960s Waikiki motel reimagined — 112 rooms, Mahina & Sun's restaurant, the design-set's Honolulu pick.
Wall Street Suites
A 1960s motor court reimagined — 33 suites, hot tub, dog-friendly, walking distance to Drake Park.
Upscale Bohemian is the opposite philosophy of the Scandi-minimalist tier. Instead of clearing the room, the owner fills it — velvet, rugs, collected objects, painted murals, brass, lamps with actual shades. The Maker is the Hudson reference; Foxfire is the Catskills reference; Urban Cowboy is the theatrical extreme. These are hotels where the room matters more than the view.
What this looks like
Wallpaper. Often two patterns in the same room. Velvet headboards in jewel colors. Antique rugs layered on top of patterned floors. Brass everywhere — sconces, faucets, bed frames, picture-frame stacks above the dresser. Books on the nightstand that aren't props. A bar cart, sometimes a clawfoot tub in the bedroom itself, often a record collection in the public spaces. Lighting matters more than in any other category — most rooms have four or five separate sources, all warm.
The mood is collected, not decorated. The owners tend to have personal histories you can read in the walls — a vintage rug they actually traveled to find, a portrait they actually own. When it works, the room feels like someone's eccentric aunt's guest suite. When it doesn't work, it feels like a stage set. The good ones are not stage sets.
The standouts
- The Maker Hotel (Hudson, NY) — theatrical, layered, collected. The Hudson Valley reference for the genre.
- Foxfire Mountain House (Mount Tremper, NY) — the Catskills version. Earns its Instagram traffic.
- The Reform Club (Amagansett, NY) — private-club energy, seven rooms, the Hamptons' rare un-loud option.
- The Christopher (Edgartown, MA) — Art Deco wallpapers, aqua tile, nine rooms in a white-clapboard historic.
- The Veranda House (Nantucket, MA) — rebuilt with care after the 2022 fire, harbor-overlooking, layered.
- The Charm on Main (Hyannis, MA) — adults-only, 22 rooms, originally built as a charm school. Yes, really.
- Zey Hotel (Southampton, NY) — Zach Erdem's art-forward 10-room boutique. The opposite of Hamptons chintz.
- Hotel Blue (Lewes, DE) — fourteen rooms, family-owned, walking distance to the canal.
Who it's for
The reader who got tired of beige hotels two trips ago. People who own at least one piece of art they'd hang in a hotel room. Couples on anniversary trips who want the room to actually feel like an event. Solo travelers who like to read in bed for a long time. The category rewards travelers who notice details and books rooms over views.
Who'd hate it: anyone who reads pattern as clutter. If your home is white walls and one painting, this register will feel busy. Also a poor fit if you want a generic suite for a work trip — the rooms are for being in, not passing through.
Adjacent vibes
Upscale Bohemian sits opposite Scandi Catskills and Architectural Minimalist on the fill-vs-clear axis. It's adjacent to Neo-Victoriana (same maximalism, more historic and less theatrical) and to Refined Americana (same building stock occasionally, opposite philosophy of restoration).