Articles from Historic Hotels of America

Historic Hotels of America® is pleased to announce the winners of the 2025 Historic Hotels of America Annual Awards of Excellence. Historic Hotels of America is the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for recognizing and celebrating the finest historic hotels across the United States of America.

Historic Hotels of America®, the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for recognizing and celebrating the finest historic hotels from across the United States of America, is excited to announce its annual October report on historic hotels ghost lore and Halloween experiences: The 2025 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Most Haunted Hotels list. For some historic hotels, the past is not only present through historic architecture and authentic character, but also in the legends that hotel staff and locals tell about the ghostly spirits attracted to the historic hotel. To celebrate this folklore, every October Historic Hotels of America provides travelers with information about historic hotels that want to share their ghost stories and offer guests experiences related to the season.

Historic Hotels of America® is pleased to announce that Daniel James Brown has been named the recipient of the 2025 Historic Hotels of America Historian of the Year Award.

Historic Hotels of America® is pleased to announce the Nominee Finalists for the 2025 Historic Hotels of America Annual Awards of Excellence. Historic Hotels of America is the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, a nonprofit organization chartered by U.S. Congress in 1949, for recognizing and celebrating the finest historic hotels from across the United States of America.

Historic Hotels of America®, the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for recognizing and celebrating the finest historic hotels from across the United States of America, is pleased to announce The 2025 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Most Historic Bars, Taverns, and Speakeasies list. This collection of 25 bucket list bars located in historic hotels across the United States highlights the ways in which history can be experienced through expertly crafted drinks, live entertainment, and good company.

Historic Hotels of America® is pleased to announce the winners of the 2024 Historic Hotels of America Annual Awards of Excellence. Historic Hotels of America is the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for recognizing, celebrating, and promoting the finest historic hotels in the United States.

Historic Hotels of America®, the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for recognizing and promoting the finest historic hotels in the United States, is pleased to announce The 2025 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Best of Adaptive Reuse list. A popular and creative approach to historic preservation, adaptive reuse saves unused historic buildings from demolition by rehabilitating and renovating them to serve a new purpose. Travelers can visit many historic inns, resorts, and hotels in the United States today because their owners chose to reimagine these historic buildings in sustainable and creative ways. These adaptive reuse hotels inducted into Historic Hotels of America offer travelers an immersive, authentic, and fun way to experience historic preservation on their next trip.

Historic Hotels of America®, a program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, is pleased to announce the Nominee Finalists for the 2024 Historic Hotels of America Annual Awards of Excellence.

Historic Hotels of America®, the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for recognizing and celebrating historic hotels, is pleased to announce The 2025 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Most Romantic Hotels list. At any time of the year, historic hotels are the perfect place to celebrate special occasions that create lifelong memories and are the ideal location for a romantic proposal. Couples can enjoy quality time together, or celebrate with their friends and families, to mark special milestones, including romantic getaways, engagements, weddings, honeymoons, vow renewals, and more. The swoon-worthy historic hotels selected for The 2025 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Most Romantic Hotels list all exude romance, and they represent a variety of experiences travelers can have—from glamorous city center icons and beachfront Grande Dames to charming mountaintop escapes and pastoral paradises. These historic hotels offer special romance, wedding, or engagement packages for couples looking to celebrate their love, whether it is an intimate getaway or a celebration with friends and family. For those planning to get engaged, these hotels offer creative planning services to craft the perfect proposal. Planning a special romantic moment in 2025? The 25 destinations described here, and many more historic hotels inducted into Historic Hotels of America, provide beautiful venues and breathtaking views to set the stage for celebrating love that makes history.

Historic Hotels of America® is pleased to announce that Philip F. Anschutz has been named the recipient of the 2024 Historic Hotels of America® Legacy of Innovation and Inspiration Award.

Historic Hotels of America® offers travelers memorable ways to experience holiday traditions, many of which date back decades, if not centuries. Gingerbread houses are a German creation, perhaps inspired by, or popularized by, the fairytale "Hansel and Gretel" in the early 1800s. Immigrants to the United States brought ginger and gingerbread traditions with them. As an art form for pastry chefs and a sweet treat for children, gingerbread decorating is a tradition to unite the generations, and gingerbread displays are the centerpieces of elegant lobbies at the world’s most prestigious hotels. Year after year, legendary hotels, resorts, and inns create magnificent gingerbread displays to delight and inspire guests. The displays featured on The 2024 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Most Magnificent Gingerbread Displays list are the result of thousands of hours of culinary, pastry, confectionary, engineering, and carpentry teams working for weeks, and even months, to design, create, mix, bake, build, and, of course, decorate. Collectively, the ingredients of these displays add up to thousands of pounds of sugar, eggs, and flour; hundreds of pounds of spices; more than 10,000 individual candies; and hundreds of gallons of molasses and honey. Guests can visit any of the hotels on the list this December and discover how sweet history can be at Historic Hotels of America’s member hotels.

Historic Hotels of America® is pleased to announce Kelly and Duane Roberts have been named recipients of the 2024 Historic Hotels of America® Steward of History and Historic Preservation Award.

Historic Hotels Worldwide®, a prestigious collection of more than 300 authentic historic hotels in more than 40 countries, is pleased to announce The 2024 Top 25 Historic Hotels Worldwide Afternoon Tea Experiences list. The hotels selected for recognition in this list offer heritage and cultural travelers a chance to immerse themselves in a tradition from Victorian England that is being preserved and revived around the world: Afternoon Tea. While the custom of tea ceremonies dates back millennia around the world, the tradition of Afternoon Tea—a light meal served in the mid-afternoon with tea or sparkling wine—is traced to the English aristocrat Anna Russell, the 7th Duchess of Bedford and Queen Victoria’s Lady of the Bedchamber. Her household served dinner fashionably late, around 8 p.m., but the Duchess did not want to wait so long between luncheon and supper. Being regularly hungry at 3 or 4 p.m., she instituted a new meal in the early 1840s. The influential Duchess of Bedford became a trendsetter when her “Afternoon Tea” became popular among British women of means during the late-19th and early-20th centuries, a time when social and cultural mores were rapidly changing for many women. The pursuit of activities away from one’s home became socially acceptable, even fashionable, and Afternoon Tea became increasingly popular. Many of the historic hotels selected for this list are in the British Isles, but other luxurious historic hotels with Afternoon Tea experiences can be found in China, Norway, Singapore, Cambodia, Canada, Australia, the Netherlands, and beyond. Many of the hotels selected for this list make the history of tea and tea rituals part of the cultural experiences that they offer their visitors. A perfect fit for historic hotels, the tradition of Afternoon Tea symbolizes hospitality, tradition, indulgence, and community. Several of the Afternoon Teas selected for this list serve guests tea with a twist, making literature, regional cuisine, art, and dancing part of the dining experience. The 25 hotels selected for this list offer visitors opportunities to discover the history of tea, indulge in Afternoon Tea, and experience the romance of meticulously restored historic settings, including elegant castles, refined manor homes, and luxury hotels.

Historic Hotels of America®, an official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, is pleased to announce The 2024 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Best of Adaptive Reuse list. A popular and creative approach to historic preservation, “adaptive reuse” saves unused historic buildings from demolition by rehabilitating and renovating them for a new purpose. Travelers can visit many historic inns, resorts, and hotels in the United States today because their owners chose to reimagine historic buildings in sustainable and creative ways. At Historic Hotels of America, adaptive reuse hotels offer travelers an immersive, authentic, and fun way to experience their next trip.

Historic Hotels of America®, the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for recognizing and celebrating the finest historic hotels across America, offers heritage and cultural travelers spectacular experiences and stories to take home with them, including the local folklore of where they spent the night. For some historic hotels, the past is not only present in their historic architecture and authentic character, but also—according to legends—in the ghostly spirits attracted to the historic hotel. The historic hotels highlighted in The 2024 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Most Haunted Hotels list are places where generations of staff and guests pass along the tales of spectral Revolutionary War soldiers, the smoky silhouettes of U.S. presidents, the melancholy spirits of tragic would-be brides, unexplained footsteps, as well as friendly phantom bellhops and engineers. For believers and skeptics alike, these hotels offer legends of guests who never want to leave and staff who never stop helping. Some historic hotels celebrate the spooky season with “A Room with a Boo” packages, pumpkin carving contests, ghost story readings, haunted history tours, and specialty cocktails. Thrill seekers and cultural travelers interested in a local legend need to look no further than the grand hotels, legendary luxury resorts, and iconic inns across the United States that have been inducted into Historic Hotels of America.

Historic Hotels of America®, the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for recognizing authentic historic hotels, offers travelers memorable ways to experience holiday traditions, many dating back decades, if not centuries. Gingerbread houses are a German creation, perhaps inspired by or popularized by the fairytale "Hansel and Gretel" in the early 1800s. Immigrants to the United States brought ginger and gingerbread traditions with them. As an art form for pastry chefs and a sweet treat for children, gingerbread decorating is a tradition to unite the generations, and gingerbread displays are the centerpieces of elegant lobbies at the world’s most prestigious hotels. Year after year, legendary hotels, resorts, and inns create magnificent gingerbread displays to delight and inspire guests. The 2023 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Most Magnificent Gingerbread Displays are the result of thousands of hours of culinary, pastry, confectionary, engineering, and carpentry teams working for weeks, and even months, to design, create, mix, bake, build, and, of course, decorate. Collectively, the ingredients of these displays add up to thousands of pounds of sugar, eggs, and flour; hundreds of pounds of spices; more than 10,000 individual candies; and hundreds of gallons of molasses and honey. Feast your eyes and enjoy!

Historic Hotels of America®, the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for recognizing and celebrating the finest historic hotels across America, is pleased to announce The 2024 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Afternoon Tea Experiences list. Hotels inducted into Historic Hotels of America offer heritage travelers a chance to immerse themselves in a Victorian tradition being preserved and revived across the United States: Afternoon Tea. The tradition of Afternoon Tea symbolizes hospitality, tradition, warmth, sustenance, and comfort. Afternoon Tea is both a social gathering and a moment to pause and reflect on the day. While the customs of tea ceremonies date back millennia around the world, first in China, the tradition of Afternoon Tea—a meal served in the mid-afternoon with tea or sparkling wine—is traced to the English aristocrat Anna Russell, the 7th Duchess of Bedford and Queen Victoria’s Lady of the Bedchamber. Her household served dinner fashionably late, at 8 p.m., but the Duchess did not want to wait so long between luncheon and supper. Being regularly hungry at 3 or 4 p.m., she instituted a new meal. The Duchess of Bedford became a trendsetter when her “Afternoon Tea” was quickly adopted by women of means during the late-19th and early-20th centuries, a time when social and cultural mores were rapidly changing for many women. The pursuit of activities away from one’s home became socially acceptable, even fashionable. The movement for women’s suffrage in England and the United States grew over sandwiches and tea at tearooms or friends’ homes, and tea filled the void for Americans wanting to socialize over a drink during Prohibition. And of course, tea was a subject of conversation and political affiliation at historic hotels dating to the Revolutionary Era. The 25 hotels included on this list offer visitors opportunities to discover the history of tea, indulge in Afternoon Tea, and experience its romantic allure within meticulously restored and preserved historic settings.

Historic Hotels Worldwide® is pleased to announce the distinguished winners of the 2023 Historic Hotels Worldwide Annual Awards of Excellence.

Historic Hotels of America®, the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for recognizing and celebrating the finest historic hotels across America, is pleased to announce The 2024 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Most Historic Golf Courses list. This unique list of historic resorts chronicles the history of golf in the United States through many of the most beautiful, prestigious, and iconic American golf courses that continue to attract both leisure seekers and serious athletes. Many of these golf courses were designed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, often called the Golden Age of golf course architecture. The golf courses at these Historic Hotels of America resorts were designed and renovated by legendary golf course architects ranging from Golden Age architect Donald Ross to more recent visionaries, such as Pete Dye. Scottish-born Donald Ross started his career in golf at the venerable St Andrews course in the 1890s but spent most of his career and life in the United States. He designed many of the country’s Golden Age courses, including some of the courses at Pinehurst Resort in North Carolina, The Omni Homestead Resort in Virginia, and The Broadmoor in Colorado. His influence on the game and its architecture continues to this day, both on his historic courses and on new courses that his designs inspired. In addition to claiming famous architects and championships, each course has earned a reputation, in part, based on the many famous people who have played on their greens: U.S. presidents, world leaders, golf champions, film and entertainment celebrities, and famous inventors and industrialists. The golf courses included in The 2024 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Most Historic Golf Courses list are some of the country’s most historic and treasured spaces. Today, guests can make their own history when they stay and play where champions have played.

Historic Hotels of America® is pleased to announce the winners of the 2023 Historic Hotels of America Annual Awards of Excellence. Historic Hotels of America is the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for recognizing, celebrating, and promoting the finest historic hotels in the United States of America.

Historic Hotels of America®, an official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, is pleased to announce its 2024 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America® Most Literary Hotels List. This selection of 25 storied and illustrious destinations highlights the authenticity and significance of historic hotels in American history and culture. They were selected for their connections to influential writers and literary movements, or for how they use literature and literary history to enhance the guest experience. Martin Luther King Jr. composed I Have a Dream—one of the 20th century’s most influential speeches—at a hotel in Washington, D.C., just before he delivered it to massive crowds. In the Roaring Twenties, a historic hotel in New York City hosted the city’s most “vicious” literary club: The Algonquin Roundtable. Farther south, Margaret Mitchell found a serene North Carolina inn where she could work on Gone with the Wind, and William Faulkner penned The Sound and the Fury at the same New Orleans hotel where he spent his honeymoon. To the west, historic hotels inspired John Prine, Thomas Savage, Anne Rice, Louis L’Amour, Willa Cather, and Oscar Wilde—to name a few. Four members of Historic Hotels of America are listed on the Literary Landmarks™ Register by the Friends of Libraries U.S.A. Other historic hotels were selected because they offer guestrooms with substantial libraries or fascinating library architecture. Many of the historic hotels on this list offer history tours for visitors to learn more about the hotel’s history, including the hotel’s literary past and cultural connections. Others have curated specialty guestrooms and suites dedicated to the lives and art of writers. The historic hotels on this list all share a commitment to preserving stories from throughout the ages and the places where history was made. Visitors are invited to discover and explore these places, all open to the public.

Historic Hotels of America®, the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for recognizing and celebrating the finest historic hotels in the United States, offers travelers spectacular experiences and stories to take home with them, including the folklore of where they stayed the night. For some hotels, the past is not only present in their historic architecture and authentic character, but also—according to legends—in the souls attached to them. The historic hotels highlighted in the 2023 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Most Haunted Hotels List are places where generations of staff and guests pass on tales of spectral Revolutionary War soldiers, smoky silhouettes of U.S. Presidents, the melancholy spirits of tragic would-be brides, unexplained footsteps, as well as friendly phantom bellhops and engineers. For believers and skeptics alike, these hotels offer legends of guests who never want to leave and staff who never stop helping. Some historic hotels celebrate the spooky season with “A Room With A Boo” packages, pumpkin carving contests, ghost story readings, haunted history tours, and specialty cocktails. Adventure seekers and heritage travelers interested in a local legend need to look no further than the grand hotels, legendary luxury resorts, and iconic inns found across the United States in Historic Hotels of America.

Historic Hotels of America, an official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, is pleased to announce The 2024 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Where U.S. Presidents Made History List. The 25 noteworthy historic hotels included on this list illustrate the many ways presidents of the United States of America worked, entertained, relaxed with their families, and made history at historic hotels that are open to the public today. Several historic hotels on this list are sites of international historical significance, such as the hotel where Harry S. Truman signed the United Nations Charter in 1945, and the resort where James Buchanan received the inaugural Transatlantic telegram (from Queen Victoria) in 1858. One historic inn hosted John Adams after signing the Treaty of Paris. Others served as a “Summer White House” or “Western White House,” places where presidents visited often and for extended periods. The hotels presented here are listed or eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places, and eight are designated as National Historic Landmarks by the U.S. Secretary of the Interior. These 25 hotels offer their contemporary guests many of the same experiences that American presidents enjoyed while staying at these hotels. Travelers today can visit the historic hotels on this list to reserve a president’s favorite suite or room, play on presidents’ favorite golf courses, dine where presidents enjoyed a meal, swim in the mineral springs where presidents relaxed, and learn more about the cities and towns these presidents stopped in while on the campaign trail.

Historic Hotels of America® is pleased to announce that Jane Forbes Clark and the Clark Family of Cooperstown, New York have been named the Recipient of the 2023 Historic Hotels of America Steward of History and Historic Preservation Award. Historic Hotels of America is the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for recognizing and celebrating the finest Historic Hotels in the United States of America. This award recognizes the achievements of Jane Forbes Clark and the Clark Family of Cooperstown, New York. It is presented to the stewards of The Otesaga Hotel, a historic resort established in 1909, and honors their tradition of cultural, historic, and community works in Cooperstown.

Historic Hotels of America® is pleased to announce its selections for The 2023 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America® Most Magnificent Art Collections List. A program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Historic Hotels of America is a collection of authentic historic hotels known for their stunning architecture, colorful gardens, and romantic settings—amenities that are often enhanced with historic, museum-quality art collections. Historic hotels across the United States offer guests the opportunity to experience and enjoy a variety of artwork, including furniture, paintings, sculpture, augmented reality, fountains and more. Many historic hotels inducted into Historic Hotels of America were founded by art collectors, such as the Palmer House®, A Hilton Hotel and the JW Marriott Savannah Plant Riverside District. Others in the program are managed in part by art museum professionals, such as staff at the historic 21c Museum Hotels in St. Louis, Louisville, Durham, Kansas City, Cincinnati, Lexington, and Chicago. The flagship 21c Museum Hotel in Louisville, Kentucky, was selected for this list, but all historic 21c Museum Hotels are multi-venue contemporary art museums, coupled with boutique hotels, which present over twenty exhibitions each year for communities and guests to enjoy. The list below highlights a variety of Historic Hotels of America members that are truly museums where you can stay the night.

Historic Hotels of America® is pleased to announce the nominee finalists for the 2023 Historic Hotels of America® Awards of Excellence.

Historic Hotels of America® is pleased to announce that Major General Mari K. Eder (U.S. Army, Retired) has been named the recipient of the 2023 Historic Hotels of America Historian of the Year Award.

Historic Hotels of America® offers travelers memorable ways to experience holiday traditions, many dating back decades if not centuries. Gingerbread houses are a German creation, perhaps inspired or popularized by the fairytale "Hansel and Gretel" in early 1800s. Immigrants to the United States brought ginger and gingerbread traditions with them. As an art form for pastry chefs and a sweet treat for children, gingerbread decorating is a tradition to unite the ages and it is a centerpiece for elegant lobbies at the world’s most prestigious hotels. Year after year, legendary hotels, resorts, and inns create magnificent gingerbread displays to delight and inspire guests. The 2022 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Most Magnificent Gingerbread Displays are the result of thousands of hours of culinary, pastry, confectionary, engineering, and carpentry teams working for weeks and even months to design, create, mix, bake, build or set up, and, of course, decorate. Collectively, the displays’ ingredients add up to thousands of pounds of sugar, eggs, and flour; hundreds of pounds of spices; more than 10,000 individual candies; and hundreds of gallons of molasses and honey. Feast your eyes, and enjoy!

Historic Hotels of America®, the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for promoting and celebrating authentic historic hotels, is proud to announce The 2023 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Most Magnificent Ceilings and Domes list. This list is released during Preservation Month in May to bring attention to the architectural wonders and artistic talent preserved at the iconic and legendary hotels inducted into Historic Hotels of America. Many of these grand and ornate ceilings have been recognized for contributing to their hotels’ designation as National Historic Landmarks by the U.S. Secretary of the Interior, or as local historic landmarks. Visitors to these hotels can appreciate the creativity, craftsmanship, and extraordinary attention to detail of the hoteliers and preservationists that have worked to recover or restore these historic hotels. Some of the best examples are viewed by looking up at the magnificent ceilings and domes in the public areas of these hotels, including lobbies, spas, ballrooms, and restaurants. These ornate ceilings and domes include some of the finest surviving examples of historic stained glass, painted frescoes, hand-painted wallpaper, ornamental plaster, stenciled wood, and, of course, gold leaf. To experience the fine artistry and architectural wonders in person, Historic Hotels of America invites travelers to visit these important places in person, and to remember to look up.

Historic Hotels of America® is pleased to announce the winners of the 2022 Historic Hotels of America Annual Awards of Excellence. The Historic Hotels Awards of Excellence recognize and celebrate the finest historic hotels and hoteliers from across the United States of America and around the world.

Historic Hotels of America, the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for promoting and celebrating authentic historic hotels, is delighted to announce The 2023 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Most Magnificent Gardens list. From lush New England to sunny Arizona, the destinations of Historic Hotels of America offer travelers a chance to wander through some of the most magnificent and beautiful storybook gardens. Many of the hotels feature extensive grounds designed by renowned landscape architects, such as Beatrix Farrand, and Frederick Law Olmsted and his son, Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. Several historic hotels on this list employ beekeepers to ensure their gardens remain pollinated and thriving, and even cultivate honey from their own apiaries to make house meads and keep their restaurants supplied with sweet, fragrant garnishes. More than a few hotels recognized here adhere to a “seed to table” or “field to table” philosophy, growing their own vegetables and herbs next door to their signature restaurants. Numerous life-long memories of special occasions celebrated in the gardens of historic hotels include romantic getaways, romantic proposals, honeymoons, anniversaries, and family reunions. Whether you are sharing a meal, a vow, or a stroll, these magnificent gardens of Historic Hotels of America will make your next tranquil getaway one you will never forget.

Historic Hotels of America® is pleased to announce that Peter Strebel, chairman of Omni Hotels & Resorts, has been named the Recipient of the 2022 Historic Hotels of America Legacy of Innovation and Inspiration Award. This award recognizes Strebel’s extensive accomplishments in pioneering innovative concepts and programs, achieving uncommon success, being a thought leader on exceptional service, and being a force of inspiration in the hotel industry. His leadership has resulted the donation of more than 21 million meals to help end hunger in America, along with the preservation, restoration, and celebration of 15 iconic and legendary historic hotels and resorts. Historic Hotels of America is the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for recognizing and celebrating the finest Historic Hotels in the United States of America.

Historic Hotels of America®, the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for promoting and celebrating authentic historic hotels, is proud to announce The 2023 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Where Women Made History list. The written histories of historic hotels are largely records of the men who built, bought, visited, and made history at these hotels. In the United States, most historic hotels were built in eras when it was uncommon, even considered immoral, for a single woman to stay at a popular hotel without a female companion or family member. When travel became easier in the 19th century with the widespread use of passenger railroads, women were expected to tend to their homes and their families, and not to travel on business or on their own for leisure. However, this does not mean that women were not present at hotels and, subsequently, not a part of the history of hotels in the United States in the 19th and early-20th centuries. Women-only hotels and boarding houses were once common, and remained popular through the 1970s. Larger hotels offered separated women’s and men’s dining rooms, reading rooms, and tearooms for female guests. Within the fields of hotel management and design, a few women held privileged positions of power at hotels as the wives or daughters of hoteliers, or were able to break social barriers and achieve professional success. Under racial segregation up until the mid-20th century, these spaces and rare opportunities for advancement at luxury hotels were exclusively for white women. But women of all backgrounds and classes have been making history at hotels throughout the history of American hospitality: performing gendered labor such as keeping rooms clean, meals served on time, and telephones connected, and even taking action to protest racial segregation. At these hotels, the achievements and compelling stories of the iconic “Harvey Girl” waitresses, trailblazing “Whirly-Girls,” First Ladies, athletes, artists, activists, engineers, and other women who made history represent many facets of women’s history and women’s diverse experiences in the United States. Historic Hotels of America invites travelers to experience these historic hotels in person, and to be inspired to learn more at the places where women made history.

Historic Hotels of America® is pleased to announce that Greg MacGillivray, Chairman of MacGillivray Freeman Films, American Film Director, and enthusiastic ocean conservationist, has been named the Recipient of the 2022 Historic Hotels of America Historian of the Year Award. This Award is presented to an individual for making a unique contribution in the research, and presentation of history and whose work has encouraged a wide, if not provocative, discussion and greater understanding of the history and the diverse heritages and cultures of our nation and the world. Historic Hotels of America is the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for recognizing and celebrating the finest Historic Hotels in the United States of America.

Historic Hotels of America®, the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for recognizing and celebrating the finest Historic Hotels, is pleased to announce The 2023 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Afternoon Tea Experiences List. Hotels inducted into Historic Hotels of America offer heritage travelers a chance to immerse themselves in a Victorian tradition being preserved and revived across the United States: afternoon tea. The tradition of afternoon tea symbolizes hospitality, tradition, warmth, sustenance, and comfort. Afternoon tea is both a social gathering and a moment to pause and reflect on the day. While the custom of tea ceremonies dates back millennia around the world, first in China, the tradition of afternoon tea—a meal served mid-afternoon with a tea or sparkling wine—is traced to the English aristocrat Anna Russell, the 7th Duchess of Bedford and Queen Victoria’s Lady of the Bedchamber. Her household served dinner fashionably late, at 8 p.m., but the duchess did not want to wait so long between luncheon and supper. Being regularly hungry at 3 or 4 p.m., she instituted a new meal. The Duchess of Bedford became a trendsetter when her “afternoon tea” was quickly adopted by women of means during the late-19th and early-20th centuries, a time when social and cultural mores were rapidly changing for many women. The pursuit of activities away from one’s home became socially acceptable, even fashionable. The movement for women’s suffrage in Britain and the United States grew over sandwiches and tea at tearooms or friends’ homes, and tea filled the void for Americans wanting to socialize over a drink during Prohibition. The 25 hotels selected this year offer visitors opportunities to discover the history of tea, indulge in afternoon tea, and experience its romance within meticulously restored and preserved historic settings.

Historic Hotels of America® offers travelers spectacular experiences and stories to take home with them, including the history of where they stayed the night. Every historic hotel has a story to tell and some offer more than what is found in a history textbook. For some hotels, the past is not only present in the architecture and authentic character, but also–according to legends–in the souls residing within it. The historic hotels highlighted in the 2022 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Most Haunted Hotels are places where generations of staff and guests pass on tales of spectral Revolutionary War soldiers, smoky silhouettes of U.S. Presidents, the melancholy spirits of tragic would-be brides, unexplained footsteps, as well as friendly phantom bellhops. For believers and skeptics alike, these hotels offer legends of guests that never want to leave and staff that never stop helping. Some hotels celebrate the spooky season with “A Room With A Boo” packages, pumpkin carving contests, ghost story readings, haunted history tours, and specialty cocktails. Adventure seekers and heritage travelers interested in a local legend need to look no further than the grand hotels, legendary luxury resorts, and iconic inns found across the United States in Historic Hotels of America.

Historic Hotels of America® is pleased to announce the nominee finalists for the 2022 Historic Hotels of America® Awards of Excellence. The Historic Hotels Awards of Excellence recognize and celebrate the finest historic hotels and hoteliers from across the United States of America, through categories of excellence such as Historic Hotels of America Best Historic Resort, Historic Hotels of America Sustainability Champion, Historic Hotels of America Lifetime Achievement, and Historic Hotels of America Best Historic Restaurant.

Historic Hotels of America is known for its hotels’ stunning architecture, colorful gardens, elegant hospitality, and romantic settings, and their amenities are often enhanced with historic, museum-quality art collections. Historic hotels across the United States offer guests the opportunity to experience and enjoy a variety of artwork: furniture, paintings, sculpture, augmented reality, fountains and more. Many historic hotels were founded by wealthy art collectors, such as the Palmer House, a Hilton Hotel, and many more are managed in part by art museum professionals, such as staff at the historic 21c Museum Hotels in Nashville, Louisville, Oklahoma City, Durham, Kansas City, Cincinnati, Lexington, and Chicago. 21c Museum Hotels are multi-venue contemporary art museums, coupled with boutique hotels, that present over twenty exhibitions each year for communities and guests to enjoy. The list below highlights historic hotels that are truly museums where you can stay the night.

Historic Hotels of America® has a unique collection of the most beautiful, prestigious, and iconic golf courses where many champions have learned to play golf, competed, and made history. Many of these golf courses were designed in the late 19th and early 20th century, often referred to as the “Golden Age” of golf course architecture. These historic golf courses were designed and built by legendary golf course architects – many of whom are World Golf Hall of Fame inductees – ranging from “Golden Age” architect Donald Ross to more recent legends, such as Pete Dye. Each course has earned its reputation, in part, based on the many famous people who have played including U.S. Presidents, world leaders, golf champions, film and entertainment celebrities, and famous inventors and industrialists. The golf courses named to the 2022 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Most Historic Golf Courses list are some of America’s most historic greens. Today, guests can make their own history, stay, and play where champions have played.

Historic Hotels of America have some of the most magnificent and beautiful storybook gardens. Multigenerational guests select a historic hotel, resort, or inn to explore, experience, and discover their own ever-blossoming memories in beautiful gardens where multigenerational hosts have cared for gardens over the centuries. Many the hotels feature grounds designed by legendary landscape architects Frederick Law Olmsted and his son, Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. Several historic hotels on this list employ beekeepers to ensure their gardens remain pollinated and thriving, and even cultivate honey from their own apiaries to make house meads and keep their restaurants supplied with sweet, fragrant garnishes. More than a few hotels recognized here adhere to a “seed to table” or “field to table” philosophy, growing their own vegetables and herbs next door to their signature restaurants. Numerous life-long memories of special occasions celebrated in the gardens of historic hotels include romantic getaways, romantic proposals, honeymoons, anniversaries, and family reunions. Whether you are sharing a meal, a vow, or a stroll, these magnificent gardens of Historic Hotels of America will make your next tranquil getaway one you will never forget.

Historic Hotels of America has many iconic and legendary hotels that have made important contributions to the culinary heritage and traditions of the United States. The Omni Parker House which opened in 1855 is famous for the creation of both the soft, warm Parker House Rolls and of the original Boston Cream Pie, which was named the official state dessert of Massachusetts in 1996. Tomato juice was the invention of a chef at French Lick Spring Hotel, concocted when the kitchen ran out of oranges for juice one morning at breakfast. The Green Goddess Dressing was created at the Palace Hotel in 1923. Several hotels honored in the 2022 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Most Unique Culinary Heritage and Culinary Traditions List provide recipes so you can mix a cocktail or prepare a pie like the one you would enjoy as their guest.

Historic Hotels are the perfect place for celebrating special occasions that create lifelong memories and are the ideal location for a romantic proposal. These special milestones include romantic getaways, the ideal place to propose, the destination for the perfect wedding, the getaway for a memorable honeymoon, and the location to celebrate a special anniversary.

Historic Hotels of America® and Historic Hotels Worldwide® are pleased to announce the winners of the 2021 Historic Hotels Awards of Excellence. The Historic Hotels Awards of Excellence recognize and celebrate the finest historic hotels and hoteliers from across the United States of America and from around the world.

Historic Hotels of America® offer travelers many memorable ways to experience holiday traditions, many dating back decades if not centuries. 25 of these legendary hotels, resorts, and inns have created magnificent gingerbread displays to delight and inspire guests. The tradition of gingerbread cookies in the United States of America dates to the late 18th century and the tradition of gingerbread houses in the U.S. dates to the early 19th century. From life-size gingerbread cottages to a letter-writing station at a gingerbread house for kids to write a letter to Santa and receive a personal reply before Christmas, these iconic historic hotels are the place for families to discover and experience wonderful holiday traditions and spirit. The 2021 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Most Magnificent Gingerbread Displays are the result of thousands of hours of culinary, pastry, confectionary, engineering, and carpentry teams working for weeks and even months to design, create, mix, bake, build or set up, and, of course, decorate. Collectively, the ingredients include more than a thousand pounds of sugar, thousands of eggs, more than a thousand pounds of flour, hundreds of spices, more than 10,000 individual candies, hundreds of gallons of molasses, honey, and frosting used to create these colossal gingerbread displays. There is also a Home Recipe Spotlight, from a Chicago hotel founded in 1927, for creating gingerbread magic on a smaller scale. Find photos of all these magnificent creations at the Historic Hotels of America Top 25 Lists media center. Enjoy!

Historic Hotels of America® offers travelers spectacular experiences and stories to take home with them, but some offer more than the usual textbook history. The historic hotels included on the 2021 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Most Haunted Hotels list are locations for ghost tales of Revolutionary War soldiers, jilted lovers, unexplained footsteps, as well as friendly spectral bellhops. For believers and skeptics alike, these hair-raising tales add another unique facet to each prestigious historic hotel on the list presented here. Adventure seekers in search of “a room with a boo” and heritage travelers interested in a local legend need look no further than the grand hotels, legendary luxury resorts, and iconic hotels found across the United States in Historic Hotels of America.

Historic Hotels of America® and Historic Hotels Worldwide® are pleased to announce the nominee finalists for the 2021 Historic Hotels Awards of Excellence. The Historic Hotels Awards of Excellence recognize and celebrate the finest historic hotels and hoteliers from across the United States of America and from around the world.

Historic Hotels of America® is pleased to announce the winner of the 2021 Historic Hotels of America Historian of the Year Award. Brigadier General Ty Seidule, U.S. Army (retired) has been named the recipient of the Historic Hotels of America Historian of the Year Award for 2021.

Historic Hotels of America® is pleased to announce that Horst Schulze has been named the Recipient of the 2021 Historic Hotels of America Legacy of Innovation and Inspiration Award. This is the first time this annual award is being presented. The Historic Hotels of America Legacy of Innovation and Inspiration Award recognizes the extensive accomplishments of Horst Schulze in pioneering innovative concepts for achieving uncommon success. A thought leader on exceptional service for decades, a legend and inspiring leader in the hotel world, Horst Schulze's teachings and vision have reshaped the concepts of service and hospitality across industries.

Historic Hotels of America® has a unique collection of the most beautiful, prestigious, and iconic golf courses where many champions have learned to play golf, competed, and made history. Many of these golf courses were designed in the late 19th and early 20th century, often referred to as the “Golden Age” of golf course architecture. These historic golf courses were designed and built by legendary golf course architects ranging from Scottish immigrant Donald Ross to Hall-of-Fame golf architect Pete Dye. Each course has earned its reputation, in part, based on the many famous people who have played including U.S. Presidents, world leaders, golf champions, film and entertainment celebrities, and famous inventors and industrialists. Many amateur and professional golfers can look back to their first lesson or first golf game played with a parent or grandparent on one or more of these legendary golf courses. The golf courses named to the 2021 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Most Historic Golf Courses list are some of America’s most historic greens. Today, guests can make their own history, stay and play where champions have played.