Ahwahnee Hotel
2 images 1 contributors
Lewis Kemper
About this spot
The hotel has marveled visitors that have including several presidents, actors, and international dignitaries, since it’s opening in 1927. The hotel offers a glimpse of the past mixed with the modern, with its unique architecture and Native American motif. Originally designed to bring tourists to Yosemite Valley the hotel is now a Registered National Historic Landmark.
The hotel took almost two years to build and used 5,000 tons of stone, 1,000 tons of steel, and 30,000 feet of timber! The “wood” you see on the exterior is actually poured concrete textured and stained to look like redwood!
One of the most unique rooms in the hotel is the Great Lounge which features elaborate stained glass windows and huge fireplaces. Decorations of Native American art, most of which is of Miwok origin, in keeping with the original inhabitants of Yosemite Valley, flow throughout the building. The hotel features themed rooms such as the Winter Club room that houses historical photos on winter sports in Yosemite, the California Room, the Writing Room, and the solarium with views of Glacier Point.
Even if you don’t have a reservation at the hotel you can still visit since it is open to the public. Everyone is welcome and they even offer tours of the hotel. Don’t miss The Great Lounge with its Persian rugs and massive wooden furniture. Not only is it a great photographic subject, it is also a great place to sit and rest after a day of hiking in the park. Walk around the hotel’s exterior and see how the perspective changes as you move around the Y- shaped building.
The hotel took almost two years to build and used 5,000 tons of stone, 1,000 tons of steel, and 30,000 feet of timber! The “wood” you see on the exterior is actually poured concrete textured and stained to look like redwood!
One of the most unique rooms in the hotel is the Great Lounge which features elaborate stained glass windows and huge fireplaces. Decorations of Native American art, most of which is of Miwok origin, in keeping with the original inhabitants of Yosemite Valley, flow throughout the building. The hotel features themed rooms such as the Winter Club room that houses historical photos on winter sports in Yosemite, the California Room, the Writing Room, and the solarium with views of Glacier Point.
Even if you don’t have a reservation at the hotel you can still visit since it is open to the public. Everyone is welcome and they even offer tours of the hotel. Don’t miss The Great Lounge with its Persian rugs and massive wooden furniture. Not only is it a great photographic subject, it is also a great place to sit and rest after a day of hiking in the park. Walk around the hotel’s exterior and see how the perspective changes as you move around the Y- shaped building.
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