The 5 Most Beautiful Parkitecture Hotels In US National Parks

There are currently 63 national parks in the U.S., all created to help protect and preserve some of the country's most incredible landscapes and cultural monuments. With such beauty, hundreds of millions of people visit the parks every year. While many of these natural destinations are perfect places to break out your gear for a quick and easy camping retreat, plenty of them have hotels, and some of these accommodations follow a unique architecture style called "parkitecture."

Buildings created in a parkitecture style are "infused with native materials, natural whole logs, and built by hand (or meant to look as if it was)," according to the National Park Service website, and these structures are designed to blend in — not compete — with the surrounding landscapes. Hotels aren't the only buildings on national park land; campgrounds, visitor centers, and even entrance signs can all be considered parkitecture. But what makes the hotels so fantastic is that they're some of the most impressive examples of parkitecture that you can find. Many of them were built in the early days of the National Park Service to help tempt tourists to visit the parks before they became as accessible and popular as they are today. These five hotels are all found inside national parks and are incredible examples of classic parkitecture. Staying in them is like staying in a piece of history. 

Yellowstone National Park was made America's first national park with President Ulysses S. Grant's signature in 1872. The Old Faithful Inn, the park's showcase hotel, was built around 30 years later (after a previous hotel at the park burned down). Over 10,000 lodgepole pine logs from the area were used in the building's bottom floor, and the rocks come from Black Sand Basin inside the park. It was the first hotel that really helped convey the idea of parkitecture. Architect Robert Reamer designed the building with a show-stopping six-story A-frame lobby, complete with a huge fireplace. According to USGS, Reamer said of his design, "I built [the Inn] in keeping with the place where it stands. Nobody could improve upon that. To be at discord with the landscape would be almost a crime. To try to improve upon it would be an impertinence."

Old Faithful Inn has withstood the test of time, surviving earthquakes and nearby fires. The historic hotel is only open during part of the year; it's closed from around mid-October through early May. The hotel has 327 rooms spread over three floors and two wings on either side of the massive lobby, and some of the rooms come with views of the Old Faithful geyser basin. Some things to be aware of when you stay here: There's no air-conditioning, no Wi-Fi, no TVs, and not even a radio. That makes it a perfect option for someone looking for a romantic national park getaway, giving you time to relax, reconnect, and recharge.

You might feel like you're in Europe while you're still in America at Lake McDonald Lodge in Montana's Glacier National Park. Architect Kirtland Kelsey Cutter worked with land developer John E. Lewis to create a hotel that felt like a Swiss-style chalet on the banks of Lake McDonald. The lodge is right along the Going-to-the-Sun Road, one of America's most scenic highways, so it's easy to reach Glacier National Park's many attractions, including by going on its iconic Red Bus Tours.

The 3.5-story-tall building was known as the Lewis Glacier Hotel when it first opened in the 1910s until its name changed in 1957. What hasn't changed is the hotel's dedication to an Old West, historical vibe. In the multi-story lobby, you'll find an impressive stone fireplace, grand piano, comfy seating, games to play, mounted animal heads, and beautiful hanging lanterns decorated with Native American symbols. As you drive up to Lake McDonald Lodge, you might be a bit underwhelmed. However, you have to remember that it was built to be approached by boat. Therefore, the best view of the hotel is actually from what's now the back.

Lake McDonald Lodge has a total of 82 rooms, including some cabins. Most rooms have their own bathroom, except for the eight rooms in Snyder House. Rooms in the main lodge also lack some modern amenities, including TVs and air conditioning. Given that Lake McDonald Lodge is a seasonal destination, it closes between around mid-October and early May, and it can fill up quickly, so reserve early!

Paradise Inn at Mount Rainier National Park in Washington is positioned at 5,400 feet on the south side of the mountain amidst the wildflower meadows of Paradise, offering visitors amazing views. The majestic A-frame building with dormer windows features a large lobby complete with fireplaces on each end. The exposed beams in the lobby are made of cedar trees sourced from the park itself. Amidst the massive beams, you can see dozens of hand painted lampshades, adorned with images of local wildflowers. The lobby's also home to the hotel's original 14-foot-tall grandfather clock, and in the evenings, a piano player will serenade guests as they enjoy a cocktail or play a game in the space.

When Paradise Inn first opened in 1917, it had just 37 guest rooms; it's now expanded to 121 rooms. Plus, there's a full-service restaurant and a quick service cafe on site. The hotel is a seasonal destination, open only for the summer, and it comes without Wi-Fi, TVs, and phones in the rooms. It was nearly torn down in the 1960s, but thankfully, it was kept intact, and it's since been renovated and preserved for the enjoyment of generations to come.

At the east end of Yosemite Valley, the Ahwahnee Hotel opened in 1927. The Y-shaped structure is perhaps the most impressive of the half dozen national park lodges designed by architect Gilbert Stanley Underwood. The Ahwahnee is six stories tall at its highest point, but with the backdrop of the Royal Arches rock formation and how well it was designed to fit in with its surroundings, it doesn't actually seem that tall nor out of place within Yosemite's natural beauty. 

Inside, you'll find decor inspired by the Indigenous people who lived in the area for thousands of years, like the painted designs on the beams in the Great Lounge. The lounge also has some Art Deco touches with its stained glass panels atop the huge windows. The space has two large stone fireplaces and plenty of places to sit, making it the perfect spot to take in the stunning scenery and feel a part of history. The largest room in the Ahwahnee is its grand dining room. Measuring 130 feet by 51 feet, it has a 34-foot-tall vaulted timber truss ceiling and massive windows.

It's worth visiting the hotel just to see these public spaces, but if you decide to stay overnight, you have a choice of 97 rooms in the main building plus 24 separate cottages. A trip to the Ahwahnee puts you in good company: Queen Elizabeth II, President Barack Obama, and President John F. Kennedy all stayed there.

The Lodge at Bryce Canyon is the only hotel in Bryce Canyon National Park. It's located only a little over 600 feet from the canyon rim, which means you get incredibly stunning views just steps from your room. It was another of Gilbert Stanley Underwood's designs; if you're road tripping through Utah's five national parks, you should also stop by Zion National Park's Zion Lodge, also one the architect's projects.

The stone and wood buildings set amidst the ponderosa pine forest are a combination of rustic and elegant, everything that you could imagine in a historic national park hotel. The centerpiece is the two-story lodge built in the 1920s with a stone fireplace and exposed beams. The hotel also has an impressive dining room with another huge fireplace. 

The Lodge at Bryce Canyon has 114 rooms, spread throughout the property. You can stay in the main lodge, one of the 15 log cabins, or in the Sunrise and Sunset Point buildings, which are oriented — as you might guess — so you have great views of either the sunrise or sunset. As an FYI: The property is another national park hotel that doesn't have Wi-Fi, air conditioning, or TVs in the rooms.

As the national parks were first being developed, many of the hotels that were established in and near them were built to entice wealthy travelers to take the time to visit the parks. Many of those hotels were created to toe the fine line of blending in with the surroundings while also standing out as clearly impressive destinations, and many of them still stand. We chose the hotels that embraced that parkitecture style as it was first being developed and that offer guests a comfortable stay in a uniquely beautiful setting. Staying at any of these five hotels will offer you easy access to the most popular attractions of the national parks in which they're built and give you an incredible sense of history. You'll be sure to make memories to last a lifetime.