Wanderlust Sunday: Non-Standard Places To Sleep
We "fell back" to Standard Time this morning, which means the lucky among us got the benefit of sleeping in.
Standard time. Sounds so dull. It's your basic vanilla-flavored, run-of-the-mill, garden-variety measure of time. Contemplating it makes me want to go back to bed. So for Wanderlust Sunday, I made a list of Non-Standard places to sleep.
Ironically, because I had to set a standard, I've limited this selection to North America. But there are unique accommodations all over the world. Ever stayed somewhere worth mentioning? Please feel free to leave a comment below.
Standard time. Sounds so dull. It's your basic vanilla-flavored, run-of-the-mill, garden-variety measure of time. Contemplating it makes me want to go back to bed. So for Wanderlust Sunday, I made a list of Non-Standard places to sleep.
Ironically, because I had to set a standard, I've limited this selection to North America. But there are unique accommodations all over the world. Ever stayed somewhere worth mentioning? Please feel free to leave a comment below.
Ten Non-Standard Places to Sleep Alphabetized by State/Province | |
 | Winterlake Lodge On the Iditarod Trail, AK A 198-mile sea or ski plane ride from Anchorage lies a wild adventure resort along Alaska's historic Iditarod Trail. It's among the most, if not the most, remote North American hotel accommodations you can book. But between dog-mushing classes and glacier trekking, I don't know how much visitors want to sleep with so much to do and explore from these grounds. |
 | Hotel des Arts San Francisco, CA San Francisco's Hotel des Arts offers guests the chance to live art, not just observe it. This boutique hotel in the heart of the city features rooms individually painted by emerging artists from around the world. Pictured left is room 206 by Damon Soule. For a list of all artists featured, click here. |
 | Jules Undersea Lodge Key Largo, FL Have you slept underwater lately? At Jules Undersea Lodge in Key Largo you can. It's a still-operational research lab that's welcomed overnight visitors since the 80's. Located 30ft deep on the ocean floor, guests have to scuba dive to their rooms. |
 | Dog Bark Park Inn Cottonwood, ID This gives new meaning to the idea of sleeping in the dog house. A stay at the Dog Bark Inn gives guests the distinction of having slept in (ahem) the world's largest beagle. |
 | Little River Lighthouse Machias, ME Lighthouses are the first things that come to mind when I think of Maine, so it would be fitting to stay in one for the night. Little River Lighthouse is on an island and boasts a million dollar view. No wonder they're booked so far in advance. |
 | Fantasuite Hotel Burnsville, MN The next time you're in Burnsville, MN, I'm quite sure you'll want to stay here. The Fantasuite does offer standard suites, but holy theme rooms, who'd want one when you can sleep in a mock space capsule instead? They have rooms decorated as castles, jungles and igloos too. The fact that the photos appear to have been taken 30-years ago makes it well worth a virtual tour. |
 | Palms Fantasy Suites Las Vegas, NV If you're looking for something a little less campy than the fantasies described above, then check out the très chic fantasy suites offered by the Palms in Las Vegas. For a mere $25,000 per night, for example, you can rent the 10,000sf Hardwood Suite pictured left. That comes with an over-sized jacuzzi facing the private basketball half-court. Hot chicks not included. |
 | Kokopelli Cave B&B Farmington, NM Kokopelli's Cave is a luxury cliff dwelling located near Mesa Verde National Park. The cave is 70ft below the surface, and requires a trek down a sloping sandstone path with stairs and ladders in order to reach it. |
 | Hotel de Glace Quebec City, QC Pack long johns when you book a room in this place. It's a hotel made completely of ice. Personally, I'd like to tour it, and then shack up somewhere with heat. But the pictures certainly are amazing. Would the novelty of it attract you for the night? |
 | Cedar Creek Treehouse Ashford, WA Cedar Creek Treehouse is the ultimate mountain cabin. Imagine sleeping 50 feet up in a giant cedar tree in the shadow of Washington's famed Mount Rainier. That's one bird's-eye view I'd like to wake up to. I can practically smell the fresh air. |
Posted by TheWordWire at 11/1/2009 12:13 PM 
Categories: Wanderlust
Tags: Jules Undersea Lodge Kokopelli Cave Cedar Creek Treehouse Dog Bark Park Inn Hotel des Arts Little River Lighthouse Fantasuite Hotel Palms Fantasy Suites Winterlake Lodge Hotel de Glace
Categories: Wanderlust
Tags: Jules Undersea Lodge Kokopelli Cave Cedar Creek Treehouse Dog Bark Park Inn Hotel des Arts Little River Lighthouse Fantasuite Hotel Palms Fantasy Suites Winterlake Lodge Hotel de Glace
My three top picks would be, in this order.
1. Undersea
2. Cave
3. Treehouse
But strangely, I would like to try out that ice house just to experience it.
Awesome places.
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Rufus wants to plan a week-long trip to Minneapolis just so we can check out all the crazy fantasuites. The Kokopelli Cave is my first choice -- cool place to sleep in a REALLY COOL part of the country. Thanks for your comment!
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The cave's my first choice, too - the treehouse my second - though I've always wanted to stay in an ice hotel. And now that I'll be writing MOON FLORIDA KEYS, I should probably check out the Jules Undersea Lodge. Thanks for letting me dream a little... :-)
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