Classic Americana motel with a touch of the old west in California wine country
The Alamo Motel / Los Alamos / California / USA
I can’t begin to express my love for motels! And this ongoing trend of refurbishing old classic motels, giving them a second lease of life makes my nostalgic heart so happy. So you can probably imagine how happy I was to get to stay at the Alamo Motel in Los Alamos.
Los Alamos is a small town, about 2,5 hours from LA, with an Old West kind of look. It is located in the Santa Ynez Valley, made famous to many through the classic wine-drenched movie from 2004, Sideways, starring Paul Giamatti and Thomas Haden Church. If you haven’t watched it, you should! Not only if you are planning to go to this region.
The Alamo Motel was built back in the 1940s and is sitting right on the main street of Los Alamos, which looks like something out of an old episode of The little house on the prairie (look it up if the reference is too old for you). The town is surrounded by hills dotted with farms and wineries.
Shelter Club, who owns the motel, completed the renovations back in 2010. They had an ambition to create a hotel that reflected the colors of the surrounding area but they also wanted the place to have an air of the American south west, and in particular the look of Georgia O’Keeffe’s home. The job was carried out by designer Shaun Wallace and the way he manage to fulfill the design brief was by bringing in a lot of wooden features and warm, burnt colors. This was topped off with prints by Californian artist Meagan Donegan as well as unique lighting fixtures from Atelier De Troupe. The result is like Ace Hotels meets the Wild West so you can imagine that my hipster wannabe heart was screaming with joy.
If you don’t want to stay in your room you can hang out by the fire pit, play corn hole, drink wine in the onsite wine bar or explore the town. There are two places that are a must in my book, Bob’s Well Bread Bakery and Full of Life Flatbread. Trust me, you will not go to sleep hungry (or thirsty) when staying at the Alamo.
Welcome to the Alamo Motel! The sign will guide you to your destination.
The motel is built in an U shape around a central courtyard where you’ll find this cute little wine bar.
The motel is part of the Shelter Social Club chain. They also run Capri Hotel in Ojai.
The entrance to our room.
I love this rustic-look. It is like a Wild West version of an Ace hotel. Right up my alley.
When you reach the 4th floor it is all open plan. The reception, bar, restaurant and outdoor terrace melts into one open, friendly and vibrant space.
A glass of rosé, map, camera and sunglasses. Ready to explore the cute little town of Los Alamos.
The hotel have bikes to use to explore the town of Los Alamos.
The town of Los Alamos. Almost looks like a film set.
Our favorite place for dinner was this one, Full of Life Flatbread. It was such a joy to sit outside at communal tables under the lights stuffing our faces…
…with these lovely creations. I still don’t know what the difference is between a flat bread and a pizza, but honestly. Who cares!? Both have cheese.
Going back to the hotel for the night, bellies full.
There is fire pit in the courtyard which is a perfect place to end the evening before retreating back to the room for a good night’s sleep.
See you tomorrow!
This is something I love with hotels in the US: Almost all of them offer complimentary coffee in the morning.
And after a first hit of caffein we walked down the road to one of the most popular places in the area, Bob’s Well Bread Bakery…
…for some more coffee and breakfast. I had serious decision making anxiety when choosing what to get. But the thing is, I don’t think you can go wrong with your choice here.
After the flatbread dinner and bun breakfast, some hiking was badly needed. This is us hiking with out friends Jack and Tanja in the mountains between Santa Ynez and Santa Barbara.
RG inside info
This place is perfect if you…
…love the combination of wine, beautiful surroundings and a hint of the Wild West. Yes, I know it is maybe not a given combo but if it matches with you and if you like old motels that have been transformed into a modern, relaxed design one, you will love The Alamo.
My favorite thing about this place…
…is the onsite wine bar. Most classic motels have a pool on the inner courtyard, but since this is wine country, it makes full sense that the pool is replaced by a cottage acting as wine bar. Love this!
What not to miss when staying here…
…is to have breakfast at Bob’s Well Bread Bakery located down the road from the hotel. They open at 07:00 in the morning (perfect for us with jet lag). Their coffee is excellent and so is the baked goods. Another place well worth a visit but for dinner is Full of Life Flatbread, a couple of blocks from the hotel. Their pizzas are something to write home about.
If you like this hotel you might also like…
Pioneertown Motel, Pioneertown, CA, US
Les Cabanettes, Arles, Provence, France
Capri Hotel, Ojai, CA, US
