The Pink Palace.
It's Friday, so I thought I'd share a special sort of weekend getaway. Last week, while down near San Luis Obispo, my friends and I stopped into the world famous, very pink, Madonna Inn to have a cocktail and listen to the big band playing there. We were too late for the band (double drat!), but I had a blast capturing the insanely bad decor with my camera. The Madonna Inn is true kitsch, without even being aware of it. I don't mean to be unusually cruel, but the owners are proud of this place and strive for Liberace-like ambiance. I think I want to get married here, just for fun! At the very least, spend a honeymoon night in one of the many special rooms, like Bridal Falls!
The Madonna Inn is a family-run hotel, in existence for the last 50 years,with over a hundred individually themed rooms, including
the Buffalo Room, and a free postcard featuring each one!
The incredibly pink powder room.
Big red tufted leather booths are adorned with muralsdepicting bit of California history, in this case, miners.
20 comments:
Oh Dear lord this is spectacular! I love hideously, atrociously bad decor *almost* as much as fabulous decor.
wow!!
Omigosh! I LOVE this place. Did you check out the mens room? Hysterical.
I love this place. We used to stop in on our way "up north", I haven't been that way in years. The carpet makes your head spin. I always wanted to stay in the Rock Room.
!! great post. yes I always want to stop there when driving down to LA. I think I want to stay in the room that looks like a bear cave/the flintstones! pahah
omg - I've driven by that place, but wasn't brave enough to go in. Thanks for sharing photos of the inside!
I have NEVER heard of the Madonna Inn which hardly seems possible!? This looks like the kind of a place where I might just get away with a top hat ;) I love the crazed decor...that is until I looked at some of the rooms. I started to feel a little woozy...need some pepto. Crap! That's pink too...ugh!
FUN post, V. :)
Happy weekend!
I stayed here once as a child! We were driving through California and couldn't find any place to stay. We happened to stumble upon the Madonna Inn. I still remember our room clearly. It had a clock theme. There were clocks EVERYWHERE...including the wallpaper. Someday I hope to go back.
ok, I just found our room it was the "time of your life room"...hasn't changed in 20 years! That's nuts.
Oh this looks way too fun!
one day we'll make our way to the inn. the rooms are so bad they're good! it would be hard to choose which one to stay in! fun!
You have to venture into the men's room. There is a small rock waterfall in place of a urinal. It made me really wish I could aim and shoot, if you know what I mean.
Eeeeeeek...I can't believe that place is still there! Very David Lynch - it makes me wooozy!
stayed here once as kid as well. drove past it for first time in ages couple weeks ago. surreal.
I love eating at the cafeteria counter. Tuna salad sandwiches! Even the sugar is pink. They have a an awesome gift shop, where I bought a bunch of the colored water goblets. I had my BF go into the bathroom to make sure the coast was clear so I could take photos of the waterfall urinal. Madonna Inn is great.
We stayed in the "Old Fashioned Honeymoon" room on our honeymoon drive down the west coast! It was awesome! Here's a freaky photo of the room:
http://flickr.com/photos/lucybird/45971202/
I live in San Francisco but often drive down to Santa Barbara to visit family and pass this every single time. One of these days I am going to stop, have a cocktail and sleep in a pink room.
I visited the Madonna Inn when I was in California a few years ago and I couldn't believe that such a fabulously Kitsch place could exist! I will have to go back and stay there!
Funny you say to stay for a honeymoon night. My parents were married thirty years ago, and stayed at the Madonna Inn on their way to Vegas. They talk about the Madonna Inn more than the honeymoon in Vegas. I believe they stayed in the Old World Room. I've always wanted to go.
that's a great story melissa! thanks for sharing. ;)
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