I think I found it: the hotel of my dreams. A kitschy paradise of endless visual theatrics. Located in San Louis Obispo, California, perfectly centered in between the Bay and LA, The Madonna Inn delights honeymooners, tourists, celebrities, and travelers alike with over one hundred themed rooms and luxurious pink common areas gilded in gold.
Opened in 1958 by construction magnate and entrepreneur Alex Madonna, the expansive property includes a ballroom, dining room, bakery, pool, spa, tennis courts, horse stables, and even a gas station (now equipped with a slew of Tesla chargers). And don't confuse the Madonna name with pop icon, Madonna! The central mastermind behind the inn's many room themes is actually Mr. Madonna's wife, Phyllis Madonna.
Amanda Rich, the inn's current artistic director, explained that Phyllis “taught me everything I know when it comes to decorating. One of the most important lessons I learned (was) always place items in odd numbers — for example, three trees, one snowman, five bears.” (The Tribune)
One of the design team's largest tasks is decorating the Alexander Madonna's Gold Rush Steakhouse (pictured above) for different holidays - particularly Christmastime. Alex and Phyllis Madonna highly valued family and Christmas, and that love shines through in every corner of the inn. My sister and I visited in January just after the holidays, so only a portion of the Christmas decor still remained, but even what was left was extravagant.
For our first night, we stayed in "The Love Nest" (#183), a hot pink suite highlighted by a central spiral staircase that leads up to a colorful stained glass window lookout. We were celebrating my 25th birthday (thus the tiara!) and this is the room that really stood out to me amongst the plethora of options. The suite is accented by light fixtures featuring birds and of course, sweet little bird nests. The space also included a bidet, hot pink tiled shower, crystal swan lamps, and a mini fridge, by request, to keep our celebratory beverages cool. Multiple baroque mirrors and a large heart emblazened above the entrance to the bathroom are some additional special features. This room made us feel like we were in a slightly more *fun* Versailles!
For our second night, we switched rooms, which I'd highly recommend if you want to expand your experience and indulge in multiple themes. We selected the blue & gold "Romance" room (#150), pictured below.
In this room, the living room and bedroom are separated by stairs and turquoise arches. The wallpaper is particularly fascinating as the floral designs are actually velvet. This room also provides an excellent photo opportunity with its turquoise couch accented by (yet another) stunning baroque mirror. The bathroom features his & hers sinks (or in our case, hers and hers) - as well as a rock shower. Yes, it feels like you are showering in a cave!
Even though the rooms provide ample entertainment, we also enjoyed some of the property's other offerings. During the first morning of our stay, my sister and I wandered to the pool via a winding garden path from the main hotel room building. To our delight, the pool area was practically deserted in the morning, which really made our experience feel VIP. The pool is "beach-entry" style with a gentle incline so that you can walk right in. Above the pool, there is a large waterfall feature and a bridge that leads to a gazebo. A hot tub, spa, and pool bar can also be accessed from the pool area.
Another activity we enjoyed at The Madonna Inn was the bike rentals! In classic Madonna fashion, the bikes are all painted hot pink - and some even have Madonna Inn license plates attached to the front baskets. We rode our pink cruisers towards the freeway to take some photographs in front of the iconic Madonna Inn sign.
Notice an interesting structure on the left side of the photo above? The inn has an entire circus performer rig set up in one of their fields and offers trapeze classes! If you want to partake in a unique experience or feel that Cirque du Soleil may be your calling, this could be the place to go. Another onsite activity that is offered but that we didn't get the chance to partake in *this time* is horseback riding. Definitely looking forward to going on a trail ride during our next stay (yes... next year's Madonna Inn trip is already booked!). And if you're a tennis pro, you can rent hot pink tennis racquets and head over to the hot pink tennis court.
Like cake? Madonna has it. And that's pink too! Or at least, their most famous slice, the pink champagne cake. We also highly recommend the carrot cake - but our hot tip is to go early in the day to reserve it as they sell out.
Overall, we had an incredible weekend stay at The Madonna Inn and HIGHLY recommend the experience. If the photos alone didn't convince you, you can also find more footage in the pilot episode of Jake Pavelka's season of The Bachelor, the "Happy Birthday, Anastasia" episode of The Girl's Next Door, or in this iconic Grimes music video. These are just a few examples of the multitude of entertainment projects filmed onsite.
See you next year, Madonna Inn! We can't wait for our next stay.
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