Retro Motels in the Southeast

Blue Ridge Tourist Court

Boone, NC

Built in 1950 and on the National Register of Historic Places, Boone's oldest surviving roadside property returned to mid-century form in a 2022 restoration. The strongest case in the area for why preservation beats renovation.

Bardstown Motor Lodge

Bardstown, KY

The 1959 Bardstown Parkview, restored with a farm-to-table restaurant, fire pit courtyard, and swim club pool. A retro rec room survives intact and the original bones underneath earned every year since.

Driftwood Motel

Bay St. Louis, MS

A 1961 horseshoe frame restored in 2024 with an orange and baby blue palette, a poolside movie setup, and a self-serve cocktail station. Brought back from derelict in two years.

Haley's Court

St. Augustine, FL

Original terrazzo floors, period bathroom tile, and a pink and teal palette that have defined this 1951 property since it was built. Everything worth keeping was already here.

Mother Earth Motor Lodge

Kinston, NC

A 1963 frame revived by the founder of a local brewery that made this neighborhood worth visiting, with a year-round pool and mini golf on the grounds. One block from the taproom.

New South Motor Inn

Madison, GA

Restored in 2024 with quality linens and in-room coffee in a mid-century frame. A name that takes a clear position on where this particular Southern town is headed.

Sunset Inn & Cottages

Treasure Island, FL

A meticulously kept beach inn where genuine mid-century bones meet full-tilt Space Age interiors, atomic shapes and color against crisp white linens. Evenings gather in a courtyard strung with warm lights, a few steps from a quiet Gulf beach known for its sunsets.

The Local St. Augustine

St. Augustine, FL

Brought back in 2021 by a husband-and-wife team with a vintage pink Florida palette and half a mile from the Bridge of Lions. The historic district is a short walk in either direction.

The Pink Flamingo

Port Saint Joe, FL

Every room designed and named after a Florida showgirl character, with a heated pool and full-property Flock bookings available for groups. A mile to the Gulf.

The Sunset Motel

Brevard, NC

Record players in the rooms and hammocks in the back of a 1950s property retrovated with the vintage bones intact. Everything that defines it was already there.

Riverhouse at the Park

Gatlinburg, TN

Private balconies overlooking a river, gas fireplaces, and a family tradition of delivering fresh homemade donuts and coffee to the door every morning. The national park trail starts across the parking lot.

Route 19 Inn

Maggie Valley, NC

Restored by former Disney Imagineers in midcentury mountain style on its 1948 bones. Jonathan Creek runs through the grounds.

Royal Palms Motel

Tybee Island, GA

Tybee's retro surf stop sits a block from the sand, with balconied rooms wrapped around a fountain courtyard and a big pool at the center. Come for the beach out the door and the hands-on owners, an easy island base with everything you need and none of the fluff.