Looking for Atomic Age, Classic Neon Motel/Hotels

My sweetie and I are taking a cross-country road trip next August and we%26#39;d like to stay in hotels or motels that have that real vintage vibe. We don%26#39;t have the trip mapped out yet so all towns will be considered.

I love the Safari Inn, in Burbank California. Sweet Motel with pool and vintage neon but modern facilities.

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It%26#39;s easy to find pictures on the web or in books of classic neon signs but we want to stay the night in a place that looks straight out of the 50s (or 30s, 40s, 60s) but isn%26#39;t a rundown dump.

If you have a recommendation of someplace unusual, that works too.

Thanks for any help!

Looking for Atomic Age, Classic Neon Motel/Hotels

I can%26#39;t think of any hotels/motels in N.D. that LOOK like that, but if you want a vintage vibe, many towns here have places that FEEL like they haven%26#39;t changed much in 40-50 years. They aren%26#39;t trying to market vintage; they really ARE vintage.

My favorite is in Marmarth, N.D. (pop. 225) where the city bought and fixed up a 75-year-old bunkhouse that traveling rail workers used to stay in. A few years ago I rented a small but comfy, clean room there for $15 a night. You get a room by asking somebody in town to open the place up, and you pay on the honor system by sliding a money envelope under a locked door before you leave.

For food, the Pastime Bar around the corner serves a prime rib that retired cattle ranchers drive 300 miles round-trip from Bismarck to eat. The area around Marmarth is also a haven for fossil hunters.

Looking for Atomic Age, Classic Neon Motel/Hotels

Yeah, ironic fashion hasn%26#39;t really caught on in North Dakota yet :D

I%26#39;m not sure what you can find for more hotels, but for restaurants, Krol%26#39;s Diners (Fargo and Bismarck) are kinda vintage neony and the A%26amp;W in Fargo is very Art Deco-y.

Speaking of which, if you get to Fargo, check out the Fargo Theater on Broadway - that%26#39;s vintage. You can stay downtown as well (Radisson or Hotel Donaldson). Kind of a poshed up %26#39;50s downtown.

If you want the %26#39;50s experience, nothing screams 1950%26#39;s more than the roadside attractions (for example, the huge concrete buffalo in Jamestown and a giant Holstein cow at New Salem, both are right off of I-94).

Anyway, I hope that if you have made your trip already, that all went well.