“The Ahwahnee is the one that I tell people: If they can only go to one lodge, that’s the one to go to. It looks like what you want a historic national park to look like. From the drive in, past Half Dome rock, through Yosemite Village—it’s the full package. It’s what you picture when you close your eyes and think about the historic national park lodge.”

“Crater Lake is in my home state of Oregon. You have the deepest lake in the country in front of you, the porch of the historic lodge, and when you look up, it’s the most stars you’ve ever seen in your life! When I was there [researching the book], it was a new moon, so the moon was not visible in the sky; we saw a little twinkle, and that was the Andromeda Galaxy! Talk about feeling small.”

“Curry Village is also in Yosemite—a stone’s throw from the Ahwahnee. It’s less of a lodge and more of a collection of tents and cabins—it’s a little more geared toward backpackers or outdoorsy folks. The cabins are super charming. It’s more of a summer camp vibe. For me as an interior designer, it was a real lesson in working with what you have, bringing the outdoors in, and reminding yourself that not everything has to be perfect; there’s beauty in asymmetry.”

“El Tovar is on the south rim of the Grand Canyon. El Tovar is really incredible. It’s got more of a Swiss chalet–inspired style. It’s a fun one for families because there’s a whole campus of lodges, so it’s more of a communal experience, with cool old steam trains nearby that people take in for the day. El Tovar itself is a little more upscale than some of the other lodges, and it had my favorite food. It’s a little more of a fine-dining experience, which is a nice treat.”

“When Lake McDonald Lodge was built, there weren’t roads, so you would access it from the lake, so the front of the lodge is actually lakeside. It’s got a row of historic cabins, which is where I stayed. This is the lodge that I’m most excited to take my own family back to. You can rent power boats and zoom around Lake McDonald, and there are the famous Red Jammer buses, which have been used since the 1930s to drive parkgoers around.”

“Lake Quinault Lodge is in a rainforest, which you don’t associate with North America. It’s a more modest lodge—more like a lakeside resort. It was the most communal of the lodges; Lake Quinault was kind of a party. It was another inspiring lodge for me from an interior designer’s perspective because of the way the furniture encouraged conversation: Everybody was sitting aroung the fire in the evening and meeting strangers.”

“The Oasis at Death Valley definitely defied the expectations of a national park lodge. You fly in and out of Las Vegas, which is a fun juxtaposition. You drive through this lunar landscape, and then all of a sudden, there’s this huge cluster of palm trees, so the name ‘Oasis‘ is apt. The lodge was a Hollywood hangout in the ’40s, ’50s, and ’60s, and it’s one of the more luxurious lodges. It’s the only lodge I went to where I was swimming in a pool with a strawberry daquiri.”

“Old Faithful is maybe the most impressive lodge. It’s completely made out of logs. You drive in through Yellowstone, and there’s hundreds of bison crossing the road. If you time it right, you roll up to Old Faithful, and the geyser is exploding, and you make a right into the lodge. It’s a really fun place at night; everyone is sitting in rocking chairs and Stickley sofas around the mezzanine, and they have live music playing.”

“Because of its location up in the mountains, Paradise Inn has more of a direct relationship with nature and its surroundings, which also have more of an influence on the decor. I felt inspired to be outside here. You don’t have to go far to be wowed by waterfalls and mountain peaks, which are right outside the door. Also: Paradise Inn had the best light fixtures of any of the lodges!”

“The main lodge at Zion burned down and was rebuilt, but there are cabins that surround it that are original and historic, which is where we stayed. The lodge has more of a collegiate feel. Day hikers would bus in, but at night, you felt like you had the entire canyon to yourself. It’s a cool one.”