5 Best Hotels in Ashland, Southern Oregon

Every plush suite in this converted late-19th-century mill has a geographic theme—the Normandy is outfitted with rustic country French prints and furniture, while Moroccan, Danish, and New Mexican motifs are among the designs in other units—and each sitting room–bedroom combo has its own entrance, a full kitchen or kitchenette, and a deck amid stunning gardens and just inches from burbling Ashland Creek. Privacy, space, high-concept elegance, and dynamite breakfasts served in an understated central dining room make this well-run place an alternative to up-close-and-personal traditional bed-and-breakfasts.

Hoteliers Doug and Becky Neuman (who also run the excellent Ashland Springs Hotel and Lithia Springs Resort) have transformed this '70s-era resort into a stylish yet affordable retro-cool compound, retaining the property's fabulous globe lights, soaring lobby windows, and beam ceilings while adding many period-style furnishings. Standard rooms and spacious suites are set in two separate buildings, and its 14 acres include two tennis courts, a pool, a hot tub, fitness rooms, and a restaurant, Luna Cafe, that turns out reasonably priced, farm-to-table pizzas, sandwiches, and other light fare (there's also a market selling gourmet picnic supplies and local beer and wine). In a part of Oregon abundant with cookie-cutter chain properties, this is a refreshingly distinct and fun alternative for value-seeking travelers.

Ashland's stately 1925 landmark hotel towers seven stories over the center of downtown, with 70 rooms done with a preponderance of gentle fall colors and unconventional decor—think French-inspired botanical-print quilts and lampshades with leaf designs. The hotel offers theater, sports, and romance packages; a full range of soothing treatments is available at the hotel's adjacent Waterstone Spa; and an on-site bar and restaurant serves some of the best food in town.

This cheerfully restored, eco-friendly, midcentury-modern complex has a hip, quirky vibe and offers the convenience of a downtown location with relatively moderate prices. Vaulted ceilings, glass showers, private porches, fireplaces, and breakfast nooks are among the features in the individually decorated cottages, some of which have two bedrooms, and the centrally landscaped pool with fire pit is a fun place to relax and mingle. The owners also run the funky and historic Columbia Hotel, a few blocks away.

Rooms and suites in this upscale Victorian have character and restful charm—some have fireplaces, refrigerators, and wet bars, and private exterior entrances, and most are well suited to having one or two children in the room. Not only are the meals smashing, the location is smack-dab in the center of Ashland's hopping theater scene. The celebrated restaurant, Alchemy, relies upon locally grown produce, fresh fish and meats, including liberal use of herbs from its own garden. The breakfasts are works of art.