A few years ago, I found this funny little motel in a guide book that was described as kitschy. It seemed fun, so I convince my husband we should try it out. Apparently they defined "kitschy" as "craphole"...here's the post I wrote about my experience at the Vilano Beach Motel, a.k.a, the Magic Beach Motel...http://www.threebysea.com/2008/11/kitschy-does-in-fact-mean-crap-hole/
Honestly, it'll be a looong time before I try that again.

Personally, I think kitschy motels are great! I'd rather stay at one than some mid-level chain hotel. However, I first have to make sure that they are clean and well-reviewed. I will not just pull off to the side of the road and stay at one.

I recently stayed at the Silver Saddle Motel in Santa Fe, NM on a cross country road trip. It was adorable and homey and had themed rooms. We stayed in the Cowgirl room, complete with beautiful Spanish tile and framed Annie Oakley quotes in the bathroom. Definitely the best night of our whole trip!

http://santafesilversaddlemotel.com/

How timely this article is for me! I just checked out "The American Motel" (Micheal Witzel) from my library last week! I love to stay in retro lodgings, but find that many of them are just not well-maintained.

We [two female friends] stayed in one a couple of years ago in a small town. We were a day away and running late, we called to confirm that we were still on our way but they had no record of our reservations. When we got there they blamed it on Orbitz who we did not use. In addition, all power was lost that night for almost 12 hours with no explanation. No hot water, dirty carpet ... never again.

My husband and I loved The View Motel in Cottonwood, AZ when we stayed there a few years ago. Rooms are bare bones, but close to Sedona, clean (a must), affordable, and yes, quite a view! http://www.theviewmotel.com/

Absolutely! Mom and Pop places are the best. We stayed at the Thunderbird Inn in Savannah for our honeymoon and I couldn't give them enough kudos.

Oh yeah, http://www.austinmotel.com/.

Yes--we search these out! I've never stayed, but loved seeing the Wigwam Village in Cave City KY (http://www.stagednormalcy.com/?p=311). Planning to stay at the Savannah Thunderbird (dog friendly!)--glad you had a good experience, Miranda.

I've never stayed in one, but I've certainly been charmed by some of the motels I've seen along the road. The ones with the pool right out front, and the tiny little offices. I've seen them all over: Michigan, Wisconsin, Florida, North Carolina.......... But then I worry about soggy carpeting, and bed bugs, and Norman Bates. So I usually stick with the bigger names and higher price tags because I'm a chicken. But I'd love it if the AT staffers would take to the open road and surprise us with a few "Quaint Motel" Tours! How fun would that be???

my road trip philosophy is eat at a local joint--sleep in a cookie cutter chain

The best kitchy motel I ever stayed in was the Frontier Motel in Cuba, NM. It was definitely stuck in the 50's but was just cool.

laughing horse lodge in port aransas, tx is great! and you can bring the dogs!

it's amazing the same page i'm on with AT. JUST today i was searching for retro motel's in myrtle beach. i had no luck so if anyone knows of one please let me know!!

I love those old motels!!

These days, the only place I travel to is NYC, and I take Amtrak, but back when I had to travel across downstate Illinois for my job at the Phone Company, I always chose a roadside relic on an old state highway or a down-at-the-heels former showplace downtown over the boring chain motels out by the Interstate. Corporate always went along because I saved them money, but they thought I was crazy. A few times, I have to admit, I thought they might be right, like the time in Springfield when, in the middle of the night, I discovered first one black nylon sock in my bed--not mine, either: I only wear argyles--and then another. And then, to top them off, I found a pair of red nylon leopard-print panties. Bingo! The fact that this joint was only a few minutes' walk from the Capitol building was, I'm sure, only coincidence.

Other times, though, I came up with a winner on my first pick. The coolest place by far was the Stardust Motel in Rock Island, which, even in the late Eighties, still featured its original Fifties-Modern decor, and in pristine condition, too. One time my room would be red, another time lavender, another time aqua, but all the rooms featured diamond-quilted vinyl headboards outlined in gigantic white-lacquered baroque scrolls, flocked damask wallpaper, Sputnik sconces, and in the bathroom, glittery Formica counters, plush wall-to-wall carpet that matched the room's colors & a chandelier the size of a football. The whole place was like a museum of Eisenhower-era glamour. In English stately homes, they used to keep one over-the-top royal bedroom ready at all times, just in case the King should decide to drop in for a country weekend, and the faithful folks who ran the Stardust and kept it so immaculate must have done so for the same reason, not realizing that Elvis had already been dead for a decade. Hope springs eternal, I guess. The Stardust is probably gone by now, or if it's still there, it's likely been redone in tasteful neutrals. What a loss.

Most places I stayed were in between those two extremes. Once I spent a night at the notorious Coral Court motel in St. Louis--a Streamlined Moderne gem with curving glass-block bays & attached garages--and it wasn't nearly as seedy as people told me to expect. No used underwear in the bed, at least. And it's a good thing I stayed there when I had the chance, too, because a year later, the place was bulldozed. Unfortunate, because, fixed up, the Coral Court could have been a major draw for lovers of Art Deco.

But my biggest regret is that I never got a chance to stay--not even to eat--at that Valhalla of Motels, the Gobbler, up in northern Wisconsisn, which words can't even describe. It was like a Bruce McCall pastiche of cheesy Seveties Hip come to terrifying life, but it's nothing but a cracked & weedy parking lot now. All that's left is its glimmering digital afterimage, maintained as a public service by James Lilek, our National Curator of Low Culture, and if that's not a paid position, it oughtta be.

Anyway, I figure that even if--actually, especially if--a place turns out to be an absolute dive, you'll be able to retell the story for years afterwards. But what's to say about about Holiday Inn Express? And who knows? You might discover an overlooked gem.

My grandmother owns an old style motel in Winchester Bay, Oregon called Salmon Harbor Landing. It is an adorable place on the Oregon coast and she decorated all the rooms herself. Every guest falls in love with her, the motel, and Winchester Bay. It was even recommended in Lonely Planet. http://salmonharborlanding.com/index.html

I think like anything it can go either way, you know? I've stayed in chains that were dives and kitschy ones that were dives, and of course the opposite is true as well. There are several fun little places near me (I live near the Great Smoky Mountains National Park), and several that we've been wanting to try! Once we stayed in this awesome lodge in Townsend (before it got bought out and made fancy) where we made good friends with the concierge/clerk and got to drink coffee with one of the town policemen. Super cute!!

Oh, and I have to mention the Hotel Seward in Alaska. Just beautiful kitsch! Taxidermy, dark wood, lovely rooms with crank out windows. It's perfection!

Ummm.. no. Creeptastic motels are not my thing.

After encountering too many otherwise unrelated dumps, I won't stay any where that has the word "resort" in its name. I prefer the bland efficiency of the standard chains catering to early-rising business travelers.

Like several others I've seen these places go either way. I'd love to see someone devote a website or book to reviewing older kitschy motels.

I definitely stay in them, and anything thats a bit different and telling of the place. The tin share cropper shacks, in Clarksdale Mississippi, called the Shack-up Inn, is a great example of that. Great place, and this unbelievable Commissary/Bar right next door, makes you feel like you've stepped into 1952.

My husband and I also love the idea of kitschy motels, so this summer we decided to stay in one of the old family-owned motor-courts in Treasure Island, Florida. As others can attest, the "cool" factor is quickly lost on rusty faucets, comforters with cigarette burns and furniture that hasn't been updated since the 50s. At least now we can say we've done it! But in the future I think I'll just stick to collecting postcards.

I dream of the day when I can afford to base my hotel choices on criteria other than price.

As a general rule, we try to stay in reasonably nice hotels when we travel, because part of the fun of vacation (for us) is staying at places that are much cooler than our house.

That said, we stayed at the Twin City Hotel in Barre, VT on our honeymoon. We based our decision on the super fantastic Trip Advisor reviews, and we found the place to live up to the reviews. I would go back and stay there in a heartbeat; the owners are absolutely the sweetest people and they truly care about the hotel.

http://www.twincitymotel.com/

However, as a general rule, I shy away from kitsch when it comes to getting a good, clean nights sleep.

I love this one on Anna Maria Island, FL:

http://www.haleysmotel.com/

our roadtrips tend to be extended affairs, so we prefer the convenience (laundry, kitchen, etc) of either a vacation home, or go totally minimalist and camp. but, no-chain dining. local business/full parking lot is our rule of thumb.

Will try the "kistchy" if they are a bargain!

THE GOOD:
Alpine Motel in Lake Placid, NY - cute and cheap!

THE BAD:
In Las Vegas, drove through town to find a great sign and a classic Vegas experience. Not cheap and very dumpy...then months later caught the same hotel on a episode of "Forensic Files"!

In June we spent a long weekend in Wildwood, New Jersey, which has a large concentration of mid-century ("doo wop") motels with cool signage.