Six historic Oregon Coast inns with a strong time travel vibe
Published 01/02/23 at 23:09
By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff
(Oregon Coast) – Time travel is possible on the Oregon Coast. Well, not the ones found in LOST, Time Tunnel, or Star Trek IV (and who has a Klingon ship lying around anyway?) However, some places to stay the night out here really do feel like you’re stepping back in time. There are even ardent followers of such places, who seek the old American “motor lodge” and its powerful nostalgia.
The story of how current housing on the Oregon coast came to be, including that evolution from motor lodges to hotels, motels and vacation rentals, is an interesting one. With these spots along the northern half of the coast, you can live it, with some going back 100 years or more.
Clementine’s Bed and Breakfast – Astoria. What would you expect to find in what is not only the oldest town on the Oregon coast, but the oldest settlement west of the Rockies? You will find some of the oldest buildings in the entire state. Historic Moose Lodge Vacation Rentals has a variety of ultra charming homes and/or living spaces that are ancient. One comes from 1852.
Four vacation rentals are all within a large mansion, carefully restored inside and creating a dizzying mix of modern and old. The wooden floors along with its architectural lines echo the past, but the cheerful decor and skylights bring in the modern era. It is also pet friendly. In turn, all this is under the umbrella of the Clementine Bed and Breakfast built in 1888, creating two magnificent Victorian mansions side by side. 847 Exchange Road. Astoria, Oregon. 503-325-2005. Website.
Gilbert Inn, Waterfront. As the 19th century was just winding down from the Victorian era, Oregon was still largely “pioneer” in atmosphere, with not many fancy digs, much less large tracts of civilization. The small town that would become Seaside was just getting started in the early 1880s when a French immigrant named Alexandre Gilbert built a small cabin here, and thus became one of Seaside’s founding fathers.
In fact, the Gilbert district is named after him.
He continued to add to the structure in 1892, when it became the Victorian mansion we now know as the Gilbert Inn. More were added over the century, it served various purposes over the decades until it finally became an inn by the 1990s when more rooms were added.
To this day, much of the timber on this old Oregon coast remains, along with other remnants of the area’s past. The bedrock is still mostly composed of river rocks from the Columbia River. 341 Beach Drive. Coastal, Oregon. (503) 738-4142. Gilbert Inn website.
Ocean Front Cabins, Oceanside. There’s a lot of history here: really if these 100-year-old walls could talk.
The building has been there since the 1920s, right around the time the little village was founded in 1922 by the Rosenberg brothers, who were also known for blasting the hole through Maxwell Point. The exterior still looks like an old beach shack, emanating an old Oregon coast vibe that’s full of charm and perhaps intrigue. The place screams of the past, especially with lots of ornamentation and antique lines in the interior of each room.
From each you get sweeping ocean views and full front seats to the famous Three Arch Rocks. 1610 Pacific Avenue NW, Oceanside. (503) 842-6081. Ocean cabins website.
Whistling Winds Motel, Lincoln City. Another remnant of the Oregon Coast’s old motor lodge aesthetic, Whistling Winds was born in the 1920s as a cluster of cottages. Not all of them are the same wood or materials as before, but the cheap little joker is covered in beautiful polished wood that gives it a real time travel vibe. The name comes from the small tower at the top where the coastal winds used to make a lot of noise before it was closed.
Motor lodges like this have quite a following with some travelers occasionally going off-road to visit these quirky examples of living. 866-384-9346 3264 NW Jetty Ave, Lincoln City, Oregon. www.whistlingwindsmotel.com
Ester Lee Motel, Lincoln City. These days, it’s a well-known – even legendary – historical inn. Part of it is now 100 years old, as the building actually started as a small cabin overlooking the surf in the 20s. Over time, various owners added more, and several adjacent buildings were purchased and added to the oceanfront compound. It was an Ester and Lee Inman who first bought the cabin and then added more: hence the name Ester Lee.
Its original use was an apartment complex, and as more was added, it slowly became a full residence.
Owner Mark Baete told Oregon Coast Beach Connection when he did some remodeling on one section, he discovered a bunch of ancient installations from decades ago that were at least primitive. 3803 SW Hwy. 101, Lincoln City, Oregon. 541-996-3606. www.esterlee.com/
Agate Beach Motel, Newport. Another one of those famous retirement motor lodges, the inn shares a name with another historic hotel that was once there over 100 years ago, when Agate Beach was actually its own separate community with a post office. The Agate Beach Motel was built in the 40s, shortly after the original nearby hotel burned down. This was also about the time when the famous composer Ernest Bloch lived in the neighborhood, however. 175 NW Gilbert Way. Newport, Oregon. 541-265-8746. www.agatebeachmotel.com.
