Historic Hotel Named Among World’s Best
A well-known attraction in southern Indiana has been named among the best in the world. Historic Hotels of America and Historic Hotels Worldwide include West Baden Springs Hotel in the list of 2017 Awards of Excellence recipients.
West Baden Springs Hotel was named the Best Historic Hotel with 201-400 guest rooms for 2017. The hotel was chosen among nominees selected by historic hotels, historic preservation supporters, prior award recipients and leadership from the Historic Hotels organizations.
"The winners of the 2017 Historic Hotels Awards of Excellence represent more than 231 years of history and include the finest iconic and legendary historic hotels from across the United States of America and from around the world," said Lawrence Horwitz, executive director of Historic Hotels of America and Historic Hotels Worldwide. "We applaud these magnificent historic hotels and their hoteliers for their dedication, passion, stewardship and success in preserving these treasures and their stories for future generations of travelers."
Earlier this year, West Baden Springs Hotel was one of 10 hotels to receive a AAA Four Diamond rating. The hotel, located at French Lick Resort, was constructed in 1902 and includes a domed atrium that, according to Historic Hotels of America, was the largest free-span dome in America until the Houston Astrodome was built in the 1960s.
The other 2017 Awards of Excellence recipients include:
Historic Hotels of America New Member of the Year
- The Georges (1789) Lexington, Virginia
Best Social Media of a Historic Hotel
- The Mission Inn Hotel & Spa (1876) Riverside, California
Sustainability Champion
- Inn at the Presidio (1903) San Francisco, California
Best Small Historic Inn/Hotel (Under 75 Guestrooms)
- The Dunhill Hotel (1929) Charlotte, North Carolina
Best Historic Hotel (76-200 Guestrooms)
- Mayflower Park Hotel (1927) Seattle, Washington
Best Historic Hotel (Over 400 Guestrooms)
- Amway Grand Plaza (1913) Grand Rapids, Michigan
Best City Center Historic Hotel
- Marriott Syracuse Downtown (1924) Syracuse, New York
Best Historic Resort
- The Broadmoor (1918) Colorado Springs, Colorado
Best Historic Restaurant in Conjunction with a Historic Hotel
- Penrose Room at The Broadmoor (1918) Colorado Springs, Colorado
Hotel Historian of the Year
- Jim Hewes at The Willard InterContinental, Washington DC (1847) Washington, DC
Ambassador of the Year (Quarter Century of Service)
- Woodrow “Woody” Pettus at The Omni Homestead Resort (1766) Hot Springs, Virginia
Best Historic Hotels Worldwide hotel in Europe
- Hotel Waldhaus Sils (1908) Sils Maria, Switzerland
Best Historic Hotels Worldwide hotel in Asia/Pacific
- Alsisar Haveli (1892) Jaipur, India
Best Historic Hotels Worldwide hotel in the Americas
- Fairmont Le Château Frontenac (1893) Québec City, Canada
Historian of the Year
- Chef Walter Staib, author, twelve time Emmy Award winning TV host of A Taste of History©,and chef and proprietor of City Tavern Restaurant in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Stewards of History and Historic Preservation Award
- R.D. (Dan) Musser III at Grand Hotel (1887) Mackinac Island, Michigan
Legendary Family Historic Hoteliers of the Year
- The Smiley Family at Mohonk Mountain House (1869) New Paltz, New York
Historic Hotelier of the Year
- Philip Wood at The Jefferson, Washington, DC (1923) Washington, DC
Lifetime Achievement Award
- Duane and Kelly Roberts at The Mission Inn Hotel & Spa (1876) Riverside, California