Omni Mount Washington- Bretton Woods, NH

Omni as a company does a wonderful job with historic properties. They manage to update and modernize iconic hotels, while retaining original details that make the hotels so unique. Omni Mount Washington is a shining example. It is perhaps one of the grandest of the Grand Dames. And the location isn’t half bad either.

Approaching the Omni, the iconic red roof stands in stark contrast to the snow covered mountains. Though separated by thousands of miles, and surrounded by vastly different scenery, it is very reminiscent of the Hotel Del Coronado. And with good reason- they are very much contemporaries. Mount Washington is slightly younger, but both have aged incredibly well.

The brainchild of Joseph Stickney, a fabulously wealthy coal broker, construction started on the hotel in 1900. No expense was spared by the millionaire, who brought in 250 Italian artisans to work on his mountain masterpiece. Costing 1.7 million dollars, the hotel doors opened on July 28, 1902, and the wealthy of Boston, New York and Philadelphia rejoiced. So popular was the summer resort, upward of 50 trains a day stopped in Bretton Woods.

The Spanish Renaissance Revival hotel boasted a steel superstructure, its own power plant, Tiffany glass windows, and en suite bathrooms. Thomas Edison himself ceremoniously turned the lights on for the opening. The wealthy of the day visited in droves to take in the clean air of the White Mountains, horseback ride, golf, and eat. Grand meals were all the rage at the hotel, with guests changing outfits between each sitting, up to four times a day.

Sadly, Stickney died the year after the hotel opened. Perhaps from overeating. Regardless, his widow inherited the hotel, and continued to visit and operate the hotel until her death in 1936. By that time the resort was already in decline. Some blame Prohibition, others the Great Depression and the advent of Income Tax. Yet others cite the increasing affordability of the automobile, making the hotel more accessible, and less exclusive. Whatever the mitigating factors, World War II dealt the death blow, and the hotel was shuttered in 1942.

In 1944 the hotel was sold to a Boston company for $450,000. The new owners almost immediately reopened the doors to host the Bretton Woods Monetary Conference at the end of World War II, which established the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. Diplomats from 44 countries met at the hotel, over 730 total, not only setting the price of gold, but the stage for the resort’s comeback.

Over the next several decades the hotel changed hands several times, as Grand Dames are wont to do. It isn’t easy or cheap to maintain an aging beauty after all. A ski resort was added, and in 1999, for the first time ever, the hotel remained open for the winter season. Several restorations and renovations occurred, totaling over 80 million dollars. The result is a fabulously restored four season resort.

Today, it is possible to take a shuttle over to the slopes, and admire the hotel from the summit. It is East Coast skiing, but skiing none the less, and is entertaining enough.

For those tired of skiing there is the spa, where you can soak in the outdoor hot tub which overlooks Mount Washington. When the clouds blow away, you can actually see the observatory. Getting out and back into the spa is the only dodgy part. There is also a heated pool, but this presents even a longer walk back to the lodge.

The rooms have been updated, but are pretty spare. Ours was tiny, but it retained solid wood doors, and had a wonderful view of Mount Washington. This is truly a hotel where you spend most of your time in the common areas, so a less than dazzling room is forgivable. In addition to the formal dining room, there are several restaurants and lounges, including a cave like bar in the basement, where the old squash court was turned into a Prohibition era speakeasy.

In fact, part of the fun with the Omni Mount Washington is exploring the building and property. The lobby, lounges, restaurants, ballrooms, and historic board rooms practically demand to be admired. There is also a quaint Victorian Inn a short walk away, which serves some of the best French food I have ever had. It is crazy busy during the holidays, so I would chose to go again at a quieter time, but even with crowds it is worth it. It is a beautiful reminder of the past, and I look forward to returning in the summer, and taking the historic cog railroad. And when I do, be sure you will hear all about it.