Boutique Lodges & Design Hotels in the Adirondacks
The Adirondacks design hotel moment is quieter than what happened in the Catskills, and deliberately so — the region's character doesn't reward the same kind of stark modernism. What's emerged instead is a category of properties that have renovated or rebuilt with careful attention to regional materials and craft while delivering contemporary comfort. The result is less architectural statement and more intelligent use of setting: a boutique lodge that knows why it's made of log and stone, rather than despite it.
5 Properties
Hotel & Camp Saranac
Saranac Lake · Hotel
A 1927 hotel restored and reopened in 2019 as Hotel & Camp Saranac, with 92 rooms across the historic building and an expanded annex. The two-story lobby — high ceilings, dark wood, a sense of civic weight — is the social center of downtown Saranac Lake. Camp Saranac, the rooftop bar, has views over the treetops and the surrounding mountains. The only full-service hotel with a restaurant and bar in downtown Saranac Lake. The Wild Center and the Saranac Lake Islands are both within a short drive.
The Fern Lodge
Chestertown · B&B
Five guest rooms on a 70-acre wooded property bordering Friends Lake in Chestertown, each with a king bed, stone fireplace, private luxury bath with a deep-soaking Jacuzzi tub, and lake or mountain views. Every stay includes an evening boat tour, nightly turndown service with chocolate truffles, a homemade breakfast served privately, and complimentary kayaks, canoes, and stand-up paddleboards on the lake. On-site: a movie theatre, sauna, wine cellar, game area, and lakeside fire pit. Five rooms that operate as a private retreat.
Paradox Lodge
Schroon Lake · B&B
A small B&B on Paradox Bay on Lake Placid, two buildings and eight rooms. Cedar Lodge rooms have king beds, jetted tubs, dual sinks, and European showers; Paradox Lodge rooms have private baths and lake or mountain views. Complimentary kayaks and canoes on the water. The owner prepares breakfast from scratch every morning and it draws consistent mention in reviews. On Saranac Avenue, about a mile from the Lake Placid village center.
Saranac Waterfront Lodge
Saranac Lake · Hotel
A waterfront hotel on Lake Flower in Saranac Lake — now operating as voco Saranac Lake, part of IHG — with direct access to 38 miles of interconnected Adirondack waterways from the property dock. Indoor and outdoor pools, a lakeside restaurant and lounge, a fire pit terrace, and the Dock and Dine program for guests arriving by boat. Pet-friendly. Listed in the MICHELIN Guide. Fifteen minutes from Lake Placid and the Olympic complex.
Northwoods Inn
Saranac Lake · Inn
A 92-room hotel on Main Street in Lake Placid — now the Grand Adirondack Hotel, part of Marriott Tribute Portfolio — with two restaurants, a bar with an open fireplace, and lake-view suites overlooking Mirror Lake, Whiteface Mountain, and the High Peaks. Five-minute walk to the Olympic Center. One of the larger full-service properties in the village, in the center of everything.
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Browse Now →What Makes It
- •Lake Placid's resort infrastructure has attracted more design investment than most Adirondacks locations — the Olympic legacy, the year-round visitor base, and the town's relative affluence have produced properties that compare to the better Catskills boutique hotels.
- •The design-forward Adirondacks properties tend to use the rustic material language — timber, stone, dark wood — but in contemporary configurations: larger windows, cleaner spatial organization, less bric-a-brac. They're rustic translated rather than rustic preserved.
- •Several boutique Adirondacks properties are small enough (under 15 rooms) that the quality of individual room design matters as much as property-level design. Worth looking at room-specific reviews and photos before booking.
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