The Best Hotels Near AutoCamp Yosemite, by the Record
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White walls and terracotta rooftops rise above Italian cypresses in the California foothills, and the illusion of a European castle holds up the moment you step through the heavy wooden door. This small, Forbes Four Star inn sits on nine acres with manicured gardens, a pool, fountains, and a life-sized chessboard where a butler will materialize with elderberry iced tea before you've made your first move.
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The first major new lodge near Yosemite in living memory sits just outside the park gate on Highway 120, and it reads as a quiet argument that "national park lodging" doesn't have to mean thin walls and sad buffets. Rooms are clean-lined and contemporary without trying too hard, and the villas sit somewhere between hotel suite and vacation home. The spa and restaurant both punch past what you'd expect from the genre.
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Named for a granite wall it sits about 80 miles from, this boutique hotel in downtown Merced splits its personality evenly between base camp and city stay. Yosemite is the obvious draw, but Merced is the last real town before the park swallows you whole, and the hotel leans into both sides of that equation. Practical for adventurers, comfortable enough for anyone who just wants a stylish room on the Central Valley rather than a tent.