These Old Trucker Hangouts Are Now the Coolest Places to Stay

Hotel design is often a process of addition, whether it’s that perfect throw pillow, location-specific coffee table books, or a splash of texture on an accent wall.

Not when you’re gutting a shabby 1930s motel. “Most of our design process was about subtraction,” said Liz Lambert, founder of the Austin-based Bunkhouse Group, which in March unveiled its overhaul of the aged Austin Motel. “[We had to] peel away layers of garden gnomes and tchotchkes that accumulated over time.” Now the derelict inn is a cool-kid magnet—just like its sister hotel, the celebrity-packed Saint Cecilia.