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  1. Home
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  3. The Best Resort Hotels in the Continental U.S. in 2016

The Best Resort Hotels in the Continental U.S. in 2016

Melanie Lieberman headshot
By Melanie Lieberman July 06, 2016
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Dorn Suite, Glendorn, Relais & Chateaux Resort
Credit: Courtesy of the Lodge at Glendorn/Kindra Clineff
Many of the country’s best resort hotels aren't what most people think of when they hear "resort" — you won’t find bikini-clad women sipping piña coladas at Triple Creek Ranch in Darby, Montana, for example. Still, the properties that were recognized in this year’s World’s Best Awards all have an approach to relaxation that is traditionally and unabashedly American.

Every year for our World’s Best Awards survey, T+L asks readers to weigh in on travel experiences around the globe — to share their opinions on the top hotels, resorts, cities, islands, cruise lines, spas, airlines, and more. Hotels were rated on their facilities, location, service, food, and overall value. Properties were classified as city or resort based on their locations.

Whether guests bed down in log cabins or shingled cottages or a vintage manse, they're getting thoroughly looked after. 

The top 15 properties ranged from opulent mansions in the American South to ranch-style resorts overlooking the Santa Cruz Mountains. Some showed the country’s wilder side, including Triple Creek Ranch, which T+L reader Richard Gill called “one of the jewels of the American West,” and the No. 1 resort, the 1,500-acre Lodge at Glendorn in Pennsylvania. 

At the Château du Sureau, in Oakhurst, California, visitors are treated to the best of the Old World (afternoon tea, interiors furnished with antiques, and tiles reclaimed from European castles) and the New World. Think hikes through Yosemite, one of the country’s most striking national parks.

And don't forget about classic beach getaways. The Gasparilla Inn is a wonderfully preppy property on Florida's Gulf Coast, where you can golf, play tennis, or lounge on the sand, then don a jacket for dinner. Wequassett Resort and Golf Club offers wholesome, upscale fun on beloved Cape Cod. "The gardens are magical, the rooms, food and beverage outstanding, but the service is nothing short of perfection," one reader raved.  

A high standard of service is something all our winners share, no matter where they are located. And that really makes it a vacation. 
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No. 15: Rancho Valencia Resort & Spa, Rancho Santa Fe, California

Rancho Valencia
Credit: Courtesy of Rancho Valencia

Score: 95.69

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No. 14: Gasparilla Inn & Club, Boca Grande, Florida

Gasparilla Inn
Credit: Courtesy of Gasparilla Inn

Score: 95.76

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No. 13: The Lodge & Cottages at Primland, Meadows of Dan, Virginia

Lodges and Cottages at Primland
Credit: Courtesy of Primland

Score: 95.87

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No. 12: Lodge at Sea Island, Georgia

Lodge at Sea Island
Credit: Courtesy of the Lodge at Sea Island

Score: 95.90

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No. 11: Rosewood Sand Hill, Menlo Park, California

Rosewood Sand Hill
Credit: Courtesy of Rosewood Hotels and Resorts

Score: 96.00

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No. 10: Weekapaug Inn, Westerly, Rhode Island

Weekapaug Inn
Credit: Courtesy of Weekapaug Inn

Score: 96.67

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No. 9: Old Edwards Inn & Spa, Highlands, North Carolina

Old Edwards Inn & Spa
Credit: Courtesy of Old Edwards Inn and Spa

Score: 96.67

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No. 8: Wequassett Resort & Golf Club, Chatham, Massachusetts

Wequassett Resort and Golf Club
Credit: Courtesy of Wequassett Resort and Golf Club

Score: 96.68

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No. 7: Triple Creek Ranch, Darby, Montana

Triple Creek Ranch
Credit: Courtesy of Triple Creek Ranch

Score: 96.76

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No. 6: Château du Sureau, Oakhurst, California           

Château du Sureau
Credit: Courtesy of Château du Sureau

Score: 96.77

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No. 5: Gateway Canyons Resort & Spa, Gateway, Colorado

Gateway Canyons Resort
Credit: Courtesy of Gateway Canyons Resort

Score: 97.00

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No. 4: Farmhouse Inn, Forestville, California

Farmhouse Inn
Credit: Courtesy of Farmhouse Inn

Score: 97.07

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No. 3: Twin Farms, Barnard, Vermont      

Twin Farms
Credit: Courtesy of Twin Farms

Score: 97.19

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No. 2: The Willcox, Aiken, South Carolina

The Willcox
Credit: Courtesy of the Willcox

Score: 97.25

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No. 1: The Lodge at Glendorn, Bradford, Pennsylvania           

Dorn Suite, Glendorn, Relais & Chateaux Resort
Credit: Courtesy of the Lodge at Glendorn/Kindra Clineff

Score: 97.38

This Relais & Châteaux property sits on 1,500 acres in northwestern Pennsylvania and emphasizes the bucolic pleasures of early America. (One reader called it a “forest paradise.”) Travelers can make s’mores over an open fire, go skeet-shooting or ice-skating, or explore miles of trails. “It’s like going back in time to stay at a family’s private hunting lodge,” said one T+L reader, who especially loved the massive sandstone fireplace in the redwood Big House. Best of all, you can return season after season, for snowmobiling in winter or fishing for trout in spring.

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    1 of 15 No. 15: Rancho Valencia Resort & Spa, Rancho Santa Fe, California
    2 of 15 No. 14: Gasparilla Inn & Club, Boca Grande, Florida
    3 of 15 No. 13: The Lodge & Cottages at Primland, Meadows of Dan, Virginia
    4 of 15 No. 12: Lodge at Sea Island, Georgia
    5 of 15 No. 11: Rosewood Sand Hill, Menlo Park, California
    6 of 15 No. 10: Weekapaug Inn, Westerly, Rhode Island
    7 of 15 No. 9: Old Edwards Inn & Spa, Highlands, North Carolina
    8 of 15 No. 8: Wequassett Resort & Golf Club, Chatham, Massachusetts
    9 of 15 No. 7: Triple Creek Ranch, Darby, Montana
    10 of 15 No. 6: Château du Sureau, Oakhurst, California           
    11 of 15 No. 5: Gateway Canyons Resort & Spa, Gateway, Colorado
    12 of 15 No. 4: Farmhouse Inn, Forestville, California
    13 of 15 No. 3: Twin Farms, Barnard, Vermont      
    14 of 15 No. 2: The Willcox, Aiken, South Carolina
    15 of 15 No. 1: The Lodge at Glendorn, Bradford, Pennsylvania           

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