Village Motel | Wigwam Motel | Treasure Island | Cave City

8. Wigwam Village Motel, Holbrook, Arizona No, they're not wigwams or even imitation wigwams. They're imitation tepees (a completely different kind of structure), made of concrete instead of buffalo skin. And they're Route 66 landmarks. The sixth wigwam motel, originally built in the late 1940s, it's still furnished with the original lodgepole furniture and still run by the same family. Outside, the parking lot is studded with cars from the age of fins. Rooms cost about $45. (928) 524-3048
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9. Wigwam Motel, Rialto, California Weekend rates start at $60. www.wigwammotel.com, (909) 875-3005. Or ...

10. Wigwam Village Motel, Cave City, Kentucky Doubles start at $45. www.wigwamvillage.com, (270) 773-3381. Built by the originator of the Wigwam Motel, Frank A. Redford, they've been renovated recently but still retain their vintage flavor.

11. The Sands, Treasure Island, Florida. The Recent Past Preservation Network adopted this seaside town near Tampa when developers decided to tear down the Surf, a jewel of a mid-century beachside motel, to build condos. Though that preservation effort failed, the town is still a would-be haven for modernists, with a scattering of stucco-and-neon motels and three causeways considered so architecturally significant that they're on the National Register of Historic Places. South Beach it's not, but South Beach Jr. it might be, if preservationists persuade developers that sprucing up the one-of-a-kind motels would be better than scrapping them to make room for another bland-new building. In the meantime, try the Sands of Treasure Island, where neon will welcome you to a courtyard of striped umbrellas, hibiscus, and white stucco buildings with 1950s casement windows. Rates start at $55 in low season, $65 in high season. www.surf