While in Yosemite Valley a few weeks ago, we road our bikes to the Ahwahnee Hotel…oops, I mean the Majestic Yosemite Hotel…huh? No doubt you may have heard of the naming rights and trademark dispute that has led to the renaming of Yosemite’s landmark spots.
The Ahwahnee Hotel opened July 14, 1927. The hotel was the brainchild of the National Park Service’s first director Stephen T. Mather who envisioned building a hotel to attract the wealthier class of visitors.
The Yosemite people (Miwok tribes) called Yosemite Valley “Awooni” for its resemblance to a bear’s gaping mouth. The Yosemite people called themselves as Ah-wah-ne-chee, or “dwellers of Ahwahnee.” The spelling was later modernized to “Ahwahnee.”
Despite the plaque designating the Ahwahnee Hotel as a national historic landmark in 1987, the new signs dub it “The Majestic Yosemite Hotel.”
I had always wanted to spend one night there to say I did (price is upwards to $500 a night for a standard room), but now if I did so, I would technically NOT be sleeping in the Ahwahnee.
After 24 visits to Yosemite since 1970, I will always remember and refer to it as The Ahwahnee Hotel. …sigh.
The featured photo is submitted for Norm 2.0’s Thursday Doors photography challenge.
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Up to $500 for a standard room? I hope you get a nice view and breakfast included for that?
We never saw this hotel on our visit and now I’m glad because I’d wanted to have stayed there.
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It’s still there an as beautiful as ever. It really does cater to the rich and famous. My family once talked of us all chipping in and sleeping on the floor 🙂
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Sounds like a plan! I remember visiting a hotel where the men had to always wear long trousers and jackets apart from when they were around the pool. It didn’t matter that it was almost 100 degrees outside.
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I’ve never stayed there either. I sure hope they get the name blame game worked out. It’s so stupid. My brother-in-law is in charge of food service for the company who took over from Delaware East (or West, or North… I can’t remember) and I know they are working on getting the name back.
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Wow, an insider. Delaware North…I hope they do at least for this hotel. The other names to me, aren’t that significant.
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Wow! Would you look at the size of those timbers!!! Hubs has me doing it now, too. I look at the architecture of nearly every place we visit! What a beautiful old hotel. Do they have a restaurant? Maybe a guy could just have lunch and nose around??
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Oh yes, a huge restaurant and they let anyone in with $$$. And I think the average cocktail was a mere $12.
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That’s really too bad they are in dispute over naming the hotel. I like the name, Ahwahnee better than The Majestic Yosemite hotel. It’s a nice looking hotel but doesn’t look like a high end hotel.
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Yes, these pictures don’t really do it justice. It quite spectacular and celebs happily pay to stay. Oprah had just checked out when we stopped in to gawk at the place 🙂
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Wow, that’s pretty awesome!
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A night at the Ahwahnee wasn’t it our budget either but they were nice enough to let us riffraff wander around inside and take a few pics when we were there.
I hadn’t heard about the naming rights issue; I’m off to google and read more about it. Sounds silly to me though. Regardless of what the sign says in the future I’ll still be calling it the Ahwahnee.
Great post!
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Thanks, Norm, glad you got to check out the hotel.
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Great post. So interesting to read personal accounts of life in faraway places from fellow bloggers. If it’s full of celebs, it’s probably best avoided anyway.
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Thanks, Helene, luckily it’s pretty big, and we just saw “regular people ” strolling around 🙂
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*Skipah takes deep breath and goes into his happy Spicoli place* Woah! That’s like totally awesome Terri! You know what I could buy for $500 bucks? I could hire Van Halen to play at my birthday party!
Great pictures, 24 trips to Yosemite! I’m officially jealous!
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You got to get out here to the Wild West! You “girls” would love it.
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Actually Miss Madison and her kids recreated the whole Lewis & Clark trail last year on an Eli Lilly grant she applied for. https://oneteachersjourneywest.wordpress.com/ Get bored one day take a look around there I’m sure you will recognize some of the spots. This was well before I met her.
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I haven’t heard of this place by either name. I am newly (sort of) Western so now it might make it on my list. I second the comment about the timbers. Ridiculous!
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Whatever the name, it is beautiful!
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What a beautiful backdrop to the hotel. Lovely photos.
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thanks, Jean, it is really breathtaking!
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$12 cocktails seem to be pretty standard these days, from what I’ve seen on menus, not bought. I envy all those trips to Yosemite, though! We wouldn’t be staying at the hotel either, not matter that name, at those prices. Yikes!
janet
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I prefer camping anyway when we go there. It’s fun to walk around and take it all in though!
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[…] another post, I mention the contract dispute that affected the traditional names of certain landmark venues in Yosemite […]
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