Posted by After settling into our Winslow Arizona (population 9,650) AirBnB for the quick overnight, we queried our host, “where should we eat?”
‘La Posada is a must-go.’
‘OK, we’ll check it out,’ sounds Mexican…
So we stumbled (a Segal habit requiring special shoes) into a regional treasure. La Posada is a grand hotel that includes formal gardens, an art gallery, a restaurant created by a James Beard honored chef…and an Amtrak station.
Back in the early days of railroad travel, a developer/promoter named Fred Harvey partnered with the Atchison Topeka Santa Fe railroad to build a series of restaurants and hotels in the southwest. The El Tovar in Grand Canyon National Park and La Fonda in Santa Fe NM are two of the most famous. The concept offered elegant stopover options to train travelers as they traversed the southwest. Harvey’s operation continues to this day under the Xanterra banner.
One of these hotels was the La Posada. Designed by Mary Elizabeth Jane Colter in a Spanish Hacienda style, the resort opened in 1930. But unlike it’s famous cousins, it did not survive the transition away from rail travel and spent many years languishing as a railroad office building and ultimately an abandoned “surplus asset” awaiting a savior.
Enter Allan Affeldt in1997 who saw La Posada’s potential and acquired it from the railroad. Together with partners Tina Mion and Daniel Lutzick, he undertook a detailed and costly historic preservation effort filled with self-evident attention to detail. Today’s La Posada includes a gallery showcasing Tina Mion’s impressive artwork, the Turquoise Dining Room, tasteful gardens, and yes, it is still an operating Amtrak station. All Aboard! (Andy)
