Travel + Leisure magazine announced today its 18th annual “It List” of the best new and renovated hotel properties in the world.
Among the 100 properties to make the cut in 2023 is The Madrona in Healdsburg.
The historic inn and restaurant, previously known as Madrona Manor, reopened in April 2022 following a $6 million makeover. The property was bought in 2021 by an investment group headed by San Francisco-based designer Jay Jeffers and Los Angeles hotelier Cory Schisler.
The Madrona’s new look is contemporary, yet with a nod to the property’s history. To furnish the renovated hotel, Jeffers incorporated antiques original to the 1881 mansion alongside custom furniture he designed himself and commissioned pieces from makers and artists. Much of the art comes from his friend Lisa Chadwick’s Dolby Chadwick Gallery in San Francisco.
“The vibe honors the Aesthetic Movement, an era of beauty for beauty’s sake, which was popular in Healdsburg in the late 1800s,” wrote Leilani Marie Labong of Travel + Leisure. “And because it’s Wine Country, you know the food and drink will be exceptional. Try the wood-fired vegetable pie for lunch, and indulge in duck bolognese gnocchi dinner,” she advised.
Travel + Leisure’s 2023 “It List” spans 37 countries on six continents; this year, it included 37 properties in the United States. The hotels featured on the list are selected by Travel + Leisure editors, who “reviewed hundreds of new and renovated properties across the globe.”
Also on the list this year is the recently renovated Nick’s Cove in Marshall.
The popular restaurant and cottages on the Tomales Bay were updated for the first time last year since the property reopened in 2007. Along with freshly painted walls and new furnishings, overnight guests will find custom throw rugs, colorful throw pillows, new bedding and towels, refinished hardwood floors, vintage clawfoot tubs, wood-burning stoves and cheerful nautical wallpaper in the cottages.
Nick’s Cove restaurant also has received a facelift. The taxidermy that previously graced the restaurant’s walls is gone (some local regulars were happy to give it a new home) and there are new tables and chairs.
“The counter service restaurant is a popular spot for locals and Highway 1 daytrippers, thanks to the beautiful setting and coastal classics with a regional spin, from grilled Tomales Bay oysters slicked with barbecue sauce to velvety macaroni and cheese loaded with Dungeness crab,” wrote Leilani Marie Labong of Travel + Leisure magazine.
Find the Travel + Leisure “It List” of best new and renovated hotels here.