Post Ranch Inn

Post Ranch Inn

At Post Ranch Inn, on a clifftop in Big Sur, the check-in email arrives two weeks ahead of arrival, and once on site there are no elevators, only the building and the land: earth-sheltered Ocean Houses with sod roofs that blend into the landscape, and Tree Houses raised nine feet up to protect the roots of the surrounding redwoods and oaks. This is not a hotel for anyone who wants to be near the action: it sits six kilometres from the centre of Big Sur, and everything here, from the award-winning wine list to Sierra Mar's MICHELIN Green Star kitchen, answers to the Pacific below rather than to anywhere else. Post Ranch holds the MICHELIN Guide's Three Key distinction, one of only sixteen hotels in the United States to do so and the only one in Monterey County. No one under eighteen is permitted to stay, the property is adults only, and there are no cribs or rollaway beds, so families should look elsewhere. Post Ranch opened in 1992; it sources its water from seven wells on site, avoids single-use plastic bottles and styrofoam altogether, and, since 2009, draws power from a 945-panel solar array. Rooms carry indoor fireplaces, minibars, and slippers rather than clutter; the grounds hold a library, a picnic area, a spa where treatments are booked in advance, and a pool open around the clock. Sierra Mar serves a complimentary breakfast, a prix fixe lunch, and a prix fixe dinner, all sourced from its own Chef's Garden, with a vegan menu on request. Come for the cliffs and the quiet, not for company or convenience. Post Ranch Inn sits on the cliffs of Big Sur, adults only, with no elevators and no children under eighteen. It holds the MICHELIN Guide's Three Key distinction, one of only sixteen hotels in the US to do so. Come for solitude and Sierra Mar's kitchen, not for company.