WASHINGTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–#gingerbread–Historic Hotels of America®, the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation for recognizing authentic historic hotels, offers travelers memorable ways to experience holiday traditions, many dating back decades, if not centuries. Gingerbread houses are a German creation, perhaps inspired by or popularized by the fairytale «Hansel and Gretel» in the early 1800s. Immigrants to the United States brought ginger and gingerbread traditions with them. As an art form for pastry chefs and a sweet treat for children, gingerbread decorating is a tradition to unite the generations, and gingerbread displays are the centerpieces of elegant lobbies at the world’s most prestigious hotels. Year after year, legendary hotels, resorts, and inns create magnificent gingerbread displays to delight and inspire guests. The 2023 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Most Magnificent Gingerbread Displays are the result of thousands of hours of culinary, pastry, confectionary, engineering, and carpentry teams working for weeks, and even months, to design, create, mix, bake, build, and, of course, decorate. Collectively, the ingredients of these displays add up to thousands of pounds of sugar, eggs, and flour; hundreds of pounds of spices; more than 10,000 individual candies; and hundreds of gallons of molasses and honey. Feast your eyes and enjoy!
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The Omni Homestead Resort (1766) Hot Springs, Virginia
The Omni Homestead Resort, a National Historic Landmark in Hot Springs, Virginia, is known for its extensive holiday decorations and displays, including spectacular gingerbread assemblies. Each year, The Omni Homestead Resort’s executive pastry chef and team imagines and bakes a new dreamy gingerbread creation to display in the historic resort’s Great Hall. For 2023, the gingerbread display is a post office, which includes a mailbox to send letters to Santa. This year’s creation is 9 feet tall and 12 feet long, weighing hundreds of pounds, and was created using 150 pounds of sugar, 60 pounds of candy, and over 250 pounds of gingerbread. The team—which included 6 culinary professionals, as well as several carpenters—took two weeks to build the display. The holiday gingerbread display is a time-honored tradition at The Omni Homestead Resort, where each executive pastry chef determines the design. In previous years, the display has been a fireplace, a gingerbread village representing the resort, and a recreation of the hotel’s iconic central tower. Guests are invited to decorate their own gingerbread houses, and can enjoy many other holiday activities, including s’mores by the fire and bedtime stories with Santa’s elves.
The Red Lion Inn (1773) Stockbridge, Massachusetts
The 250th Anniversary Holiday Candy House at the Red Lion Inn is an outlier on the list for containing no baked gingerbread, but it certainly packs on the candy, and for that it earns its place among other legendary displays. Measuring 62 inches long, 21.5 inches wide, and 31 inches tall, the candy house weighs roughly 120 pounds. Transportation of the display from the staging area to the main dining room required six men, the removal of a door, an industrial cart, an elevator, and two guides to direct the placement. But long before then, over 40 team members at The Red Lion Inn spent 40 hours planning, designing, and shopping for ingredients. Construction and decoration required 128 hours, and it involved the creative minds and time of over 40 members of the Inn’s team to put on the finishing touches. The candy house has been a tradition at the Inn, founded in 1773, for many years, and this particular candy house is a grand tribute to the historic inn’s 250th holiday season this year. The Red Lion Inn is a Charter Member of Historic Hotels of America since 1989 and, famously, is featured in Norman Rockwell’s iconic work Home For Christmas (1967).
Ingredient Spotlight:
- 4.75 feet of Ribbon Candy
- 5 pounds of Victorian Glass Candies
- 4 pounds of Licorice Bites
- 3.5 pounds of Jujyfruits
- 2.8 pounds of Mike & Ikes
- 2.65 pounds of Sprinkles
- 1.5 pounds of Spree Candies
- 1,840 Necco Wafers
- 628 Pez Candies
- 597 Berry Gems
- 300 Charms Squares
- 287 Fruit Drops
- 245 Pillow Mints
- 226 Gumdrops
- 202 Peppermint Candies
- 168 Winter Mint Candies
- 124 Vanilla Barrels
- 112 Peppermint Sticks
- 105 Butterscotch Drops
- 80 Licorice Whips
- 2 Chocolate Lions
Omni Bedford Springs Resort (1806) Bedford, Pennsylvania
When guests walk into the lobby of the Omni Bedford Springs Resort this December, they will be greeted by the sweet smell of gingerbread, along with the resort’s concierge, whose desk is located within the gingerbread display. Magnificent gingerbread displays are an annual tradition at the historic Omni Bedford Springs Resort in Bedford Springs, Pennsylvania, but this year’s display is larger and more impressive than ever before. Chef Harshal Naik, who has been with the Omni Bedford Springs Resort for several years and competed on The Food Network’s Holiday Baking Championship in 2022, is a wiz at gingerbread, and tries to outdo each year’s display the following season. This year, Chef Harshal collaborated on the project with 45 students from the Building Construction program at Bedford County Technical Center, under the instruction of Mr. Steve Sellers, who used Chef Harshal’s plans to design and construct the framework of the village from wood. Meanwhile, Chef Harshal and his team of five pastry chefs worked for almost three weeks preparing the gingerbread bricks (6,800 bricks made from 240 pounds of gingerbread dough), and another week assembling the gingerbread village. The display is 34 feet long, 8 feet deep, and 12 feet tall. On top of the gingerbread—and putting the students’ engineering skills to the test—are 60 pounds of royal icing, 40 pounds of marshmallows, 360 chocolate bars, 100 peppermint chocolate patties, and 1,400 peppermint hard candies. A National Historic Landmark, Omni Bedford Springs Resort was founded in 1806 and inducted into Historic Hotels of America in 2007.
French Lick Springs Hotel (1845) French Lick, Indiana
Made from sugar (a whopping 673 pounds of regular and powdered sugar) and spice (eight pounds of ginger, cloves, cinnamon, and nutmeg) and everything nice, the gingerbread house at French Lick Springs Hotel is a holiday tradition that guests eagerly anticipate every holiday season. The historic Indiana resort hotel’s bakery chefs Brittany Fisher, Princess McCallister, and Chantilly Tuell (plus several “elves”) concoct a fresh gingerbread house design every holiday season, and this year, the gingerbread neighborhood has expanded to include multiple side-by-side houses. The first magnificent gingerbread display is Santa’s Workshop, with sugar-cookie gears on the chimney, candy wrenches and tools on the shingles, and Christmas presents cascading down two chutes on the side of the house. The second house is Mrs. Claus’s Bakery, with larger-than-life holiday treats, including half-pound chocolate chip cookies. Creating these 8-foot-tall houses starts nine months in advance – the first batches of gingerbread were baked in February, and the bakery staff chips away at this enormous project bit by bit throughout the year. Visitors smell the gingerbread display before they see it, as the warm aroma of gingerbread fills the halls of the hotel, inviting guests to see this culinary masterpiece. The house is on display now through the first week of January. French Lick Springs Hotel, listed in the National Register of Historic Places, dates back to 1845, and was inducted into Historic Hotels of America in 2000.
Grand Hotel Golf Resort & Spa (1847) Point Clear, Alabama
Located on 550 acres on Mobile Bay in Point Clear, Alabama, the Grand Hotel Golf Resort & Spa has been known as The Queen of Southern Resorts for over 175 years. In record-time this year—just 23 days—Chef Kimberly Lyons and her team built the Grand Hotel Golf Resort & Spa, Autograph Collection’s annual gingerbread display in the historic Alabama resort’s lobby. An annual Grand Tradition since 2006, the display offers guests a sweet tour of the Historic Main Building (listed in the National Register of Historic Places) and the surrounding grounds of the Grand Hotel Golf Resort & Spa through this larger-than-life gingerbread village. The gingerbread display is a replica of the resort’s Historic Main Building that was built in the 1940s, and Bucky’s Lounge, Bayside Grill, the activity lawn, and other features of the resort, which are made out of delectable icing, candy, and spice cake. Chef Kimberly and her team used 150 pounds of icing, 75 pounds of flour, 25 pounds of sugar, 14 pounds of shredded coconut, 1,000 gumdrops, and 30 different types of candies. The display measures 18 feet long, 7 feet wide, and 3 feet at its tallest point. Making the tradition a game each year, Chef Kimberly and her team hide nuggets of fun throughout the display to see if guests can find them.
Some of the hidden references this year include:
- A Butterfly Tree, an homage to the Monarch Butterflies that migrate through the resort every October
- Snowman Chefs, each representing a member of the resort’s culinary team
- Michael Herzog, the resort’s General Manager
- Grand Hotel Golf Resort & Spa’s friendly ghost, who loved the hotel so much that they never left
- 3 Beach Bikes, a great way to get around the resort
- A Wedding Cake, a nod to many joyful occasions held at the resort over the past year
- Nitro, Chef Kimberly’s pet dog
Mohonk Mountain House (1869) New Paltz, New York
The annual gingerbread display at Mohonk Mountain House in New Paltz, New York, consists of a whimsical and delicious collection of displays selected from the Annual Hudson Valley Gingerbread Competition, hosted by the resort and in its 9th year in 2023. Displayed pieces are chosen by a panel of judges, and up to 15 of the entries are displayed throughout the Mohonk main house during December. Out of 40 submissions the competition accepts each year, the judges choose first, second, and third place for both adult and junior categories. Creativity is key, and entries depict everything from robots, fairy houses, and dinosaurs, to classic cottages. Each entry, combined with a base, must not be larger than 24 inches high, 24 inches wide, and 24 inches long. The bakers who submit these works of edible art begin working months in advance. The historic resort also hosts in-person voting on competition day for a “people’s choice award,” selected by resort guests and visitors. Visitors who want to attend the competition day but not stay at the resort can purchase a Gingerbread Pass for $15, fully donated to The Hudson Valley Food Bank, allowing access to view the winners throughout the main house. In addition to the competition day, guests can purchase the Gingerbread Pass for select dates until the end of the year to view the gingerbread display, self-guided Christmas Tree tour, enjoy the festive decor, take advantage of sales in the gift shop and spa retail store, and benefit from special rates for ice skating at the outdoor pavilion. Mohonk Mountain House was designated a National Historic Landmark in December 1986, and was inducted into Historic Hotels of America in 1991.
St. James Hotel MN (1875) Red Wing, Minnesota
For the past three years, the St. James Hotel’s Pastry Chef, Amy Zerwas, has introduced a sweet bit of holiday cheer to the hotel’s lobby in the form of a magnificent gingerbread display. Initially introduced as a pandemic-era pick-me-up for the staff, designing and building the historic hotel’s holiday gingerbread display has emerged as a new tradition for the team, and one that guests can enjoy, too. This year’s magnificent gingerbread display is a replica of the historic Red Wing Depot, a train station designed by Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad architect J.U. Nettenstrom. The Depot opened to the public in 1905, and while it was later replaced by a modern station, it was restored in 1991, and now serves as a local art gallery. The sweeter, smaller version of this historic depot can be found November 24 through January 1 in an alcove in the main lobby of the St. James Hotel and is complemented by the hotel’s annual display of model trains. Chef Zerwas oversaw the planning, mixing, construction, and decorating of the display, which required 22 pounds of flour, 12.5 pounds of molasses, 5.5 pounds of shortening, 4.25 pounds of sugar, and nearly 3 pounds of spices. The Red Wing Depot replica measures 3 feet long, 1.5 feet wide, and 2 feet at its tallest point. The St. James Hotel is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and was inducted into Historic Hotels of America in 1994.
1886 Crescent Hotel & Spa (1886) Eureka Springs, Arkansas
1886 Crescent Hotel & Spa invites guests to participate in a special interactive holiday gingerbread display this year. Located in the hotel lobby, the central gingerbread house was baked, built, and decorated by the hotel’s baker, and serves as the focal point, with many small gingerbread houses added over the course of the December holidays by guests. Although the display does not portray a specific real place, the historic hotel’s staff created a gingerbread display that embodies the spirit of togetherness and creativity that defines the holiday season at the 1886 Crescent Hotel & Spa, creating a gingerbread village that reflects the guests who stayed at the hotel in December. The village grows throughout the holiday season. In the making of these creations, the hotel estimates they will use over 100 pounds of gingerbread dough, 30 pounds of royal icing, and 50 pounds of assorted candies. As a resort activity, all guests and visitors are invited to decorate their own small gingerbread houses and add their house to the village. The interactive gingerbread display was introduced in 2021 and began with the hotel staff’s desire to create a unique and memorable experience for guests during the holiday season. Nestled in the Ozarks, where local healing waters once attracted health-seeking travelers, 1886 Crescent Hotel & Spa is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and was inducted into Historic Hotels of America in 2000.
Wentworth Mansion (1886) Charleston, South Carolina
The exquisite gingerbread house on display in the lobby of Wentworth Mansion in Charleston, South Carolina, is a detailed replica of the building itself. Crafted with care by the hotel’s passionate pastry team, led by Chef Ashley Cardona, this extraordinary creation captures not just the architectural splendor of the historic hotel, but also the festive spirit of the holiday season. The pastry team, comprised of four dedicated artisans, invested over 100 hours to create this masterpiece. From meticulously designing to-scale templates, to handcrafting and assembling each component, their expertise and passion for culinary artistry was evident in every step of the process. The team adorned the mansion with individually piped royal icing and hand-cut gingerbread bricks, showcasing exceptional skill and commitment to bringing this enchanting display to life. The finished display measures 18 inches by 24 inches, and weighs just under 50 pounds, constructed entirely from edible materials. The base is comprised of traditional gingerbread, hand-painted with brick-red hues to mirror the mansion’s façade. Each “glass” window was meticulously cut from gelatin leaves and tailored to match precise dimensions. Notably, the cupola, a signature architectural feature, was fashioned from pastillage, a decorative sugar paste traditionally used for intricate sugar sculptures. Details like stairs, landscaping, and the roof were sculpted from Rice Krispies Treats and enveloped in fondant, lending texture and authenticity. Using a palette of edible food colors, Chef Ashley added depth and detail, especially to areas like the roof and brick courtyard. To achieve an authentic touch, she applied edible copper luster dust, imparting a genuine metallic appearance to the roof. This year marks the inaugural debut of a Wentworth Mansion gingerbread display, and the team hopes to make it a cherished tradition for guests and staff alike for years to come. Wentworth Mansion is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and was inducted into Historic Hotels of America in 2003.
Hotel Colorado (1893) Glenwood Springs, Colorado
The life-sized, interactive holiday gingerbread display at Hotel Colorado in Glenwood Springs, Colorado, wraps around the hotel’s Legends Coffee & Gift Shop, and invites guests to enjoy a seriously sweet shopping experience. The gingerbread house is 16 ft. high, 12 ft. long, and 14 ft. wide, and was built using 311 pounds of gingerbread and 8 gallons of frosting. Four people worked together for over a week to bake, build, and decorate the sweet and spiced house. The gingerbread display at Hotel Colorado is a time-honored tradition and has been a major part of the hotel’s holiday displays for the past 15 years. Although it has moved locations a few times, it is now a tradition to build the gingerbread display around the exterior of the Legends Coffee & Gift Shop. Naturally, with over 300 pounds of gingerbread displayed, the halls of this historic hotel are filled with the aroma of molasses and ginger. The gingerbread house is on display as part of the hotel’s large-scale holiday décor. The hotel is open to anyone to visit, take photos, and enjoy the beautiful display. Located in the great Rocky Mountains, Hotel Colorado is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and was inducted into Historic Hotels of America in 2007.
The Jefferson Hotel (1895) Richmond, Virginia
“What if Santa Claus enjoyed cookies, candy, and sweet confections not just one night of the year, but year-round?” This bit of lore-questioning by the staff at The Jefferson Hotel in Richmond, Virginia, led to the design and construction of a magnificent gingerbread display in this historic hotel’s Palm Court lobby this December. Santa’s Sweet Shop is a colorful, magical scene depicting the jolly old elf’s sweet shop, complete with a conveyor belt of gingerbread cookies, jars filled with candy, and an area for making and decorating gingerbread cookies. According to the storytellers at the hotel, Santa built his Sweet Shop to show the industrious elves how much he appreciates them. Behind the scenes, however, a team of 10 people—including current hotel staff and former staff who returned to celebrate the hotel’s holiday season—worked closely for almost three weeks to complete the project, led by Executive Pastry Chef Sara Ayyash. The Jefferson Hotel’s Santa’s Sweet Shop is 10 feet tall, 15 feet long, and 5 feet deep. It required 260 pounds of flour, 86 pounds of shortening, 72 pounds of brown sugar, 10 gallons of molasses, 12 pounds of ginger, and 6 pounds of cinnamon—and that’s just to make the gingerbread! Adding up the frame, gingerbread, royal icing, and candy, the magnificent gingerbread display weighs over 3,000 pounds. The gingerbread display is a time-honored tradition at The Jefferson Hotel, listed in the National Register of Historic Places and a Charter Member of Historic Hotels of America since 1989.
Candy Spotlight:
- 100 pounds of Marshmallows
- 375 ft. of Nerds Rope
- 20 pounds of Jellybeans
- 20 pounds of Chocolate Sixlet Candies
- 15 pounds of Gumballs
- 10 pounds of Red Hot Cinnamon Drops
- 10 pounds of Christmas Candy Corn
- 10 pounds of Crushed Peppermint
- 15 pounds of Gummy Candies
- 5 pounds of Chocolate Mint Drops
- 5 pounds of Gumdrops
Moana Surfrider, A Westin Resort & Spa (1901) Honolulu, Hawaii
As the first hotel in Waikiki, the Moana Surfrider, A Westin Resort & Spa has enchanted guests each holiday season with its joyful ambience and festivities for 122 years. This holiday season, the historic hotel presents an enchanting experience: a magnificent life-sized gingerbread house titled «Christmas in Hawai’i.» This year’s display shows off iconic island motifs like hula skirts, canoes, and palm trees. Adorned with vibrant candy decor, the hotel’s gingerbread house is made up of thousands of gingerbread bricks, gallons of egg whites, and hundreds of pounds of candy and icing.
Construction of the display required three culinary experts to build, a team led by Pastry Chef Carmen Montejo. They logged 504 hours to bake this larger-than-life display, which was unveiled on December 12 and is now open to the public in the hotel’s main lobby. The decked-out gingerbread display welcomes guests and visitors to pose for photos and selfies of the awe-inspiring gingerbread house, as well as take in the scents and sounds of the holiday season. The impressive gingerbread display is near the dazzling two-story Christmas tree that greets visitors in the historic lobby. Along with the decor, the oceanfront resort offers a signature Keiki (child) Christmas Tea on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays in December for guests under 12. The keiki tea set includes a gingerbread cookie, milkshake, Santa hat and the Moana teddy bear. Known as the «First Lady of Waikiki,» the Moana Surfrider, A Westin Resort & Spa, is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and is a Charter Member of Historic Hotels of America since 1989.
The Fairmont Hotel San Francisco (1907) San Francisco, California
For over a century, The Fairmont Hotel San Francisco has enchanted guests with its joyful holiday festivities and seasonal ambiance in The City by the Bay. One of the hotel’s most spectacular annual traditions is its stunning gingerbread house. At the end of November each year, the hotel lobby transforms into one of the world’s most beloved holiday destinations, where cherished memories are made by locals and visitors alike. The highlight of this awe-inspiring exhibit is the glowing, two-story Victorian-style gingerbread house, adorned in hundreds of pounds of See’s Candies® iconic sweets, located in the hotel’s grand lobby. The Fairmont Hotel San Francisco’s talented culinary team, led by Executive Chef Eric Marting, meticulously planned the construction of this year’s enormous gingerbread house, which is even larger than in past years. The 2023 gingerbread house stands at more than 22 feet high and 23 feet wide, and includes thousands of homemade gingerbread bricks, and more than a ton of royal icing and candy decorations. The hotel partnered with See’s Candies to decorate its gingerbread house and holiday displays this year. Hundreds of pounds of See’s Candies—including their iconic lollypops, sour candies, and chocolate confections—were artfully placed on the breathtaking gingerbread house, creating a true work of art. To get a taste, guests, San Francisco residents, and visitors to the city are encouraged to stop by the See’s Candies pop-up location in The Fairmont Hotel San Francisco’s lobby to purchase an array of sweet offerings. The pop-up shop will be open during peak periods throughout the holiday season. Guests and visitors are invited to come experience this year’s gingerbread display between November 25, 2023, and New Year’s Day 2024. A Beaux-Arts masterpiece designed by Julia Morgan, The Fairmont Hotel San Francisco was inducted into Historic Hotels of America in 2001.
The Otesaga Hotel (1909) Cooperstown, New York
Located within the Cooperstown Historic District in Cooperstown, New York, The Otesaga Hotel is a historic resort hotel that exudes elegance and authenticity. The holiday gingerbread display has been a tradition at The Otesaga Hotel since the early 1990s, and the 2023 gingerbread display is set up in the main lobby, where guests can enjoy it immediately upon arrival.
Contacts
Katherine Orr
Historic Hotels of America │ Historic Hotels Worldwide
Director, Marketing Strategy and Communications
Tel: +1-202-772-8337
korr@historichotels.org
