The Stoneleigh, Dallas

Standing tall in the trendy Uptown neighborhood, The Stoneleigh is a legendary 1923 Beaux-Arts landmark. When it first opened as a swank apartment-hotel, it reigned as the tallest hotel west of the Mississippi. It quickly became the ultimate luxury playground for the elite, introducing high-tech 1920s features like built-in radios in every room and ice water piped directly into the suites.

The property’s true claim to fame arrived in 1934 when a wealthy regular guest, Colonel Harry E. Stewart, loved the hotel so much he simply bought it. He built Texas’s first-ever penthouse across the top floors and hired Dorothy Draper, the iconic pioneer of American interior design, to style it. Draper packed the space with bold, maximalist flair, incorporating 500-year-old imported Italian marble and rich English oak.

Over the decades, those opulent penthouse walls have hosted Hollywood royalty and music legends like Elvis Presley, Audrey Hepburn, and Aretha Franklin. The eleventh floor also harbors a bit of spooky folklore; local legend says Colonel Stewart’s spirit still watches over his old suite, and rumor has it that a hidden, Prohibition-era secret tunnel network once ran through the building.

The hotel has kept its vintage, jazz-age glamour completely intact. Guests can unwind by a chic outdoor pool, play a round on the bocce ball court, or grab dinner at the Lions Den supper club.

Stepping outside puts you right in the middle of Dallas’s best culture. The hotel sits steps from the popular Katy Trail walking path and Reverchon Park. It is also less than a mile from the stunning Klyde Warren Park and the massive Dallas Arts District, home to the world-class Dallas Museum of Art and the I.M. Pei-designed Meyerson Symphony Center.