In 1963, the owners of Cove Haven Resort in the Poconos introduced their heart-shaped bathtub. Like Elvis Presley and Playboy, this event promoted a phenomenon that defined a new era of pop enjoyment: the honeymoon hotel. Destinations across the country soon began to try to keep up, installing not only heart-shaped bathtubs but also a variety of extravagant design details, from pink shag carpets to iconic worlds reminiscent of Broadway sets, in order to create a sense of romance, fantasy, and adventure.

From the photographers and devoted travelers behind the online success "A Pretty Cool Hotel Tour," Hotel Kitsch celebrates dozens of creative, nostalgic, and unique hotels stretching from the heart of the Poconos to the United States and countries such as Mexico, Spain, and the United Kingdom. Discover, in the middle of Iowa, a jungle room with fake trees and foliage around the bed as if inspired by "Where the Wild Things Are." Or Jules' Undersea Lodge in Key Largo, where the rooms were accessed by diving. An Arctic Cave room in a Kentucky hotel with sculpted blue walls and no windows. On the California coast, the iconic Madonna Inn with 110 rooms, each themed and no two alike.

Along the way, authors Margaret and Corey Bienert reveal many wild details I can't detail, including unconventional rooms (a Cadillac, a shell, a sandwich), mirrors on mirrors, pools inside rooms, full armor, and fiber-optic ceilings filled with stars. Although not a travel guide, each destination in Hotel Kitsch is open to visitors. Time to check in your registration.

Pages: 272, Year of Publication: 1101, Dimensions: 25.7x25.7cm