Mel and I are looking into purchasing a home in the near future. I have long wanted to have a property that had at least 2-3 acres where I can create my idea of cool guest quarters. I think it would be fantastic to purchase a few large Spartan campers and permanently place them on the property as guest quarters. You can actually find the large Spartan campers on Craigslist occasionally for a reasonable price (I have seen them for $1600, needing interior resto). I think at least three of them would be great. I would have power, water, heating, and cooling hooked up to them. I have also thought this would be a great idea for a motel if you had the space and the access to lots of retro campers. Anyways, I would buy them one at a time and go through them and keep them original on the inside and bring them back to life. When family or friends would come to visit they could have this amazing experience staying in their own spacious camper. This idea really gets my designer and restorer juices flowing. You could even do each one in different themes such as Tiki, diner, Coca-Cola….. the options are endless. Here are a few I would LOVE to get my hands on:

Ok, just imagine, you wake up, grab the paper and a cup of coffee and sit in front of this fantastic window staring out at the coming morning. I love that they made one of the ends all windows.

Look at how long this one is. It would be like living in your own flat. Once the camper was jacked up and permanently parked I would plant shrubbery and flowers around it with a walk out deck.

I love when these are all shined up. I would make sure I had enough polish on hand to keep them shinning like a new penny.

Not all the Spartans were huge. This one seems to be a smaller one but still would be great as a guest house.

Imagine the privacy your guests would have. I could just imagine doing your dishes as you look out over the property.

Here is a shot of the interior of a spartan from 1959.

Here is a shot of the chandelier in the same kitchen in the above ad. This photo is of a Spartan that requires restoration.

As you can see from the photos below they had many different arrangements in these fantastic campers.I would keep everything original. I would even try to  find period furniture and appliances with a functioning retro television. I would want my guests to feel like they had stepped back in time.

The great thing about these campers is that the paneling had a really warm glow to it. If I am not mistaken I think the paneling was birch paneling. I love the varnish on them and how the light just shinned. Here are some examples of what the paneling can look like when re-finished, or if it has been taken care of.

It looks like gold and makes me feel so welcome.

It would be great sitting there and reading Atomic Ranch magazine.

Look how the wood shines

The counters look great!

Someone loves Jim Reeves. Look at the cute sitting area.

Here is one that looks like a new deck has been added.

I hope to one day realize this dream. It will not be anytime soon but I will not get discouraged. I will make sure that whatever home we buy allows me an area to make this a reality. I hope all of you think it is cool idea as well.

P.S.

Our good friends Ms. Adventure and Sheri let us know of “Shady Dell“, it is located in Arizona and they have put the idea of a hotel with trailers & a yacht into action. Kate of the B-52’s also has a spot in New York called “Kate’s Lazy Meadow Motel“. Thanks Ms. Adventure & Sheri!