Big Sur's Post Ranch Inn

A hotel overlooking the Pacific Ocean by architect Mickey Muennig.

About 150 miles south of San Francisco, in Big Sur, California, the landscape is remote and rugged, with towering oceanside cliffs and redwood trees. It takes a certain kind of architect to understand and work with such a unique landscape. Architect Mickey Muennig has lived in the area for almost forty years and over that time has designed many buildings for this wild stretch of land.

Among the most well-known of his works is the Post Ranch Inn, which sits on a natural cliff ridge, approximately 1,200 feet above the Pacific Ocean. Opened in 1992, the Post Ranch Inn is an exclusive hotel with 40 rooms (there were only 30 in Muennig's original design, ten rooms by architect Vladimir Frank were added in 2008). The Post Ranch Inn isn't your average hotel, it is a cluster of cabins and treehouse-like structures that sit along a wooded path.

In an article for Dwell magazine, writer Keshni Kashyap describes how Muennig set about creating the plans for this rustic, yet refined retreat, "After surveying the property for several weeks and climbing the trees to find the best views, Muennig designed a few defining structures: tree houses built on slender stilts sitting ten feet above the ground; earth-sheltered, hobbitlike rooms covered in sod, grass and wildflowers; and cylindrical cabins echoing the beauty of the majestic redwoods that dot the property."

The resulting structures fit right in with the Big Sur landscape, where views of the sky, ocean and mountain command the eye.

However, the price for this architectural perfection breathtaking retreat is steep, with rooms starting at $550 per night. For those of us who can't swing the expense, there's a restaurant on site where outside guests can dine.

Love rustic, West Coast design? Take a gander at this post:
- Treehouse Hotels