Photo courtesy of the Abita Springs Hotel
SMALL TOWN ‘SCAPES
A Bit of Abita
THE BOUTIQUE EXPERIENCE ON THE NORTHSHORE
Story and photos by Jordan LaHaye Fontenot
W
hat’s in a name? Shakespeare proposed that there was very little—roses and Romeos being what they were, regardless of what we called them. In the twenty-first century though, we’ve got this thing called branding. The Town of Abita Springs has a great name. It’s entrenched in myth, evocative of historical luxury, drenched with charm, and now associated with a popular regional product, to boot. Strolling around the picturesque, endearingly-walkable historic district, the name also lends the neighborhood a delightful sense of harmony. The Abita Brew Pub. The Abita Springs Health Store. The Abita Springs Trailhead Museum. The Abita Springs Café. In a small town like this one (population 2,500), a name functions differently than those of larger 62
cities, such as the conspicuous metropolis across the lake. In Abita Springs, the name means something specific: it points to things locally-owned and inspired, to a coordinated effort to develop community, and to the conscious curation of a specific “Abita” experience. My husband Julien and I recently enjoyed a quick twenty-four-hour stay at the Abita Springs Hotel—which is positioned strategically on Ann O’Brien Lane and the Tammany Trace Bike Trail, just across the town’s central roundabout. Besides a collection of Airbnbs, today the five-room boutique hotel is the only official overnight accommodation in a town that—during the height of its reputation during the early twentieth century as a health resort—once hosted around two thousand visitors every summer. Tourism to Abita Springs declined with
M A Y 2 2 // C O U N T R Y R O A D S M A G . C O M
the end of New Orleans’ yellow fever epidemic and subsequently, the health tourism fad on the Northshore. The rise in the popularity of automobiles also contributed to a fall in tourism to Abita Springs, which had depended on traffic from nearby towns via the East Louisiana Railroad. Rather than succumb to those economic challenges, the village gradually evolved into a new chapter: a quieter, more creative one. The Abita Springs Hotel, opened in 2018 by proprietors Rachel Hudson and Will Preble in a restored 1890s home, is a tribute to Abita Springs’ history as a hospitality wellspring as well as its modern whimsical spirit. Guests enter through the verdant back garden, which is anchored by the hotel’s centerpiece: a small pool fed by the town’s famous artesian aquifer, pouring its “healing waters” forth at five gallons a minute. Encircled
cozily by a wooden fence peeking beneath a lush tangle of flora and fauna, the garden has a fairytale feel to it. A mosaic sidewalk leads to the second floor wraparound porch, where we stayed in the Parlor King Suite, inside the Queen Anne-style home’s turret. Check-in was remote, a door code delivered to my inbox. Despite being enchanted by the exterior of the rosewater-colored cottage, I found myself struck dumb by the luxury of the room’s interior. Gorgeous wooden flooring interacted with mid-century modern light fixtures and furniture in the 700-square foot space, made bright by ample natural light and sunrise-yellow walls. Standing in the sweet little seating area to peer out the windows puts you at a perfect vantage to people-watch over the entire historic district. Taking advantage of the hotel’s com-
