Madonna Inn secret garden and dance floor, SLO
Madonna Inn, built in 1958 in San Luis Obispo, is a unique place to visit. You don't have to be a guest to walk around, or enjoy the live music at the dance floor. When you drive in, there is a large parking lot on the lowest level of the property. The secret garden will be to your left. A statue of Alex Madonna on his horse is framed by redwood trees. A winding path leads to the garden beds and pond. Come in springtime! There is a lawn with a white pagoda. A large flower bed is full of roses and amazing ranunculus flowers. A path leads through a beautiful gate to the second level of the property where there are sweeping views of the mountains, and the adorable horse fields with undulating white fences. The path to the hotel pool has incredible plants from South Africa. The hotel rooms have stained glass windows, and quaint wooden railings carved with hearts. From various vantage points on the property you can get good views of the Swiss alps-style hotel buildings. At night, it is romantic.
Walk down the driveway back to the lower level, admiring the horses up close. There are pink lampposts. A small garden in the parking lot has a pink cow sculpture! Walk to the front of the inn's main building. Here you will find the most incredible flower beds of ranunculus in May. Wow! There are fountains too.
Open the heavy doors and enter the main building. It is so dark inside! There are sweet stained glass pictures of bucolic scenes in each window. And gorgeous hammered copper is everywhere! To your left is the Copper Cafe, a diner that serves coffee, cake, waffles etc. You can sit at the bar for faster service. Everything is pink and ornate. It is fairly loud inside.
Straight ahead are stairs that lead up to the gift shops. From the stairs you can look down on the steak house, which is in an open area in the middle of the building. It has round, pink booths! The steak house is decorated for special seasons like Christmas and Easter. There are two gift shops upstairs but my favorite gift shop is on the lowest/basement level by the bathrooms. You can buy a Madonna Inn makeup mirror as a souvenir!
To your right when you enter the main building is the Silver Bar. It is a small area in the hallway, with pink stools at the bar, plus a few small chairs and tables under stained glass windows. Try a Pink Cloud cocktail! At the end of the hallway is the dance floor! It is a fancy dance floor, with a piano on the stage, and many tables where you can hang out with friends. It is wonderful to come here most nights at 7:30pm to swing, line, and ballroom dance to live music. Many of the dancers are excellent. These are the bands: 2nd Wed of month Johns Jazz, Thurs Robert Alberts Quintet, Fri Frank Gary Band (70s/80s songs and older crowd), Sat Starlight Dream Band (1st, 4th, and 5th)(many families) or Frank Gary Band, Sun Jeff Elliott, Mon DJ for lindy hop dancing (8pm). If female, you can't really come to just watch the band unless you don't mind constantly saying no to people asking you to dance.
Madonna Inn is located right on Highway 101 on a large swath of ranchland. It is an easy stop on a Highway 101 roadtrip.
After, go for a walk in the eucalyptus forest at the San Luis Ranch neighborhood, or let your kids play on the San Luis Ranch playground.
The entrance to Copper Cafe.
Inside Copper Cafe.
A cup of tea at the bar counter at Copper Cafe.
Flowers!
Ranunculus flowers in the secret garden.
Many different flowers.
Roses in the secret garden.
Rose!
Ranunculus flowers in the secret garden, by a fig tree.
Flowers of all hues of purple.
White building in the secret garden.
Purple daisies.
Lilies of a rich red.
The path past redwood trees to the statue of Alex Madonna on his horse.
Nasturtium flowers by the pond in the secret garden.
The lawn of the secret garden, with white pagoda, and rocks.
The spire on the Madonna Inn.
Fig tree in the garden.
Orange flowers outside a hotel room.
A tree by the second level parking lot.
Purple flowers and a rock, with the hotel rooms in the distance.
The cute architecture of the hotel rooms, the mountains, and purple flowers.
The horses in a field below, with white fences.
The hotel rooms with sweeping views of the mountains.
Cerro San Luis is a gorgeous morro you can see from the second level of the property.
Hearts carved into the railing of the hotel building.
The railing of the building with the hotel rooms.
Pagoda in the secret garden.
The lawn in the secret garden.
Purple flowers.
Honeysuckle along a fence in the secret garden.
The steps that lead from the secret garden to the second level parking lot. Honeysuckle and flowers.
Yellow flowers on a fence on the second level.
A fence brimming with yellow flowers on the second level.
Pincushion flower and stripey cactus on the walkway to the pool.
Purple flowers and railing carved with hearts.
Winding staircase with hearts.
Fields with white fences and horses grazing.
Horses munching grass, with Cerro San Luis behind.
Flowers and hotel rooms.
Poppies and rocks.
South African pincushion flowers on the path to the pool, with the mountain behind.
Yellow flowers.
Yellow and brown flowers.
Madonna Inn at night.
Madonna Inn, like Disneyland.
The entrance to the bar and dance floor, at night.
The flowers are amazing in the Secret Garden in early June.
Beautiful flowers in the Secret Garden!
Madonna Mountain and the horse paddocks.
Horses and Madonna Mountain.
Gate to the Secret Garden.
The gate to the Secret Garden is romantic.
Roses spilling over a white fence.
Flowers in the Secret Garden. Wow!
Sweet peas!
Stained glass.
Cherub on the staircase.
Cozy seating at the bar area.
The beautiful lighting at the dance floor.
The bar has amazing carved columns.
Carved wood in the dance area.
Tiffany-style lamp.
Pink drink!
Brilliant swing dancers!
The bar, with carved wood.
The stairs have little lights.
Your beauty is your smile...A sign in the restrooms while you're looking in the mirror!
DOM Jazz Quintet, playing on the stage.
The cute sign for Madonna Inn.
The front seating area where people rest between dances.
The back seating area, another spot to hang out between dances.
The lit-up sign near the freeway.
Gorgeous lighting.
The inn at night.
Pretty lighting glowing in the evening.
Towers lit up at night.
The hotel is so enchanting at night!
High fives on the dance floor.
The chandeliers at the dance floor.
The dance floor before everyone arrives.
Canary palms, flag, and entrance.
Copper work outside the cafe.
I love the pink lampposts!
The lower entrance to the secret garden, in October.
Italian cypress, Norfolk pine, and yellow flowers at the gate around the secret garden.
Hummingbird and blue sage, in the secret garden.
Dahlias in October in the secret garden.
Dahlia flower!
Dahlia flower in the planters in the secret garden.
The little pond in the secret garden, with wispy grasses.
Pathway through the secret garden.
Flowers in the secret garden by the lawn.
Sign at the top of the secret garden.
Intricate design on the balustrade of the upper hotel.
Silvery plants along the path to the pool.
Looking back at the upper hotel and mountains from the pool path.
Shady walkway in the garden.
Blue sage in the garden.
Madonna Inn is located at 100 Madonna Rd, San Luis Obispo, CA.
There is a large parking lot on the lowest level. When you park, the secret garden and statue of Alex Madonna is to your left. The inn's main building is straight in front of you, with the Copper Cafe, steak house, Silver Bar, and dance floor. The gift shops are located there too, upstairs and downstairs from the steak house and open daily 9-9. The Silver Bar is open 10am-midnight. The diner called Copper Cafe is open 7am-10pm. The hotel rooms and pool are situated on the second level of the property, with sweeping views.
Last Updated: Wed, 07 Jan 2026 16:11:38 GMT
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