This Indiana Hotel Was Once Called The Eighth Wonder Of The World

When it comes to historic Indiana hotels, it doesn't get a whole lot better - or more lavishly beautiful - than West Baden Springs Hotel. This incredible accommodation, with architecture that would blow the mind of even the most sophisticated visitor, was once called "the 8th wonder of the world", and its unreal beauty is only matched by its intriguing history. Check it out, and consider a stay next time you need a place to relax!

The (original) West Baden Springs Hotel was built in 1852. Unfortunately, it wouldn't last.

On June 14, 1901, the hotel met a fiery end. Famed architect Harrison Albright was tasked with redesigning and rebuilding the hotel, and he did so - in less than a year.

West Baden Springs Hotel re-opened in 1902, and it quickly became a favorite spot of celebrities, socialites, and even gangsters of the early 1900s.

It was routinely called "the 8th wonder of the world", and up until the Astrodome was built in Houston in the 1960s, West Baden Springs Hotel was home to the largest free-span dome atrium, measuring 200 feet across and 100 feet tall.

To this day, it is awe-inspiringly beautiful.

Back in the early days of the new-and-improved West Baden Springs Hotel, it was claimed that the aforementioned springs contained water that could heal - or nearly heal - almost any ailment. Of course, this wasn't true, but it certainly seemed to be effective marketing.

The glory days inevitably came to an end, however, following the stock market crash of 1929.

West Baden Springs Hotel dragged itself on for a couple more years following the crash, but it was to no avail. The mighty giant, too, would eventually fall. They closed their doors in 1932, and the property was subsequently donated to a religious group.

It remained a seminary until 1964, and then it was converted yet again to a private college.

For 15 years, the college occupied the space, but it, too, failed to last. Eventually, the property was abandoned and left vacant for more than a decade.

However, in the early 1990s, whisperings about new life began circling the property and, in 1996, renovations and a complete overhaul began.

Slowly but surely, life began to return to the halls of West Baden Springs Hotel. Tours of the facilities began while renovations were being completed, and today, they are still offered to visitors who hope to be blown away by the beauty of the alive-once-more hotel and all its luxury.

Nowadays, the hotel has 243 luxurious rooms and suites to choose from.

It's incredible that a place so extravagant and lovely can go from booming to derelict, to useful and then back to derelict again, but it's even more impressive when it can bounce back once more and return stronger than it ever was, which West Baden Springs Hotel most certainly has done.

Interested in other stays that will fascinate and intrigue you? Check out some of our other legendary getaways in Indiana! Have you ever visited West Baden Hotel or its sister, French Lick Resort? Do you have any pictures to share? Make sure to do so in the comments!