Fodor's Expert Review Inn at Whittier

With its lighthouse-tower design and its weathered-looking gray slats, this hotel set among shanties and harbor boats blends in well with its surroundings. The 26,000-square-foot, three-story hotel sits right on the water, overlooking the harbor. About half the rooms have stunning views of the water and the mountains across the bay. The junior suites and the bi-level town houses also look out onto the bay; the latter have fireplaces on both floors.