It’s like stepping back in time. The bright colours, neon signs and flamingos really catch your eye while travelling along the shoreline.
“We’ve travelled to places like Palm Springs and Austin and California where the motel revival is a real thing,” April Brown, owner of the June Motel said.
“So this sort of concept of taking an old vintage motel and transforming it into something hip and chic is really common in places like that, and nobody had been doing it in Canada.”
Brown and business partner Sarah Sklash took a leap of faith and dove into the motel business.
The pair, who’ve been friends since university left their corporate lives in Toronto, opened the June Motel, and haven’t looked back.
“It’s definitely not 9-5 anymore,” Sklash said. “We kind a joke, it’s close to 24/7.”
“It’s been a whirlwind. People are going nuts for it.”
The most common questions from guests are in regards to the hotel’s name. June Motel was picked because they say it’s “kinda retro but fresh as well.”
Just like the motel itself, they add.
Opened in May of this year, the motel is fully booked well into October.
It’s even caught the eye of Canadian country musician Madeline Merlo, who chose “The June” to film the music video for her song Motel Flamingo.
“I think we’ve stumbled upon something really great,” Brown said.