The 1857 Hotel is not just another hotel. From its vaulted ceilings, wood beams, and exposed brick walls to its modern, plush decor and perfect location in downtown Paducah’s beautiful historic district, this groovy boutique property offers a one-of-a-kind stay experience.
We were thrilled to bring their vision to life online with a website design that matches The 1857’s trendy vibe.
A hip design for a very cool hotel
Exquisitely rejuvenated, The 1857 Hotel breathes modern, stylish living into the property’s historic bones. They chose a contemporary dark mode website design to reflect their unique brand of Southern hospitality.
This distinctive style trades “white” space for bold, dark space, which echoes the industrial vibe of the property itself and really makes the photos pop.
Speaking of photos, this design is a prime example of the power of good photography. From the full-screen hero image on the homepage to the slideshow galleries depicting the guestrooms and condominiums, the professionally shot images beautifully capture details and a sense of place. Lighting and composition are crucial to portray your property’s best features and so it pays to hire a professional photographer.
While photos are key to conveying the feeling of a property, other design elements are also important for communicating brand essence.
With consistent, modern typography and a simple, dark palette with gold and green accent colors, this contemporary design imparts a sense of effortless luxury and the kind of upscale stay experience guests can expect.
The transparency of the header, main menu, and booking widget over the full-screen hero image maximizes the space and effect of the image while maintaining key functions above the fold, allowing visitors to navigate the site or check availability and make a booking without having to scroll.
But exploring further is hard to resist. As users move down the homepage, subtle scroll and hover animations (including button hover effects and elements fading into view) breathe life into the site. Even the smallest design details like this contribute to the energy of the website and brand.
But it’s not all about looks. Usability is imperative too.
The 1857 keeps things easy with simple, familiar main navigation and plenty of well-placed calls to action throughout the homepage. The property’s booking engine is never more than one click away with the “Check Availability” button displayed in the main menu on every page. The convenient unit-specific booking buttons on the “Rooms” page help users find availability for a particular room type faster.
The responsive design was built for mobile too, automatically adapting layout and menus to the user’s device. It looks and works great on any screen, providing a seamless cross-device user experience.
An accessibility widget helps anyone navigate and use the website, welcoming all guests. It allows users to make instant display adaptations, such as contrast, font size, and spacing.
Like all our website designs, it’s easy to manage on the back end too. With a user-friendly WordPress content management system, the team at The 1857 Hotel can update content on their website themselves as needed, saving them time and money.
Do you need a modern, user-friendly, affordable website that reflects your property’s unique style, drives bookings, and is easily managed? Check out our portfolio for more examples of our recent work. If you like what you see, reach out to our design team for a free, no-obligation quote.