Description: When driving along Historic 62 Business Loop, the large ominous structure at the halfway point is a great place to stop and marvel at the man-made and natural components that have became signature icons. The Crescent Hotel has a very checkered passed, including the fabled hauntings from spirits. Guide Btwood2 pegs the ghost tales' details that were now decorated with pumpkins, cornstalks, and goblins less than a week before Halloween.
Even without the embellishments and regardless of season, the Crescent Hotel is just plain creepy the way it looms over town from atop the mountain. The structure is designed in true Southern fashion, with large verandas extending along upper levels in front and back. The weighty front door creaked when entering the lobby, which was all the world like stepping onto the set of a Stephen King thriller.
The main floor is surreal with historic timepiece decor, looking more like a museum. However, take a closer look and all that out-of-date elegance is largely cosmetic, and sadly so. The outside of the hotel is showing desperate needs of repair, but the inside turned out to be just as suspect when grabbing a polished banister that about pulled free from the wall, or hearing guests argue about taking the stairs vs. the questionable elevator.
The hotel is rather a tourist attraction, and no one seemed to mind that a non-guest was poking about. There's some upscale shops and a sunny café dining area with pricey menu off the main floor lobby. A bar is on the second floor, across from the access to one of the back porches that yields sweeping views across the valley, which were just as enjoyable from the hotel gardens below.
The outdoor expanse is rather small but has been landscaped into a natural beauty for hosting outdoor parties and weddings. A large gazebo focuses the manicured lawn hemmed with seasonal flowerbeds, which were now ablaze with mums and some of the largest dahlias I'd ever seen. A larger fountain is upstaged by the smaller single jet bubbling over in a nearby secluded lily pond, but even these aesthetics can't surpass the Ozark panoramas.
A deep valley separates the Crescent Hotel from the distant mountaintop crowned with the towering Christ of the Ozarks statue, which can be seen with outstretched arms as if watching over the town. Added appeal comes from the European-like domes, spires, and tower that rise from the chapel and Catholic church behind the hotel on the next lower-tiered level. It's possible to walk from the gardens to the houses of worship that have equally tended lawns and gardens. A series of smaller statues depict Christ carrying the cross to Calvary. Because the churches are built on the side of a steep mountain, the sidewalk entry level allows passing with head-on views of the cathedral's stained-glass medallion and other colorful windows.
Limited free parking is available in front of and on the far side of the Crescent HotelClose