After just a moment in the Eudora Welty Suite at storied Hotel Monteleone, a torch bearer of Southern hospitality in New Orleans’ French Quarter, I feel infused with creative energy. Rather than rush to the streets to ramble the quarter — my usual custom — I fall back on leopard print throw pillows amid airy elegance, and succumb to the need to write. A portrait of Welty looks approvingly at me, cheering me on. I can just imagine her words of wisdom, strung out slow-as-molasses in her characteristic Mississippian drawl; her Southern storytelling sparking a fire in me that might become a poem or short story. Named for the Pulitzer Prize-winning Welty because she set her story “The Purple Hat” at Monteleone’s Bar, this suite envelops guests in a sense of place and pure literary opulence.
My suite isn’t the only suite named for a famous writer at Hotel Monteleone, which perches on the corners of Royal and Iberville Streets. Founded by a Sicilian cobbler turned hotelier at the turn of the 20th century, the Monteleone has been a fount of literary fodder and inspiration since its inception, attracting scores of writers of every genre for decades. Stay in The Ernest Hemingway Suite, a penthouse haven that vaunts views of the legendary Monteleone neon sign from its windows, and lies rakishly near the outdoor pool on a top floor. Hemingway mentioned the Monteleone in his story “Night Before Battle.”
The witty and playfully hedonistic playwright Tennessee Williams purportedly loved to swill Brandy Alexanders at Monteleone’s Carousel Bar while he penned evocative works such as “The Rose Tattoo” and “Orpheus Descending.” His namesake suite exudes drama and grandeur befitting Williams’ lust for life.
The Truman Capote Suite pays homage to the author of “In Cold Blood” and “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.” Harnessing literary license, Capote famously claimed to have been born in the hotel, though according to most sources he was born at a local hospital. However, his mother did live at Hotel Monteleone while pregnant with him, and returned with him in tow as a newborn to enjoy Monteleone’s opulence. Capote’s eponymous suite, Truman, brandishes gasp-worthy French Quarter views.
The William Faulkner Suite is as rich in imagery as the iconic author’s renowned long sentences. Faulkner wrote his first novel, “Soldier’s Pay,” while staying at the Hotel Monteleone in 1926.
Bibliophiles seeking an excuse to book a stay at Hotel Monteleone should look no further than attending the 40th anniversary of the Tennessee Williams & New Orleans Literary Festival, March 25-29, 2026, much of which takes place at the hotel.
Hanker to travel for literary largesse? These hotels and destinations are enriched by the authors who drew from them.
Antibes, Hotel Belles Rives
The Art Deco marvel Hotel Belles Rives perches atop the Mediterranean Sea with riveting terraces. Those same views fueled F Scott Fitzgerald’s imagination. At the hotel, which was a villa in Fitzgerald’s day, the author wrote one of his masterpieces ,“Tender is the Night,” a chronicle of the Riviera’s Jazz Age scene.
Prague, Four Seasons Prague
Prague is a mystical city, alight in unexplainable magic. Immerse in its mysteries when you devour Dan Brown’s latest page turner “The Secrets of Secrets,” where professor and symbology expert Robert Langdon, a fictional character, showcases the city and its hidden corridors. Don’t miss his descriptions of gorgeous Four Seasons Prague.
Rome, Hotel Hassler
In “An Inside Job,” art restorer and former Israeli intelligence officer Gabriel Allon boasts tony tastes. While recovering a stolen Leonardo da Vinci he stays at the glamorous Hotel Hassler, which dominates the top of the Spanish Steps. He also eats at a number of famous Roman restaurants and meets a contact at Harry’s Bar in Venice.
India
Booker Prize winner Arundhati Roy’s “The God of Small Things” is a lyrical tumble through Kerala, a tropical state on India’s Malabar Coast. The novel’s deft language mimics the heat of this southern spice region, known for its pepper vines, bananas, palms, and reflective backwaters. Complete your stay with Oberoi Hotels, which offers an array of luxury properties across the country.
Kenya
Two amazing female adventurers Beryl Markham, an aviator, and Danish author, Karen Blixen (who wrote as Isak Dinesen), evoked the enchantment of Kenya, the rawness of the bush, and the push/pull dichotomy of Africa’s ancient hugeness and all its glorious bounty through their writings. In “Out of Africa,” Blixen details her life on a coffee plantation, while Markham’s West with the Night” relates her adventures as a pilot. Travelers should stay at Hemingways Nairobi, a Small Luxury Collection hotel, set near the original Blixen farm, a luxury stopover hotel so swanky you won’t want to leave for safari.
New York City, The Algonquin
No hotel more depicts the vibrancy and verve of New York’s heyday literary pulse than the “Gonk.” It served as the location for the Round Table, a literary salon of devastating fame, wit, and daring. The repartee was the stuff of legends. Its undisputed queen, Dorothy Parker, presided over the gatherings. Look at “The Algonquin Round Table New York: A Historical Guide,” which tells some of the story. But also riffle Dorothy Parker’s own work for insights. “The Portable Dorothy Parker” embraces it all.
Istanbul, Pera Palace
Pera Palace Istanbul was built as the ultimate depot. It pampered passengers of the bygone Orient Express when the train chugged into town. The swish hotel housed a plenitude of glitterati including Agatha Christie, who wrote “Murder on the Orient Express” while in residence. Book room 411, Dame Agatha’s original room, complete with vintage typewriter.
Big Sur, Alia Ventana Big Sur
Ah — the allure of Highway 1 with its bold Redwood tree forests on one side and roiling cobalt seas on the other. Here, Henry Miller, Beat culture guru, made a mark, sculpting bohemian history. Stay at Alila Ventana Big Sur to meditate beneath trees, soak in Japanese-style baths, and ponder the universe while reading Millers’ formidable “Big Sur and the Oranges of Hieronymus Bosch.”
Canada, Manoir Hovey
Tuck into this peerless Relais & Chateaux, family-owned inn, a hideaway on a lake amid a forest in Quebec’s Eastern Townships. Famous for its gastronomy and art d’vivre, not to mention enhanced by a new spa, Manoir Hovey exudes all things Louise Penny, who has lived in a nearby village and brings the inn to life (under an alternative name) in various stories. If you haven’t read Penny, begin with the first Armand Gamache book — you won’t stop until you’ve read them all.
Jamaica, GoldenEye
Grab a copy of “You Only Live Twice” — or any other riveting James Bond novel by the dashing Ian Fleming — who adored sunny days in Jamaica. Cozy up in one of GoldenEye’s stately cottages, villas, and beach huts. Once the home of Ian Fleming who thought up James Bond and wrote up his quixotic adventures, the resort is where he wrote all 13 of his Bond novels.
Bangkok, Mandarin Oriental
As Thailand’s first luxury hotel, Mandarin Oriental Bangkok attracted traveling literati and celebrity writers looking for repose — and inspiration. Celebrating some of its most famous author guests, the hotel created a collection of rooms coined The Author’s Suites. Choose from luminary-christianed suites such as the Graham Greene, Joseph Conrad, and Dame Barbara Cartland rooms, most of them set in the Authors’ Wing.
Mexico
Laura Esquivel’s colorful book “Like Water for Chocolate” takes place on a ranch in northern Mexico. A symphony of magical realism where chapters read like recipes and a kitchen becomes a transformative space, the tale shows how even amid external conflict, we can look within to experience joy and illumination. It also emphasizes how simple tasks — such as eating and
cooking — keep us grounded, on track, and full of contentment. Visit one of Mexico’s best loved food cities — such as Puebla or Oaxaca — to immerse in this gastronomic vibe.
Sweden
Sweden’s Henning Mankell created the cranky, brilliant detective Kurt Wallander who lives in the coastal town of Ystad. Full of dark themes, the Wallander books embody the intelligent moodiness of Scandinavian noir, while portraying the fascinating landscape and culture of southern Sweden.
Australia
The poetic work of Tim Winton, Australia’s most acclaimed novelist, conjures vivid images of rural Australia. He’s won myriad literary awards. In “The Shepherd’s Hut,” he crafts a story of survival, self-discovery, and a quest for peace and freedom in lesser trammelled Western Australia.
St Lucia
Nobel Prize winner, poet, and playwright Derek Walcott was born on the island of St Lucia, and published his first poems in the local newspaper at age 14. Richly resplendent with imagery, harmonic meter, depth, and luminosity, his work also manages to ruminate on multiculturalism, slavery’s legacy, the landscape, and the people of his island. Green Night: Poems 1948-1960 was his breakthrough volume, followed by many more, including White Egrets (2010). Turn the pages of “The Poetry of Derek Walcott 1948-2013” for a stellar trove of his poetry.
Feature image courtesy of Hotel Monteleone. Travel Curator may earn a commission from product or booking links on this page.
