Old Colorado Inn

Tucked onto a quiet block of South Colorado Avenue, just a short walk from the St. Lucie River and the shops along Osceola Street, the Old Colorado Inn has been part of downtown Stuart’s streetscape since 1914, when early Stuart settler John Coventry and his son Frank built it as the Coventry Hotel and Apartments. The building went through the decades doing what old Florida hotels do, hosting travelers, sitting quiet for stretches, and eventually getting a full restoration about a century after it opened. Today it operates as a family-run boutique inn spread across more than twenty individual accommodations, a mix that includes deluxe studios, luxury suites, freestanding cottages, and a handful of historic guest houses scattered around the property and nearby streets.

What sets this inn apart from the chain hotels along Federal Highway is the variety of the rooms themselves. Guests can book something as simple as the Palmer Suite, an ADA accessible unit built for easy access, or go bigger with the Family Reunion Compound, four connected properties that sleep up to 31 people for a reunion or wedding party that needs to stay together. History buffs tend to gravitate toward the Ernest Lyons House, a home dating to 1890, or the Owl House River Retreat, built in 1904, both restored and folded into the inn’s current inventory. Nine of the units come with access to an off site heated lap pool and jacuzzi, and one cottage welcomes pets up to 100 pounds, a detail that matters to travelers who would rather not board the dog for a long weekend.

Every room comes stocked with quality bedding and most units include a full kitchenette, which makes the inn a practical choice for anyone planning to stay more than a night or two in Stuart, whether that is for a boat show, a work trip tied to the marine industry that dominates this stretch of the Treasure Coast, or simply a slower vacation spent walking the Riverwalk. Mornings bring a small but appreciated touch, complimentary fresh baked goods and orange juice set out for guests before they head into downtown for coffee or breakfast at one of the nearby cafes.

The location itself does a lot of the work. Historic Downtown Stuart is one of the more walkable stretches on this part of the coast, with the Lyric Theatre, waterfront restaurants, and a run of local shops all within a few blocks. Hutchinson Island’s beaches are close enough for a short drive when guests want sand and surf to go with their historic lodging. For anyone who wants a Stuart stay that feels like it belongs to the town rather than to a corporate chain, the Old Colorado Inn is one of the few properties left downtown that can offer both the history and the hospitality in one address.