An art-forward boutique hotel in downtown Bozeman, featuring custom local design, a dedicated map room, and an open-air courtyard.
The LARK Bozeman stands at 122 West Main Street, occupying a revitalized footprint that once belonged to the derelict Imperial 400 Motel, a mid-century motor lodge built in 1963. Local architects Brian Caldwell and Erik Nelson of ThinkTank Design Group acquired the prominent downtown eyesore and reimagined it, opening the boutique property in April 2015 with 38 rooms. A subsequent expansion in 2018 added 29 more guestrooms, bringing the total to 67 uniquely styled rooms. This four-story addition was built using cross-laminated timber (CLT), a sustainable mass-timber technology that made it one of the first commercial structures of its kind in Montana. Instead of traditional dark hotel hallways, the design relies on an open-air layout with wide outdoor walkways, allowing the crisp mountain air to circulate freely. The building is a masterclass in urban revitalization, honoring its mid-century roadside roots while introducing high-design minimalism.
Every guestroom at the hotel is uniquely configured and showcases custom artwork created by local Montana artists like Jeremy Sandlin, Christian Schultz, and Sukha Worob. The rooms avoid typical rustic cabin clichés, opting instead for clean lines, bright natural light, and playful graphic infographics on the walls that highlight regional geography, snowpack data, and county history. Beds are dressed in crisp white duvets and accented with red-striped wool Dutch Navy blankets, while reproduction turquoise Eames chairs provide comfortable seating. Bathrooms feature sunlit subway tile and walk-in showers stocked with Malin+Goetz bath products, with some displaying Worob's custom, hand-cast rubber-stamp figures depicting local Bozeman community members. Upon arrival, guests are handed a blank, passport-sized field journal containing the Wi-Fi password and essentials, a tactile invitation to document their travels.
Communal life at the property centers around its outdoor plaza and interactive lobby spaces. The Map Room serves as a dedicated planning hub, featuring a large wood table, USGS maps, and a staff of local guides ready to map out trail routes or recommend nearby fly-fishing spots. Outside, a covered patio with a wood-burning fireplace and fire pits draws both travelers and Bozeman locals together in the evenings, occasionally offering complimentary s'mores, popcorn, or trail mix. This outdoor space also hosts a seasonal, retro Airstream trailer serving small-batch scoops from locally owned Genuine Ice Cream. For morning fuel, the on-site Treeline Coffee Roasters café, located at the corner of South Grand and Main Street, serves small-batch, artisan espresso and fresh pastries directly to the lobby, grounding the hotel experience in the daily rhythm of the downtown community.
Stop by the Map Room to consult with the local guides for custom trail recommendations, grab a pour-over from Treeline Coffee Roasters, and return in the evening for a scoop of Genuine Ice Cream from the patio's seasonal Airstream.
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