Airport Commuter Black SUV + Mercedes-Benz Sprinter chauffeur for The National Exchange Hotel — the 1856 Victorian Gold Rush hotel in Nevada City + one of the oldest hotels in continuous operation west of the Rockies + reborn in 2021 through a 3-year Acme Hospitality restoration + 38 Victorian rooms + the Michelin Guide-listed Lola restaurant + the cornerstone of California's most intact Gold Rush town, opening AC's Gold Country / Sierra Foothills sub-region.
The National Exchange Hotel at 211 Broad Street, Nevada City is the iconic 1856 Victorian Gold Rush hotel + one of the oldest hotels in continuous operation west of the Rocky Mountains + comprehensively restored over a three-year renovation by Acme Hospitality (the Santa Barbara group that also restored the neighboring Holbrooke Hotel in Grass Valley) and reborn in 2021 as a luxury boutique hotel. Nevada City and adjoining Grass Valley were the richest hard-rock (quartz) gold-mining towns of the California Gold Rush + sit at roughly 2,500 ft in the Sierra Nevada foothills on CA-49, the Golden Chain Highway that strings together the Mother Lode Gold Country towns. The hotel anchors Broad Street, the gas-lamp-lit Victorian commercial district at the heart of California's most intact Gold Rush town — the Nevada City Downtown Historic District is a National Historic Landmark.
38 individually-designed Victorian rooms. Each combines period Gold Rush-era detail with modern luxury + the result of a three-year, museum-grade restoration + no two rooms alike + the historic boutique scale.
Lola restaurant (Michelin Guide). The noir-inspired signature dining room + nightly dinner + weekend brunch + named for and inspired by Lola Montez, the Gold Rush dancer-celebrity who lived next door in Grass Valley in the 1850s.
A 400-plus-piece art collection. Curated throughout the property by Acme Hospitality + alongside the grand Victorian lobby + parlor + and gas-lamp Broad Street frontage.
Broad Street walking access. The hotel sits on Nevada City's historic Broad Street + a 5-minute walk to the Nevada Theatre, Commercial Street, tasting rooms, and the entire National Historic Landmark downtown.
Nevada Theatre (5 min walk). Built 1865 + California's oldest original-use theater + where Mark Twain lectured and soprano Emma Nevada performed + still an active performance venue.
Broad Street + Commercial Street historic downtown (5 min walk). Iron-shuttered brick storefronts + gas lamps + antique shops + tasting rooms + the New York Hotel + the Outside Inn + the Miners Foundry + Firehouse No. 1 Museum.
Empire Mine State Historic Park (Grass Valley 15 min). One of the oldest + largest + deepest + richest hard-rock gold mines in California (1850-1956) + 367 miles of underground passages + the Willis Polk-designed Bourn Cottage manor + formal gardens.
Holbrooke Hotel + Lola Montez House (Grass Valley 15 min). The 1862 Acme-restored sister Gold Rush hotel + the Lola Montez House + the North Star Mining Museum + the Del Oro Theatre.
South Yuba River State Park + Bridgeport Covered Bridge (25 min). The longest single-span wood-covered bridge in the United States + Sierra swimming holes + the wheelchair-accessible Independence Trail + the Yuba River canyon.
Malakoff Diggins State Historic Park (40 min north). The largest hydraulic gold-mining site in California + the North Bloomfield ghost town + the landscape of the 1884 Sawyer Decision that ended hydraulic mining.
Nevada County + Sierra Foothills wineries. Nevada City Winery + Szabo Vineyards + Lucchesi Vineyards + Sierra Starr + the high-elevation Sierra Foothills AVA.
North Lake Tahoe + Truckee (1:30 east via CA-20 + I-80). Donner Summit + the historic railroad town + pairing with AC's Lake Tahoe properties (PlumpJack, Edgewood, Ritz-Carlton, Resort at Squaw Creek).
Old Sacramento + the Delta (1:05 south via CA-49 + I-80). The Delta King 1927 stern-wheel steamboat + the Ryde Hotel Sacramento Delta + the California State Railroad Museum + a Gold-Rush-to-railroad-to-Delta heritage loop.
Gold Country / Mother Lode CA-49 touring. South to Auburn + Coloma (the Sutter's Mill gold-discovery site) + Placerville + the Shenandoah Valley Amador wine country along the Golden Chain Highway.
SMF Sacramento International (closest major commercial). 1:05-1:20 south via CA-49 + I-80 + 62 miles + the primary AC arrival for the Gold Country.
RNO Reno-Tahoe International. 1:20-1:35 east via I-80 over Donner Summit + 75 miles + the Sierra alternate arrival + ideal for guests pairing Gold Country with Lake Tahoe.
AUN Auburn Municipal + Nevada County Air Park Grass Valley (O17). 15-30 minutes + general aviation + private jets into the Sierra Foothills.
SFO San Francisco. 3:00 via I-80 + 150 miles + the AC's most-used arrival for Bay Area origin guests.
OAK Oakland. 2:45 via I-80 + 145 miles.
The National Exchange Hotel first opened in August 1856 in the gold-mining boom town of Nevada City + is today one of the oldest hotels in continuous operation west of the Rocky Mountains + and was comprehensively restored over a three-year renovation by Acme Hospitality (the Santa Barbara group) and reopened in 2021 as a luxury boutique hotel with 38 individually-designed Victorian rooms + a 400-plus-piece art collection + the Michelin Guide-listed Lola restaurant. It anchors Nevada City's Broad Street, the gas-lamp-lit Victorian commercial district at the heart of California's most intact Gold Rush town (the Nevada City Downtown Historic District is a National Historic Landmark). The National Exchange opens the AC Gold Country / Sierra Foothills sub-region, the Mother Lode towns strung along CA-49, the Golden Chain Highway. It is AC's historic Gold Rush anchor in the same way McCloud Hotel anchors the Cascades and Tallman Hotel anchors Lake County.
The National Exchange Hotel (Nevada City, 1856) and the Holbrooke Hotel (Grass Valley, 1862) are the two great Gold Rush hotels of Nevada County + sit only 15 minutes apart + and were both restored by Acme Hospitality, making them sister properties. Nevada City and Grass Valley were the twin centers of California hard-rock (quartz) gold mining + together produced an enormous share of California's lode gold + and remain the most intact Gold Rush townscapes in the state. AC chauffeurs guests booking nights at each to experience both Victorian towns + with the Empire Mine State Historic Park (one of the deepest + richest hard-rock mines in California, 367 miles of passages) sitting between them in Grass Valley. The pairing mirrors AC's other historic 2-property sub-region clusters (McCloud Hotel + Mount Shasta Resort in the Cascades; Tallman + Lake County). Both towns share the Lola Montez story: the Gold Rush celebrity dancer lived in Grass Valley in 1853 and the National Exchange's Lola restaurant is named for her.
From the National Exchange base: the Nevada Theatre (5 min walk, 1865, California's oldest original-use theater, where Mark Twain and Emma Nevada performed), Broad Street + Commercial Street gas-lamp Victorian downtown (5 min walk), Empire Mine State Historic Park (Grass Valley 15 min, one of the oldest + deepest + richest hard-rock gold mines in California, 1850-1956, 367 miles of underground passages + the Willis Polk-designed Bourn Cottage), the Holbrooke Hotel + Lola Montez House + North Star Mining Museum (Grass Valley 15 min), Malakoff Diggins State Historic Park (40 min north, the largest hydraulic gold-mining site + the North Bloomfield ghost town + the site of the 1884 Sawyer Decision that ended hydraulic mining), South Yuba River State Park + the Bridgeport Covered Bridge (25 min, the longest single-span wood-covered bridge in the United States + Sierra swimming holes + the Independence Trail), Nevada County + Sierra Foothills wineries (Nevada City Winery, Szabo, Lucchesi, Sierra Starr), the Tahoe National Forest, and Old Sacramento (1:05 south). AC builds a Gold Country heritage walking-and-touring chauffeur retainer around these.
Lola Montez (1821-1861) was an Irish-born dancer, actress, and Gold Rush celebrity famous for her scandalous Spider Dance + her romance with King Ludwig I of Bavaria (who made her Countess of Landsfeld). At the height of the Gold Rush she settled in Grass Valley, California, in 1853, next door to Nevada City + became the most famous resident of the Northern Mines + and mentored a young neighbor, Lotta Crabtree, who went on to become one of the wealthiest entertainers in America. Montez frequented Nevada City in the 1850s. The National Exchange Hotel's signature restaurant, Lola, is a noir-inspired dining room named for and inspired by her + serving nightly dinner and weekend brunch + and is listed in the Michelin Guide. The Lola Montez House still stands in Grass Valley, 15 minutes from the hotel.
Yes - Nevada City sits at the Sierra Foothills crossroads + and the National Exchange is the natural base for several AC chauffeur itineraries. North Lake Tahoe + Truckee (1:30 east via CA-20 + I-80 over Donner Summit, pairing with AC's Lake Tahoe properties - PlumpJack, Edgewood, Ritz-Carlton, Resort at Squaw Creek). Sacramento + Old Sacramento (1:05 south via CA-49 + I-80, the Delta King 1927 stern-wheel steamboat + the Ryde Hotel Sacramento Delta + the California State Railroad Museum - a Gold Rush-to-railroad-to-Delta heritage loop). Gold Country / Mother Lode CA-49 touring south through Auburn + Coloma (the Sutter's Mill gold-discovery site) + Placerville + the Shenandoah Valley Amador wine country. AC arranges a 5-7 day Gold Country + Sierra Foothills + North Tahoe + Old Sacramento Delta heritage grand tour with vehicle positioning at SMF + RNO + SFO. RNO Reno is the alternate arrival for guests pairing Gold Country with Lake Tahoe.