Photos by Erin Watson

Indiana Dunes National Park was established in 2019, but there’s a real shortage of lodging nearby, save for a few motels in nearby towns and a campground in Beverly Shores. 

That’s what makes the Cypress House, a historic National Landmark brought to the Indiana shores from the 1934 Century of Progress in Chicago, so special. Not only has the home, made entirely of cypress logs, been meticulously preserved, it’s also the only lodging in the park proper, set on Lake Michigan.

Why was it brought to the Beverly Shores lakefront? That’s another story for another day, but the developer of Beverly Shores thought that bringing several of the Century of Progress homes to town would be a draw for selling lots in his then-new development.

Cypress House was created for the Chicago World’s Fair to showcase the unique properties of cypress as a building material. Today, it’s a dreamy vacation rental.

A former screened porch, now a four-season room with foldable glass doors and floor-to-ceiling windows, affords terrific views of the lake. The house (which has had additions built on over the years) has been updated with all the modern comforts, including a whole-house sound system, new bathrooms (one with steam shower), a movie screening room and fire pit.

Renting the Cypress House, which sleeps 12 in three bedrooms and on a pull-out on the lower level, runs about $1,000 a night. You’re across the street from a wide sandy beach with views of the Chicago skyline. Unfortunately, those views also includes power lines, though management is working with the park to get them buried. The home is in an historic district, which draws tourists taking photos in front of it, but it’s strategically dug into the hillside so as to be practically out of view from the street. 

Cypress House is managed by IN the Dunes National Park Lodging, part of the Wanderluxe Collection of vacation rentals in the Northwest Indiana and Southwest Michigan.