Hotel of the Week: One&Only Makes Its U.S. Debut With a Jaw-Dropping Resort in Big Sky
Nestled in the shadows of the iconic Lone Mountain, One&Only Moonlight Basin boasts a sleek Olson Kundig design, a stellar new destination restaurant, and rejuvenating wellness amenities
A decade ago, a luxury hotel opening in Big Sky, Montana, would have been unthinkable. Back then, Big Sky was a bona fide if-you-know-you-know no-fuss skier’s paradise beloved for a massive mountain offering nothing more than some of the continent’s most sweeping trails.
Today, it’s in the throes of a hospitality modernization made even more opulent with the recent debut of One&Only Moonlight Basin. For the Dubai-based hospitality group, recognizable for their bigger-is-better beach properties in the Middle East, Mexico, and Europe, Moonlight Basin is a singular addition to that portfolio—it’s the only address in the United States and its first in a ski resort.
Seattle architectural firm Olson Kundig was tapped to bring One&Only’s vision to life in a 240-acre expanse of wilderness sandwiched between Lone Mountain and the Spanish Peaks. In Montana, this meant celebrating space and nature. Soaring floor-to-ceiling windows offer guests staying in any of the hotel’s 73 rooms and suites unparalleled vistas to the towering peaks.
To inject that refined residential style Olson Kundig is famous for, guestrooms all come with deep soaker tubs, fireplaces, and balconies. And interiors are rendered with a subtle Alpine touch (lots of leather, lots of wood, lots of fine beige fabrics) with only the occasional kitschy ranch reference, including light fixtures in the shape of a lasso.
Things get more luxe in the 19 freestanding cabins and the collection of multi-bedroom residences (some of which remain for sale) scattered around the three lodges. Given their remote location, wildlife routinely strolls by, giving guests hanging out in their private indoor or outdoor lounge, fire pit, or plunge pool a memorable experience. After all, the Moonlight Basin development is part of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.
Because One&Only Moonlight Basin is pretty secluded from the rest of the ski resort, the property is fully outfitted with a full suite of amenities and social spaces. The Sky Lodge, for instance, is where visitors will find The Landing, a casual restaurant serving hearty globally inspired fare, such as a massive chicken schnitzel.
The hotel is not in fact ski-in/ski-out, but the Sky Lodge connects to the rest of Big Sky via its own gondola. Guests enter the property through the main lodge, where live music echoes throughout the lobby lounge at night; glasses clink inside the sexy bar, Dear Josephine, and epicureans enjoy an enormous breakfast buffet and a ranch-to-table dinner menu at Wildwood. A heated outdoor pool, hot tubs, and play spaces round out the main lodge’s broader campus.
Other freestanding amenities allow guests plenty of room to roam. Just off the main lodge is the two-floor 17,000-square-foot spa with a massive gym, an indoor lap pool, and an outdoor onsen. Tucked under a thick canopy of conifers, Moonshack is a speakeasy cabin with live country music, poker, and cigars. A few steps away is perhaps the property’s most unique amenity: an observatory that can be booked for stargazing sessions with a professional astronomer.
Ex-pro-snowboarder, turned celebrity chef Akira Back also has an Asian restaurant on property, designed by AvroKo, giving the dining room its own visual language. Walls are covered with wood charred by the Japanese technique of shou sugi ban, then punctuated with artwork by Back’s mother. The decadent destination restaurant, serving Japanese Korean dishes embellished with Montana-inspired flavors, has become one of the area’s most sought-after reservations since its debut. Positive proof once again that the modest Big Sky is a big star.