Would you spend the night inside this giant potato hotel?
We love our big things in Australia.
From The Big Strawberry at Koonoomoo, to Coffs Harbour’s Big Banana and The Big Pineapple on the Sunshine Coast, the east coast has plenty to keep road trippers entertained — and conscious of the importance of eating their fruits and vegies.
But our staunch Big Potato in the small town of Robertson, New South Wales has a bit of new competition for best giant spud experience on the global stage.
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The stylish interior of the Potato Hotel. Picture: Otto Kitsinger/AP Images for Idaho Potato Commission
The state of Idaho in the US has its very own “Big Idaho Potato Hotel”, and you can spend the night inside the faux starchy goodness — but it’ll cost more than a couple of burlap sacks.
To have those delicious hash brown textured dreams, you’ll have to fork out about US$200 – about AUD$285 – a night through a short-stay accommodation website.
Far from being plain, the interior of this reliable veg is decked out like a trendy yurt.
The replica Russet Burbank potato travelled across the US from 2012 to 2018 aboard the Idaho Potato Commission’s Great Big Idaho Potato Truck until it was ultimately recycled into a unique retreat. Picture: Otto Kitsinger/AP Images for Idaho Potato Commission
The sturdy 8.5m-long, 3.65m-wide structure is made of steel, plaster and concrete, and has been plonked in a field with views of the Owyhee Mountains in South Boise, Idaho — a state famous for its potatoes.
The property sleeps two, with one queen bed, and there’s a small bathroom, a kitchenette, a fireplace and airconditioning.
The giant potato was created by the Idaho Potato Commission to promote the vegetable and it toured the US for six years on the back of a truck before ending up with tiny house builder Kristie Wolfe.
The Big Potato, Robertson in all its glory. Picture: Nicholas Eagar
That’s one well travelled spud.
But at about 10m-long and 4m-wide, the Robertson one, built in 1977, itself listed for sale in 2017, seems the bigger of the two.
This article from the Herald Sun originally appeared as “Big Idaho Potato Hotel lets you sleep inside a giant potato”.
