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Why stay in a ho-hum old mansion or dull former convent when you can lay yourself down in what was once a Turkish prison or a shoe factory? Thankfully, these eight hotels are far more luxurious than they were in their previous incarnations.
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Liberty HotelBoston
The former jail, which dates to 1851, now has a 90-foot-high lobby ceiling, a restaurant named Clink, and 18 guest rooms (and another 280 in an adjacent glass tower). Hipsters congregate at the former drunk tank, now the Alibi Bar, complete with brick cellblocks, metal bars, and mug shots of celebrity arrests. Crave alone time? Just use the door hanger dubbed "solitary." Doubles start at $295.
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La PurificadoraPuebla, Mexico
An abandoned water-purification plant from 1884 reopened in 2007 as a boutique hotel from Mexico's Habita Group. Architect Ricardo Legorreta kept stone aqueducts, deteriorating walls, and vaulted ceilings. The rooftop bar and glass-walled pool draw an affluent young set, and the 26 guest rooms feature flat-screen TVs, Bang & Olufsen phones, and iPod-ready clock radios. Doubles from $155.
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Sassi di Matera Albergo DiffusoMatera, Italy
Cave dwellings that housed shepherds and their livestock for more than 2,000 years have been turned into an 18-room inn furnished with stone bathtubs, wooden armoires, sinks converted from troughs, and traditional wrought-iron beds made by local craftsmen. The hotel, on the ankle of Italy's boot, opened in 2008. Doubles from $370.
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Four Seasons Istanbul at SultanahmetIstanbul
Turkish prisons are known for the exact opposite of hospitality, but this one was transformed into a 65-room hotel decorated with Turkish sofas, antique rugs, Ottoman tapestries, paintings, and mosaic artworks. Suites have marble baths, mosque-inspired headboards and bedposts, and 42-inch plasma televisions. Doubles start at $585.
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MalmaisonGlasgow, Scotland
In 1994, the Malmaison chain reopened this 19th-century Greek Orthodox church as a chic boutique hotel. The 80 guest rooms have jewel-toned furnishings; some are split-levels with skylights. A brasserie in the former crypt serves up locally sourced fare like wild salmon and heather-fed venison. Doubles from $295.
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Craddock Terry HotelLynchburg, Virginia
It's hard not to imagine Carrie Bradshaw staying in this former shoe factory, now a 44-room hotel that opened in 2007. A high-heeled red pump adorns the facade, shoe artwork by a local artist decorates guest-room doors, and wine-and-cheese hour takes place in a lobby filled by examples of early 20th-century footwear made by the Craddock Shoe Corporation. Doubles start at $199.
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International HouseNew Orleans
A former World Trade Center in a white 1906 Beaux-Arts building was reborn 10 years ago as a 117-room hotel by L.M. Pagano, who has designed homes for Nicolas Cage and Johnny Depp. Guest rooms feature duvets, walls of windows, CD players, and black-and-white photos of New Orleans musicians. The candlelit lounge, Loa, is a nod to the city's voodoo culture. Doubles from $159.
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EdgefieldTroutdale, Oregon
The indigent raised pigs, poultry, and produce at the Multnomah County "poor farm," until the late 1950s. Now it's a resort compound with a hippie vibe. Sprawling over 38 acres, Edgefield has a microbrewery, winery, distillery, movie theater, glass-blowing and pottery studios, golf course, four pubs, two restaurants, and 103 guest rooms without TV or telephone. Doubles from $55.
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