We’ve been waiting for you since 1903.
Historic living in the Highlands region of New Jersey.
Idylease offers monthly rooms within a historic resident hotel and locally designated landmark in the Highland Region of New Jersey.
Private rooms, kitchen facilities, internet access, maintained common areas, a dining room, public rooms, and a restored entrance hall support daily life inside the original Resort Hotel.
Opened on New Year’s Day, 1903, Idylease was built for country ease and rest. Its broad verandas, oversized leaded-glass windows, hilltop setting, and resort-era scale still define the experience of the house today.
Thomas Edison was among the names recorded in the Idylease register. More than a century later, the building remains in use under active stewardship — not as a museum, but as a place still lived in, still cared for, and still receiving people.
There were forty-five stars on the American flag. Theodore Roosevelt was President. Before the year was out, Orville Wright would take flight at Kitty Hawk.
More than a century later, Idylease remains — one of the region’s rare surviving examples of early twentieth-century resort architecture, and a historic landmark still welcoming guests today.
Explore the Photographic ArchiveIdylease offers a rare form of historic living in the Highlands Region of New Jersey — a restored 1903 guest hotel set within a 98-acre estate and tree farm, where old-world character, shared spaces, and daily life continue under one roof.
More than a century later, the house remains active, cared for, and lived in — preserving a piece of history while continuing the tradition of gracious hotel living in a setting defined by land, quiet, and continuity.
The rooms at Idylease are an expression of the house itself — no two alike, each shaped by period furnishings, designer bedding, original woodwork, oversized windows, warm light, and a distinctive connection to the shared life of a restored 1903 guest house.
Original Plaster Detailing
Modern Plumbing Fixtures
Authentic Period Decor
New Upholsteries
Three short films drawn from Idylease — its estate, its grounds, its ephemera, and a past that continues to carry the landmark hotel’s story forward.
The lobby stairs, the leaded glass windows, the artwork and all the fine details carry the feeling of arrival. This is where a landmark becomes living history.
Croquet, the expansive veranda, the rocking chairs, the gardens, and activities centered around the Great Lawn at Idylease.
Period lighting, original hardware, and modern plumbing fixtures have been restored rather than replaced. These details are authentic and not newly fabricated; the building carries its history forward.
Restoration notes, historical research, photographs, and fragments from the continuing life of the house.
Preservation is not simply about saving old buildings. At its best, it allows the past to remain in conversation with the present. Architecture is one of the clearest expressions of history and place.
Idylease Inn, a turn-of-the-century health resort that counted inventor Thomas Edison among its famous guests, may soon make its bid for listing on the National Register of Historic Places.
Idylease stands as the only surviving resort facility from Northwest New Jersey’s turn-of-the-century tourism boom. It was designated as West Milford's first local historic landmark in October of 1988.
Restore • Renew • Endure
Published by the Newfoundland Health Association in 1904
A contemporary account of Newfoundland and the surrounding section of West Milford.
Explore the Historic EditionBrown’s Inn and the railroad station below. Idylease on the crest of the hill.
Living at Idylease is participation in a historic estate, not simply occupancy within a historic building.
The Main Lobby, front porch, dining room and commercial kitchen have been faithfully restored and remain shared spaces for residents and Bed & Breakfast guests. Courtesy and mutual respect preserve the welcoming character of the house.
Beyond the main building, residents have access to a nearly one-hundred-acre estate that includes woodland, open ground and additional structures. The New Jersey Tree Farm, Idylease Helistop and the surrounding Pequannock Watershed are all part of understanding life here.
When you arriveRichard Zampella, Proprietor, personally welcomes new residents and guests and introduces them to the shared spaces, grounds and daily life of the estate.
It takes a particular appreciation to make a home within a piece of living history.
Richard Zampella, the son of Dr. Arthur Zampella, carries his work forward in a different form, through film at Transmultimedia Entertainment, and through the preservation of place.
As an American film and television producer, his documentaries have appeared on PBS, American Public Television and have been broadcast in the United Kingdom on PBS America and Sky TV.
Alongside his work in film, he remains connected to the land. As a conservationist, he manages Idylease Tree Farm, continuing a practice established by his father, who was recognized as Outstanding Tree Farmer of the Year in 1991. He maintains an FAA airfield license where he manages Idylease Helistop. As a preservationist, he maintains the care of Idylease, which is eligible for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places.
In the end, the work always returns to the ground.
