20 of America’s Wackiest Houses and the Tours You Can Take
Most homes are built with a blueprint and a plan. But across the country, some people have decided to build houses that follow nothing but their own imagination. The results are hard to ignore. Designs vary from giant roadside sculptures to houses shaped like UFOs. Find out which of these one-of-a-kind houses is worth taking a closer look at.
Thunderbird Lodge – Lake Tahoe, California
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Thunderbird Lodge, built in the 1930s by millionaire George Whittell Jr., features hidden tunnels, a poker card house, and an elephant barn for his pet Mingo. Today, the lodge is a National Historic Site. Visitors can join guided land and boat tours to see the hand-cut granite walls and those hidden passageways that once hosted private parties.
Casa Neverlandia – Austin, Texas
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Casa Neverlandia started as a small 1906 house, but artist James Talbot turned it into a three-story playground. Guests can slide down fire poles, climb into bamboo lofts, and talk through whisperphone tubes while checking out mosaics made from stones he gathered around the world. Talbot doesn’t use air conditioning in the house, and there are many eco-friendly features.
Randyland – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
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In 1995, artist Randy Gilson bought a run-down house in Pittsburgh on a credit card for just $10,000 and turned it into Randyland. Today, the free outdoor space bursts with bright murals and recycled treasures.
Winchester Mystery House – San Jose, California
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In 1886, Sarah Winchester began creating the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose. She kept builders busy for decades by adding 160 rooms filled with stairways to nowhere, doors that open into walls, and strange windows, until work finally ended with her death in 1922.
Gillette Castle – East Haddam, Connecticut
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When an actor who played Sherlock Holmes designs his own house, you can expect trickery. Back in 1914, actor William Gillette began building a 24-room stone castle overlooking the Connecticut River. He filled it with secret doors, clever locks, spying mirrors, and cozy cat nooks. After he passed away, Connecticut turned his playful hideout into today’s Gillette Castle State Park.
The Paper House – Rockport, Massachusetts
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Elis Stenman built a summer house almost entirely from newspaper, about 100,000 sheets glued with flour and water. Even the furniture is paper-made. There’s no indoor bathroom, yet this quirky home still stands strong and greets curious visitors every spring through fall.
Munster Mansion – Waxahachie, Texas
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Charles and Sandra McKee recreated the Munsters’ TV home without blueprints while relying on frame-by-frame footage. Inside, visitors find cobwebbed parlors, a coffin-shaped phone booth, Lily’s harp, and Herman’s trapdoor staircase during guided tours and playful murder-mystery dinners.
Grey Towers – Milford, Pennsylvania
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After being built by the Pinchot family in 1886, this French château became home to Gifford Pinchot, America’s first Chief of the Forest Service. His wife, Cornelia, added a moat and the playful “Finger Bowl,” where food floated across water. Visitors now explore the 1886 château and its forest-themed exhibits.
The Roxy Suite—New York, New York
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The Roxy Suite was built in 1936 for showman Samuel “Roxy” Rothafel. It is a two-story Art Deco apartment with 20-foot ceilings, gold walls, custom furniture, and murals by Russian artist Nicholas Soyer. Roxy hosted Hollywood stars here, and now it’s a VIP lounge with limited public tours.
Castello di Amorosa – Calistoga, California
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This 121,000-square-foot Tuscan-style castle was built in the early 2000s by winemaker Dario Sattui, who spent over a decade sourcing antique bricks and centuries-old ironwork from Europe. The property also flaunts hand-chiseled stone. It’s complete with towers, courtyards, a moat, and a drawbridge.
Alden B. Dow Home & Studio – Midland, Michigan
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This home and studio was designed in 1941 by Alden B. Dow, a protégé of Frank Lloyd Wright, and reflects his philosophy of combining architecture with nature. The mid-century design features copper roofs and interiors that open to ponds and gardens. Dow pioneered “unit block” construction and bold geometric siding by using interlocking blocks to create flowing walls and sunken living spaces that sit at eye level with the water.
Earthship Biotecture – Taos, New Mexico
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Earthship Biotecture, near Taos, New Mexico, is a community of over 70 off-grid homes designed by architect Michael Reynolds since the 1970s. Each house is built with earth-filled tires, bottles, and cans, recycles water, and runs on solar and wind power. Visitors can join daily self-guided or guided tours.
The Glass House – New Canaan, Connecticut
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Philip Johnson stripped a house to its essence with glass walls and an open plan. It feels like you’re floating in a frame when you stand inside. The property also features art galleries scattered throughout. This is in line with the architect’s idea of home as a place to relax.
House on the Rock – Spring Green, Wisconsin
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This sprawling attraction is known for its surreal design and endless displays. The famous Infinity Room juts out into open air, automated orchestras play eerie mechanical music, and themed halls seem to go on forever. The Ultimate Tour can feel overwhelming, but it leaves visitors with an experience they won’t forget.
Glensheen Mansion – Duluth, Minnesota
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On the shore of Lake Superior, Glensheen Mansion was built in 1908 for mining heiress Clara Congdon. Inside, 39 rooms still hold the family’s original furniture, artwork, and even clothes. Visitors love exploring its grand halls while hearing stories about the shocking 1977 murders.
San Sylmar/Nethercutt Museum – Sylmar, California
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San Sylmar used to be a private tower with a rotating bedroom, but now it’s part of the Nethercutt Museum. Free tours make the strange dream available to everyone. People come for the old cars and music machines, but they stay to witness a home so lavish that it looks like a showpiece.
The Breakers – Newport, Rhode Island
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The “summer cottage” of Cornelius Vanderbilt II looks like a European palace that has been transported to Rhode Island. It has marble, frescoes, and stunning views of the ocean. You can check out the excesses of the Gilded Age in their full glory, with rooms made to impress anyone who walked in.
Stan Hywet Hall – Akron, Ohio
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F.A. Seiberling, a founder of Goodyear, built a Tudor-Revival estate with 65 rooms and 23 fireplaces. The gardens are just as well thought out. During the summer and winter, guests can take tours or virtual visits to see how industrial wealth could be turned into an Old-World fantasy in the Midwest.
Hearst Castle – San Simeon, California
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On a hill along California’s Central Coast, Hearst Castle began rising in 1919 under newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst and architect Julia Morgan. The 165-room estate includes gardens, the Neptune Pool, and a vast art collection that visitors can explore today as a California State Park.
Winterthur – Winterthur, Delaware
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Once the estate of Henry Francis du Pont, Winterthur has art, history, and landscape design. The 175-room mansion houses nearly 90,000 pieces of American decorative art, while the surrounding 60-acre garden showcases his love of nature.