About Our Ownership “The Gitxaała Nation, through Gitxaała Enterprises, are proud to be the owners of The Crest Hotel. With the Crest situated in the Prince Rupert Harbour, one of the traditional places of the Gitxaała people, we are proud to be the new owners of such a beautiful establishment.

In conceiving a name for his first hotel, untrained architect Arthur Heineman of Chicago, abbreviated “motor hotel” to “mo-tel” after realising he couldn't fit all 19 letters of “Milestone Motor Hotel” on his rooftop sign. A postcard from the 1940s.

Motels are a kind of hotel. The word motel (from a blend of motor and hotel) typically implies a roadside hotel in which the doors of the rooms can be entered from outside. In contrast, hotel rooms are typically entered from inside the building. Motels are often less expensive and have fewer accommodations than hotels.

Two California contractors, William Becker and Paul Greene, saw a need for an economy motel on the California coast. They opened a 52-room motel in Santa Barbara, offering a good night's sleep for the low, low price of just $6 per night (cash only). Fittingly, they decided to name it Motel 6. An American icon is born.