I could smell cedar even before I saw the cedarwood cabins as proof, which formed a horseshoe around an idyllic lawn littered with cornhole and a giant Connect 4 set. That’s how you’re greeted at Dawn Ranch, an 81-key resort in Guerneville, California, shaded by more than 100 towering redwoods: the sweet, spicy, amber-rich scent of cedarwood.

My room presented like an egg-shell white cottage from the outside, but really, it felt more like a tree house, cozied up against a pair of redwoods. I passed through the separate living room to flop onto the bed and take it in. To my right, white-paned windows framed my own personal forest with bright green branches flopping lazily in the breeze. To my left, a seafoam green–tiled backsplash encircled the double-sided fireplace.