Katie M.
Yelp
This was a review that I started a couple of years ago and finally got around to finishing. So please call them to make sure that this is accurate!
The four stars are all for the beautiful grounds and the large suites. And when I say beautiful, I mean stunning. There are Birch trees everywhere and we were there for the leaves falling.
It was totally magical. But given the many inconveniences, this place is just not worth the money unless you are going there to ski in the winter when I suspect the experience and service is much better.
First, the rooms are HOT. Knowing that late October brings nighttime weather in the 30's, we were prepared with footie pj's for our toddler. Well that was a mistake! During the day, the rooms cook with the sun. We actually had to move our little guy's crib into the master bedroom during nap time because the other rooms were in the 80-90 degree range. And the temperatures only went down after 6 when the sun was down. So forget about any nice tea time and reading in your suite to enjoy the fall colors! You must close all the shades and avoid the patio or you literally will be sunburned. And even with everything closed up, it is HOT. The curtains aren't blackout so the mountain sun turns the room into an oven. Oh, and since you'll be forced to have all of your windows open from the heat, you'll want to know that they use noisy and stinky mowers and leaf blowers right outside! So get ready to breathe in lots of gasoline fumes!! For the astronomical cost of this place, they really need to consider air conditioning.
Second, the 'breakfast buffet' is not an everyday occurrence. They only offer it if they are full (which means only on some weekends or in the winter.) Although they told me they had it daily and happily took my money ahead of time to pre-pay for it! One of the criteria that we look for while traveling is some sort of a breakfast buffet, even if it is just continental style with toast, fruit, cereal, coffee and muffins. And we don't mind paying! When traveling with a toddler, breakfast is often the only good meal they get all day. We chose this hotel because they had the buffet option. We paid $24 per person, per day. Well, during our week long stay, they only had the buffet twice. When we complained, they told us to 'choose anything' from the restaurant menu. Those of you who have toddlers know that this is really hit and miss! You order eggs, and your kiddo decides they want pancakes. Which is why a buffet is ideal. little bits of fruit, one pancake, one egg and the toddler can pick and choose and ends up having a solid meal. And even ordering from the menu, many items were unavailable! When we asked to get the continental breakfast (assortment of pastries, muffins, etc) the waiter told us not to order it, they were out of most of the items and the leftovers were 'nothing to write home about' and 'came in plastic'. And although most of the staff was very friendly, there was one waiter who was so rude to us! When I expressed confusion about the lack of staff in the dining area (and that they seemed so dismayed that we were there!) I asked if perhaps we had come to breakfast too early and had gotten the time wrong? Well he actually told us that we were there in the wrong season!
Well it was too late to change our plans so we dealt with it. As I'm writing this, it's our last day here. It's 3:30pm and I am sweating with the heat in the room. Oh how I wish we had stayed at elsewhere!