Far View Lodge

The Far View lodge is dated and rustic. They are experiencing a mice infestation issue causing many of the buildings to be under mitigation. Our first room smelled like something died. The staff were very accommodating and able to move us to another room. The rooms are not serviced. Set your expectations low for the rooms but the location within the park can’t be beat. The lounge was a good dinner option but wait times can be long for service.

We loved our stay at Fairview lodge and would return in the future. The rooms were spacious and very clean, and the view was beautiful, great for stargazing. The food was amazing! The staff were very friendly and accommodating. The price of everything was very reasonable. If you need a place to stay or would like to visit this is the place to go!

On December 5th, 2024 I reserved a Deluxe Kiva View with 2 queen beds since there would be 4 of us, two adults and two children ages 14 and 12, traveling from Chicago. I received a couple of "looking forward to your stay" emails prior to arriving. I arrived and was told I could not have my reserved room, some rooms had failed a park service inspection in April. I had never received any indication my room would not be available nor that there were issues with rooms at the lodge. I was told I could have a room with two double beds if I wanted. Since we were booked on the "700 Year Tour" early the next morning, I agreed, but did ask for a refund of the difference in room price, WHICH I HAVE NOT RECEIVED.||The room looked as if it were hastily repaired. There was new drywall unfinished under the sink and spray foam insulation in all sort of joints and cracks of the walls, baseboards and floors. There were many insects in the room which we set about to remove before settling in. At dinner in the lodge, we learned that more that 60% of the rooms were not habitable due to the park service inspection. After turning in looking forward to our tour, around midnight some mice were heard and when we turned on the lights at least two mice were running the floor. I called the front desk which said the best they could do was to move us to the only vacant room left in the park which was the same type as our previous room. We packed up, being careful not to bring any mice or other insect with us, went to the front desk and moved to our new room.||Because of the late night move, we missed the 8:00AM start of the "700 Year Tour". Not wanting to stay and risk more middle of the night unpleasantries, I went to the front desk and asked to check out and have a refund of my second nights room payment. The front desk people said that was no problem, they seemingly have had this happen before. But I have YET TO RECEIVE MY REFUND FOR MY SECOND NIGHT.||Overall, Mesa Verde is a wonderful park which I have visited several times. Overall, Far View Lodge was a horrible failure and should not even be considered anything other than a cheap budget motel, albeit with a high price tag at this time until they can professionally bring the lodge up to it's former self.

I was surprised to see so many bad reviews after staying here over Memorial Day weekend. We had a great experience. The room is small but perfect for what we needed. The location cannot be beat. We had hot water and all the basic amenities (clean towels, soap, lotion, etc.) and the fact it is dog friendly is great! The little patio was cute and offered nice views. And the restaurant in the main lodge (Metate) was excellent!!! Great quality food and service. We loved every bite of our meal.

Some of the lower reviews had me anxious ..but I've luckily had a perfect experience. Checked in no problem at 1:30. Details about dining and which restaurant needed reservations were explained. All cabins in moments walk to food/water/snacks/souvenirs. Views are stunning. 10 minute drive to Park Point for sunset. Room simple and clean. Private balcony. No TV but I think that's great. Free WiFi signal great in room. Phone wifi calling worked. The walls are thin so plan accordingly. I have white noise app on phone. 10/10 recommend

It’s good enough for a night or two. The rooms are scattered around in different motel style buildings, but half of these buildings have been condemned because they are deemed structurally unsafe. There are two room types, “Kiva” and “Kiva Deluxe View,” but all of the “deluxe view” rooms are in the condemned buildings, so do not try to book one of these rooms even if Aramark tells you it’s available. There is a huge disconnect between the property’s room inventory and the reservations department. The problem is that Aramark is still accepting reservations for the “deluxe view” rooms, and the reservations department has no idea that these buildings are out of service and condemned. As a result, guests arrive to suddenly learn that their reservation has either been canceled without notice, or, like me, arrive to be told you’ve been downgraded to a regular room, despite my multiple pre-arrival calls to re-confirm and assured that I was confirmed in a “deluxe view room.” The regular room was ok enough with a balcony and a pleasant view. But, there are mice in the room (so leave all hiking snacks in the car) and the window blinds are all broken, and management doesn’t care. When I told the front desk that there was a mouse in the room, the agent asked “oh, how big was it?” The big question is: how can a huge company like Aramark fail to maintain these buildings, and run them into such a state of disrepair, that they become structurally unsafe and condemned? And, how can Aramark continue to accept reservations for these rooms? Aramark should lose this contract and that GM should lose his job. But, it is the only option located in the park, and the closest other hotel is 45 minutes away. Cortez may be “10 minutes” away, but that is from the entrance gate, and all of the “main attractions” in this park are a good 35 minutes drive down from the entrance gate. So, this lodge is good enough for one or two nights for the location alone, just read the reviews and understand what you’re getting into. And, the restaurant on-site is quite nice with a rooftop lounge and million dollar views.

We read a few harsh reviews from recent visitors, and we were skeptical. However, our stay was really nice. We had a Kiva Deluxe room, which was bright, clean, and spacious. And did I say clean ? Yes. Sinks, floor, and bathroom. Now, if you're unrealistic and snobby, maybe the few spider webs would cause you to freak,but you're in the mountains people, expect a few bugs. They're harmless anyway.

This was an amazing place to stay, right in the Mesa Verde National Park! The rooms are beautiful and comfortable. I loved the views and sitting on the balcony in the evening was priceless! Definitely plan on having dinner there because the food and drinks are amazing!

We stayed at the Lodge while we visited Mesa Verde. If you eat at the Lodge DEFINITELY eat the Honey Hot Chicken. Sooo good. Had the Prickly Pear Margarita and for dessert the Cheese Cake with Chocolate Drizzle and the Chocolate Torte. It was all top notch. Sit on the patio for the best view.

Came for happy hour and met the brewer for Mancos Brewery. The beer was great, as was the brewer sharing his history and stories! Wonderful views and simple all American menu. Why two stars? Way understaffed they need another two servers, the poor waitress was so overwhelmed feel bad for her. So happy we are before we came, can't imagine the wait. FWIW the bartender was great

We absolutely loved our room. It was a little small but it was cozy. The patio off our room was wonderful for morning coffee. And the shower had the best water pressure! I had heard the walls were thin but we didn't hear anyone. Great place to stay inside the park!

Location and convenience are why you stay and eat here. Otherwise it is a 45 minute drive from town. Not worth it. Do yourself a favor, stay and eat here. The accommodations are comfortable, not luxurious. We had a nice view, comfortable bed and it was quiet, most peaceful. Watching the sun rise over the mountains made for a perfect morning. The rooms could use some updating. The lodge restaurant was convenient. Reservations required. The food is acceptable. Menu as you might expect, burgers, flatbreads, salads, meat. The service is lacking. I expect all national parks, late in the season have these staffing problems.

On December 5th, 2024 I reserved, and prepaid, a Deluxe Kiva View with 2 queen beds since there would be 4 of us, two adults and two children ages 14 and 12, traveling from Chicago. I received a couple of "looking forward to your stay" emails prior to arriving. I arrived and was told I could not have my reserved room, some rooms had failed a park service inspection in April. I had never received any indication my room would not be available nor that there were issues with rooms at the lodge. I was told I could have a room with two double beds if I wanted. Since we were booked on the "700 Year Tour" early the next morning, I agreed, but did ask for a refund of the difference in room price, WHICH I HAVE NOT RECEIVED. The room looked as if it were hastily repaired. There was new drywall unfinished under the sink and spray foam insulation in all sort of joints and cracks of the walls, baseboards and floors. There were many insects in the room which we set about to remove before settling in. At dinner in the lodge, we learned that more that 60% of the rooms were not habitable due to the park service inspection. After turning in looking forward to our tour, around midnight some mice were heard and when we turned on the lights at least two mice were running the floor. I called the front desk which said the best they could do was to move us to the only vacant room left in the park which was the same type as our previous room. We packed up, being careful not to bring any mice or other insect with us, went to the front desk and moved to our new room. Because of the late night move, we missed the 8:00AM start of the "700 Year Tour". Not wanting to stay and risk more middle of the night unpleasantries, I went to the front desk and asked to check out and have a refund of my second nights room payment. The front desk people said that was no problem, they seemingly have had this happen before. But I have YET TO RECEIVE MY REFUND FOR MY SECOND NIGHT. Overall, Mesa Verde is a wonderful park which I have visited several times. Overall, Far View Lodge was a horrible failure and should not even be considered anything other than a cheap budget motel, albeit with a high price tag. Aramark, the concessionaire who runs and maintains the lodge, has really not put forth any effort to keep the lodge up to even a minimal standard.

This place is well worth it if you're visiting Mesa Verde. Gorgeous views from our room, friendly staff, and you don't have to make the long drive into the park each day because you're already close to it all. Room was nice and clean. Balcony was amazing! Ate twice at the Far View Lounge and the service was truly exceptional. Food was good (even if understandably limited). We stayed two nights and also did the 700 years tour which I highly recommend.

Went to the Far View Lounge for dinner to watch NBA finals, as the website mentions a sports bar like atmosphere and a TV to watch sports. The staff didn't even know they owned a tv there, and told us we couldn't use it because it wasn't plugged in and they didn't know if it even worked. Food was overpriced and lackluster, and we really only wanted to eat there so we could also watch the game.

We unfortunately couldn't stay here, after the long drive up the mountain we arrived and had to wait an hour for our room to be "cleaned" and ready. When we finally got into the rooms, we were disappointed to find mouse droppings, dust and hair all over the floor, hair in beds, and missing blankets in one of the room. Thankfully they refunded us for the rooms but I wouldn't recommend staying here.

I stayed two nights on 5/13/2025. Upon arrival I was notified that my two queen bed room was no longer available due to maintenance issues. I was given a two double bedroom instead. The room was subpar including the following: old bed with one of the beds off the frame, window had a crack in the glass, the furniture was old and all scratched up, the towels were dingy and one was shredded on all ends, the shower smelled like mold and so did the air conditioner, there was a crack in the ceiling. The four light vanity mirror had one working bulb, the soap dispenser in shower was out of soap and the door guard at bottom of the room door fell off when we opened the door. Overall the room looked like a cheap motel at best. Walking around the property, I saw an entire building of about 15 to 20 rooms with the water heaters out in front of the building as well as Asbestos do not enter warning signs on the door. The place should be shut down until the facilities are renovated.

Got a call less than 3 days before check in saying room wasn't available and reservation was cancelled due to maintenance issues/construction delays/government funding. They had my deposit for 9 1/2 months. They didn't know these issues til 2.5 days prior. No alternate accommodations offered.

Sad place not well maintained by Aramark concessionaire. Poorly trained staff, aging facilities, and bare-bones amenities. Stay outside the park if you can.

Nast is the word, picture is worth thousand words! Stay in Durango have your tour guide pick you up there.We were told we had to give 72 hours to cancel our reservation. Yes, mouse droppings can carry Hantavirus, a family of viruses that can cause serious illness and death in people. The virus can also be found in rodent saliva and urine. When rodents disturb the virus, or when humans disturb it by sweeping or vacuuming, it can easily be released into the air in confined spaces. The most common way people become infected is by breathing in the virus. People can also become infected by touching their mouth or nose after handling contaminated materials, such as tools or clothing. In rare cases, a rodent's bite can also spread the virus.

I stayed there about 15 years ago, with my family, and it was great. It has seriously gone downhill (no pun intended). I was there with a travel group this September and many in the group had mice and spiders. The phones did not work. (I am talking landlines not cell phones.) The paint was peeling from the ceiling on my shower. There was something that looked like sunflower seeds in the toilet.

Epic incompetence don't stay here. Nothing but problems. We reserved a deluxe king room+view with $200 down payment. Long check in lines. They gave our room away. Gave us a 2x single room. Was not clean. Then over charged us by not deducting $200 Nothing but problems, incompetent staff. Awful. Don't stay here

The hotel's location to the Mesa Verde sights and the views of the surrounding landscapes are impeccable. The hotel's lounge and restaurant are quite good with a variety of options. More importantly, the Lodge's manager - Dana - went above and beyond mailing my laptop, at no cost, that I left in the hotel room. This is how you obtain positive recommendations, return trips, and great reviews. Excellent customer service and leadership even when it was my mistake.

Great accommodations inside the National Park. The walls were thin, but views were great. We loved the small porches off every room. We had beers and watched the sunset and then the far off thunder storms. Rooms have a rustic vibe- fairly small, but were adequate for our stay. The front desk was very helpful and also had national park maps (the visitor center was closed and the ranger station was out).

The view was amazing! The room was OK. The bed was very comfortable. The shower was almost too small to even operate inside it. We were very concerned about the balcony. The composite deck boards flexed, A LOT! They creaked and sounded like they could break any minute. We stayed on the sections that had the trusses underneath to be sure we didn't fall through the balcony. We really liked that they had coffee, sodas, and snacks available at the main lobby 24 hours a day. It's pretty typical at National Park lodging to not have a TV, but we completely forgot that they wouldn't have that here. No big deal, they have wifi. Yeah, well, the wifi is TERRIBLE and we couldn't do that, either. It was great for visiting the park and may be OK for a night or two, but we were there for 4 nights and that's just too long for this park.

The lodge is located in the park. They are real sticklers for 4 pm check in. We arrived at 3 pm and had to wait until 4 pm exactly. Several people were in the same predicament so there was a line forming. Rooms are nice and they do have a few which allow dogs. Room service does not exist. You have to take your own trash out which is located behind the registration office...extra towels and coffee is also by request at the registration desk. We had a 4 night stay and they only provided 2 bath towels and 4 kcups. They even ran out of coffee on our 3rd day. There is a small refrigerator no freezer and no microwave The restaurant food was good but reservations are required. Since we checked in so late the earliest reservation was 8 o clock. There is a first come first serve bar located upstairs from the restaurant which also serves food. This is the only lodging within the park except for the campground. Wi-Fi is inconsistent

The corporate managers of this hotel realize that they have no need to maintain the property...the location will always guarantee business. The buildings are old and shabby. Upon opening the front door, the screen in the large picture window blew into the room. Later, when I opened the window above the door the air out the room, I realized the whole window was just sitting loose in the frame. The room wasn't very clean. There was no toe kick under the sink, and when I retrieved my shoe from underneath there I saw a mass of crumpled tissues and dust bunnies. The outside light didn't work. The walls are thin, and the rooms are too small for two double beds and an armoire (you can't fully open the doors or drawers because they hit the bed) Their list of amenities include a "fitness center" and "library". Don't bother unless you need a laugh The positives: great views, the desk staff were attentive and friendly, the food in the Metate Room was good and reasonably priced given the location Aramark Corporation should step up their maintenance if not improve this once great property, but I doubt they will so long as the location keeps bringing customers

This place is situated in a beautiful surrounding and all the rooms have large windows with a balcony to showcase the beautiful scenery of Mesa Verde. 5stars for location. Amenities =1 star. We would have appreciated a microwave (There is no restaurant but the two at the hotel for many miles, perhaps an hour away. One has burgers and sandwiches while the other requires a reservation.) but the room did not even have a coffee maker. I don't care that it didn't have a TV since we had all that nature to enjoy but we had just come back from a long day of hike and sightseeing. We did enjoy an elk sighting during our walk around the premises. Room was very dusty. Was it because the area was part of the great outdoors or was the crew not so good about wiping down the room? The refillable shampoo and soap dispensers were empty.

After years of working and living at the National Park lodges for various concessions, I was excited to be on the other side. Poor was I let down. When checking in the girl, Kayla, I think, was on her phone. Fine, but there was no greeting or anything. She explain the area which was nice. Got to the room, it was clean expect for the toothpaste all over the facet and a few dust bunnies. Fine, it happens. When to the Lounge for Dinner. Everyone seemed rushed and overwhelmed. The food was over priced. The salad had enough lettuce for 3 salads while the blacken salmon and chicken taste was over bearing. Came back by the next night at 4:20, they open at 4 and had tables already seated with drinks. We just wanted a drink and some snacks. There was about 3 parties already there waiting at the hostess stand. at about 4:40 the bartender finally arrived and was rude and just wanting not to be there. I think the most disturbing issue was the fact that our chicken wings were RAW!!! Never happen to us before, anywhere! So gross!!! My friends son who is 12 got sick. The manager took them off our bill but still come on....... Back to the lodge/room. While I was drying off in the bathroom after a shower, the heat lamp exploded on me. My husband spent a minute or two picking glass over my body. We told the front desk. No urgency, no rush, no apologies just, we will tell maintenance. Went to breakfast, came back and it was still all over the place. Finally when we returned from enjoying the park, they had been by. They really didn't do a good job as glass kept appearing on our feet. there is no reason my friend who was visiting for the day needed to be on her hands on knees picking up glass for 15 mins because she was worried. The Spruce cafe was another story... I think our cashier was hungover and was SOOO rude basically yelling at us. On a positive note, the omelet cooks on Saturday morning were the best staff we encountered. Again, we know what its like. At checkout no one asked how are stay was and it was just like I am not going to tell what happen to someone to give me the evil stare and it go nowhere. Also be sure to buy all your souvenirs at the museum. They are not affiliated with Amarak and the money goes back into the park. Not to mention it is half price!! After over 250 reviews, this is the longest and worst I have ever had to write.

Stayed here for 1 night on 5/25/19 over the Memorial Day holiday weekend. Booked a Deluxe Kiva Room online months in advance. Positives: - Location, location, location! It's the only hotel in Mesa Verde National Park and the park is huge! Staying here, saves time from driving in and out of the park. - Clean room overall (with some negatives see below). - Deluxe Kiva Room includes a view that stretches for miles and miles with a balcony for you to enjoy the private, secluded, view. - NO TV. Great to just relax and enjoy the nature view from your balcony. - Star gazing at night. - Dining at Metate Restaurant downstairs. Negatives: - Upstairs foot steps, you can hear people walking around, moving things, etc. Try to get the top floor if you can (only 2 floors). - NO BODY WASH! All shampoo/conditioner/body wash is in a pump format hung on the shower wall. I was in the shower and thought the body wash was broken since nothing came out. Opened the case and saw the body wash was completely empty. Told my husband to call downstairs to bring us a bar of soap. He was put on hold for 20 mins (no speaker phone either so he was holding the phone the whole time!). I was standing in the shower for 20 mins while this was happening, told him to hang up and get a plastic cup and pump me hand wash soap from the outside sink. Showered with hand washing soap. Nobody ever picked up the phone either. Customer service? - Although the room appeared clean overall, I found hair in the shower walls. I found hair in various parts of the restroom floor. Bird poop was found on the balcony. - After a few pulls, ran out of Kleenex too. The maids must check for REFILLS in Kleenex and all amenities. Was I gonna call downstairs? Nope. Overall, ok stay for a state park. This is not a 5 star hotel but for 1 night while I enjoyed the park, this will do.

I would actively recommend not staying here, we had a double queen the room was to small to stand up our suitcase and walk. The bathroom was slightly bigger than two porta potties and ours had piles of black rubber? Droppings? On the shower and bathroom floor. We went for the view of which every room boasts of having i can not speak for every building but the four units on our building was completely obstructed by overgrown trees. We did get a view from the restaurant where it took almost two hours to get our food the chicken tenders were still partially frozen in the middle and the side of fries that they forgot was so long in coming we had received the bill before they showed up so we turned them away but still of course we're charged for them.

Really nice place, quiet and wonderful to stay at. There were way too many people for the poor restaurant staff but if you are willing to wait the food wasn't bad. Rooms are nice but definitely no cell service and Wi-Fi is really spotty but don't go their to work just enjoy the views!!!

The main thing you are paying for here is location. Other than campgrounds, there is only one lodging option within Mesa Verde NP, and this is it. Your next closest option is in Cortez, CO; that's 2000 feet and 20+ miles down the mesa. That being said, the rooms here are not bad. Nor are they really spacious. They can accommodate 2 - 4 people reasonably well. The showers are fairly compact, though. They have put some money and effort into some recent updates, from what I could tell (decking, etc.) and there are other areas that are lacking (you hear the wind whistling through gaps in doors; the lighting between the lodge and the cafeteria appear to have been vandalized extensively and not replaced; etc.). Also, the WiFi was fairly limited in the room (spotty); I had to go to the main lobby to get a reliable signal one afternoon. If you need to spend 2 nights here to fully experience the park, it is worth it just to avoid the drive.

Right off the bat, I'm giving this hotel 5 stars just for being in the park, simply because it's the only hotel in the park! Why is this important? Because it takes at least an hour to drive through the entire park, and probably the same for the way back. And who really wants to do that for their entire stay? Especially if you're trying to get up early the next morning for a tour like we did! The price per night cannot be beat. Of course I can't say that for every month, but hotels outside the park in July were $10 to $30 more! I'm also giving them 5 stars because they are mega eco friendly and I love that! The staff, although we only spoke to one front desk associate, was kind. I stayed in the hotel probably for a total of 10 hours. Maybe not even. But it was enough time to really enjoy the location, the atmosphere, the views, and the decently sized room. The room we had was a standard room and it was very clean and comfortable. The room featured a queen sized bed, a small round table with 2 chairs, a nightstand, a mini fridge, coffee maker and a dresser. The bathroom consisted of a standup shower, no tub. There is no a/c or TV in the room, but you get a wonderful breeze if you keep the windows open! There is also wifi. If you're looking for a little more luxury you can stay in the Kiva rooms. I think the only difference was a/c as far as amenities. Each hotel room had it's own entrance and balcony that overlooked the Mesa! Apparently you can see all surrounding states from the hotel too! So beautiful. No complaints! I highly recommend this lodge and I would of course stay here again and again!

The staff went above and beyond to return a lost item to me. We loved being out under the open sky to see the Milky Way at night, and to stay right in Mesa Verde Park is a real plus.

My daughter and I took a road trip to celebrate her birthday. It included a stop to Far View Lodge/Mesa Verde. I wanted to surprise her by having something set up in the room when we arrived. Being on a remote location and a National Park made it was almost impossible to do. The staff picked some wildflowers and put them in a vase. They found some balloons and included a hand written note telling my daughter to look in the refrigerator for the cake they included. Its sad that we are surprised by good customer service these days but this team went above and beyond with what little they had to work with. Also, when it was time for us to leave, we has a low tire pressure warning. Vivian got a generator for us, hooked it up and helped us get going. Vivian was not the only staff member who was amazing. The rest of the front desk staff made sure not to give the birthday surprise away when we checked in. We met the chef and chatted a moment, he gave us great recommendations for dinner too. Great Job Far View. Don't lose those staff members, you've got GEMS!!!!!!

If this place was 75 bucks a night, I might give it 3 stars. But it isn't, it's over TWICE that per night, and that is laughable! The room is small, the bed was at least 30 years old and sagged 6 inches in the middle, and the sheets...well let's just say they came with the park when it opened in the 1930's. The food is pretty good, outrageously expensive but you're trapped there. But we paid 500 bucks for 3 nights, and it simply wasn't worth more than half that.

The lodge manager, Harrison, took great care of us. My best friend and I were on a road trip with her father, and we wanted to make this trip really special for him. He required a wheel chair and oxygen, so there were many needs on this trip. Harrison was able to help us in every way; from finding us batteries for medical equipment to pointing out the accessible areas of the park. In fact, all the employees at the Far View had wonderful customer service.

The good: it is right in the middle of an awesome National Park! The views are outstanding (payed extra for this and is worth it). The restaurant has really good food. The bad: the hotel is made up of multiple buildings that are old and dated. The rooms are super small. So small that we could not open dresser drawer because it hits the bed. The bathroom is a closet. The window was broken and the paint is chipped. Heads up. No hair dyer, iron or TV (which is fine but nice to know). Laundry services are no onsite but at a campground far away.

This lodge was rather disappointing. The cleanliness was not there. We were just in Grand Canyon and stayed in a cabin which was cleaner than this place. A huge armoire dominated the room and I couldn't open the doors to put clothing into it until we pushed the bed over to the other side. The hardwood looking fake floors tracked mud (it rained) and you can see it all over the floor. They need to put a shoe mat outside for that. The Shower is small and the toilet bowl looked like it needed to be scrubbed. The deck is so small, you can barely sit outside. The room was really hot and the AC would run a couple of minutes and then turn off. Then turn on again. I hardly got any sleep when the noise would kick up again. One trash can made it difficult to toss things. The lid on the coffee maker was warped and wouldn't close tightly. I left a note for the room attendant to clean the bowl and mouse droppings in the drawer in the sink area. Nothing was done when we returned to our room. No TV. We arrived in the late PM. The guy in registration wasn't polished (compared to staff at Crater Lake, Grand Canyon all managed by Xterra) and seemed robotic. Dining options are dismal. The restaurant was full until 8PM. So we went upstairs to the Lounge. Had to wait 30 mins and could only sit outdoors in the cold. Luckily, an indoor table opened up so we moved inside. The wait staff is pretty busy but by 8PM or after, the crowd thins out. I was surprised by the food. We shared a cracker crust flatbread with pork and greens on it. It was really good. Even better was the strawberry green salad. Hubby has a grilled cheese sandwich with meat. It was also tasty with crispy fries. The next day we dined downstairs at Roth's restaurant which had a view of the meadow there a young stag walked by. Food here was disappointing. The same flatbread I had upstairs didn't taste as good. My trout was not moist. However, the mashed potato was great. Hubby had the risotto and said it was OK.

Visit: Tuesday, June 19, 2018 This is pretty much the only lodging inside Mesa Verde other than the campground, so it's pretty much your only choice if you don't want to rough it. This is important, because spending the night in the park accomplishes two things: first, you save a bunch of time driving up and down the mesa; second, the mesa top is super-isolated, which means dark skies full of stars at night. That being said, it is a lodge inside a national park that is operated by Aramark, so don't expect anything fancy or even nice. Check-in at the main lodge was pretty straightforward. The first sign that the place is really aging is that the keys are the old-fashioned metal keys as opposed to keycards. There's plenty of parking in front of each individual building that rooms are located in, so you can park in front of your room like it's a motel. Front desk staff was helpful in suggesting places to go, as well as telling us how long it'd take to drive to each location we were interested in. The rooms are pretty spartan, and definitely showing their age. Air conditioning and heating both work, which is good, considering the variety of temperatures that you'll experience. There's no TV, which is stated on their website, so that's cool. Wifi is available in each room, and it was fast too, which was a pleasant surprise. The bedding and furniture all feel pretty old, but did the job. The mini-fridge worked well and came in handy. We wanted to make coffee with the coffeemaker in the morning, but the machine was not clean. Also, the ice bucket was filled with long-melted ice, which had turned into rancid water. Gross. We'd booked the basic room, but it still had a balcony with a (half-obstructed) view down the mesa. The bathroom was clean and everything worked. That's about the nicest thing about it. The problem was that several towels (both hand towels and bath towels) had the same greenish stain on them, which was not assuring. Check-out was also pretty easy. The main lodge had some coffee and fruit put out for departing guests, which was a nice touch, especially since we couldn't have coffee in the room. Something else I want to address here is the lounge in the main lodge, since it doesn't appear to have its own page. We tried to get dinner here, but that did not happen. It was pretty busy, but only had one bartender. On the other hand, there was a ton of servers and bussers running about the place. Seriously, the parade of people coming up from the downstairs kitchen seemed like they were unloading a clown car. That being said, people seemed to have to wait forever to get someone's attention, and we never ended up getting seated ourselves. Management clearly needs to do a better job delegating roles, and should probably come up with some better workflow processes. Taking all this into account, we still enjoyed our time here. We never expected five-star service. Still, there are some basics that every hotel or motel should be able to grasp. NPS should really invite some new bids for companies to manage its Mesa Verde properties. That might get Aramark to make the necessary changes here.

This is the only hotel in Mesa Verde, but it is very nice. We stayed here a few years ago in a standard room. This visit we upgraded to a deluxe room with two queens and a front row view. Amazing view, and the room was nice. Shower only, and no tv, but we weren't there to watch tv. We saw deer outside our room each evening. We had dinner in the lounge, since the dining room is pricey, but the lounge food was really good. For $12 I had a very goo5 blackened salmon BLT sandwich. Very tasty. My husband had a burger, and my son had cheese pizza. We didn't have alcohol, as we were a bit dehydrated from hiking, so our total bill came to about $30 before tip.

We were happy with our deluxe room with a view across the Mesa. Everything was updated and clean. Keep in mind this is a National Park so nothing is particularly fancy, but that's not what you're here for. There is no tv, which suited the purpose of being here - enjoying the quiet and beauty. There is WiFi. We ate at the Metate Restaurant twice. Both meals were good (we had trout, salmon, chicken and the Cobb salad). Soups were also good. Try the prickly pear margarita if only for the purple color! Service was great. We ate at the Terrace for breakfast and lunch one day; that was marginally good. Stick with anything not sitting under a heat lamp. The best thing we had there was the Greek salad - large, freshly made and delicious.

You can't beat the convenience in staying right in the center of the park. The room was clean and well-appointed -- though trying to squeeze two queens into a room designed for two doubles meant that getting into the armoire was a challenge and the air conditioner was blasting straight into my leg all night.. No TV, but a semi-private balcony to sit on and enjoy the thunderstorms in the distance. Stash a bottle of wine in the mini-fridge, and you're set. WiFi was weak and very unstable, but there's no mobile service there, so it's better than nothing.

I booked a deluxe view room months ago. We checked in and the first thing we saw upon walking in the room was a parking lot. Yes the parking lot is next to a Vista, but is not at all what was expected when paying the extra for a "deluxe" view. The website promises unobstructed views for miles and I am staring at a parking lot, a road 50 feet away and the building that I believe houses the actual deluxe view rooms. There was hair on the baseboards and corners of the room The shower was obviously not cleaned. Hair was on the walls and floor. The shampoo in the refillable caddy was empty. The phone did not work and the lady, who did not inform me about the phone not working before we checked in gave me a long lecture about how this is a historical park but never indicated that they should have told me. Went to far view terrace at 6:45 (close at 7) not a soul in sight. One plate of old looking spaghetti out.

The only thing going for this lodge was the location. We planned for a special getaway with a balcony room in Mesa Verde National Park. Upon arrival, the signage was a little confusing. "Registration" means that is where you go to check into your room. Once we got into our room, we wanted to check out that view. Unfortunately, the door lock was broken for the balcony door. It just spun and spun. Thankfully somehow after several attempts we managed to get it open. We walked onto the small balcony and the flooring is like a thin plastic material, making you feel uneasy like you might fall. Worse, the cigarette smoke from our neighbors was so strong, we could bot enjoy our balcony. We were too afraid to lock the door though, because we would never be able to get it back open. This left us on edge and feeling vulnerable. The optics of the room were lovely, but the functionality was severely lacking. The bathroom was tiny and the door handle had fallen off. The dispensers in the shower were cumbersome. No shelves or hooks. No counter space at the sink. No television, no microwave, no to spotty internet at best. There was a mini fridge and coffee maker though. The first night, our lodging neighbors parties loudly into the early hours of the morning. Both of us awoken in bed, I turned to my husband and said, "at least will be our first night not needing to wake up to an alarm!" Well, we were woken up to our neighbor's alarm at 5:30 AM that continued to blare through the thin wall for 15 minutes. It was so unpleasant and loud. We were very annoyed. Since our day was unexpectedly starting off early, we prepared a cooler for hiking in the national park, and went to grab some ice from the ice machine for it. There was zero ice. We thought maybe it was too early and we'll try again later. In the meantime, we went out on the balcony later in the morning and were greeting again to overwhelming cigarette smoke. I was angry and gook another walk to the ice machine. Still no ice and none being made. Others I passed on my walk back to my room were also disappointed by the lack of ice. We were not going to waste what precious vacation time we had left trying to seek management to try to figure out and police which balcony had the smokers and which were the partiers. We made the best out of our tired day in Mesa Verde and looked forward to our departure from Far View Lodge. Upon check out, we were not asked how our stay was, so we just got out of there. Instead of staying at the only lodge in the National Park, I would recommend staying outside of the Park and just taking a lovely drive in.

We stayed for three nights to visit Mesa Verde. The view off the balcony was great but the service was horrible. House keeping did not come one day. Just straight up did not clean our room at all. When I reported it, the front desk asked if we needed clean towels. That was it. No apology, no concern, to attempt to make up for the oversight. Wi-fi was so bad is to be non-functional. We arrived at the counter restaurant 15 minutes prior to posted closing time (7pm) and they were shutting everything down. When I asked why they were closing early, I was told, we always shut down early so the staff can leave. The National Park Service needs to get rid of this vendor for their in park services.

"Lodge" is a loose term. Our door wouldn't latch so we had to move rooms and it was definitely a downgrade which was frustrating. All the rooms have good views, but our also overlooked the entry road which had night round traffic. We ate at the more upscale restaurant where service was slow and food was average.

p3 1/2* The View Hotel Mesa Verde, CO Middle of the national park Reasonable prices, not worth daily commute from outlying cities (e.g., Cortez, Manco) Rooms with beautiful views of the canyon Room smelled awful; had to air it out No smoking policy No TV Rooms are on old side Friendly staff Metate restaurant was fantastic

Far View Lodge has one thing going for it & many things NOT going for it It is the *only* hotel within Mesa Verde National Park (unless you're camping) so you'll be staying here or driving 1 - 1.5 hrs to Cortez for your lodging & after a day filled w/ scaling cliffs to see dwellings, you're thankful to have something so close by This being said.... There are 2 kinds of rooms - 1 with a/c & 1 without. After paying an exorbitant fee for a room WITH a/c, one expects that a/c to actually work Well, it doesn't.....the reason? The unit is RIGHT UNDER a slatted window that won't shut all the way & is also missing some slats, so all the cool air goes right out the window. BRILLIANT! .....then the motor of the a/c unit burns itself out & stops all together b/c it can't climatize the room (duh!) - all equals a waste of electricity and a sweltering hot room Given it was hot as blue blazes there (95+ degrees), we had counted on a working a/c to welcome us back after hiking the mesa all day Instead we got thin walls w/ babies crying all night, no view as they had stuck us in the back of the complex & their free WiFi is only available in the main building Oh and you'll also want to be sure to bring a sleeping mask. There are no blackout curtains - only translucent blinds which let in ALL the moon & sunlight Were it not for the fact it was a 1-1.5 hr drive to get in & out of the Park area, we'd never have stayed here

Cannot believe the bad reviews focused around no TV, lack of cell service, etc. I don't know why these people are even visiting national parks. The views here are beautiful (even if your room doesn't have the best- just walk outside!), the rooms are cute, clean and well decorated. The prices are super reasonable as well. There is a mini fridge, but no microwave. There are a couple places to eat near by also. My family and I are very happy with this hotel! If you want faster wifi and cell service... go on a different vacation.

I really liked the lodge. The location and the view couldn't be beat. The rooms had been updated and the bed was very comfortable. I wish we'd stayed a second night. The night sky was amazing. We waited until later in the evening and took a quick walk outside. It was pitch dark and all you saw was a blanket of bright stars in the sky. The only issue we had was the incredibly rude service in the bar area. A sign said to "seat yourself". We attempted to and then got dressed down by the waiter who seemed overwhelmed. This was before Memorial Day so I imagine it's even busier now. We were put off by Duffy, but we stayed and thankfully someone else waited on us. The food was worth it. We had prickly pear wings and a goat cheese dip. Both were good and the drinks were mixed well.

The room was absolutely underwhelming. The heat all the way up (90°) still only blew like warm air at best. The water in the shower never got hot, there was a space heater left in the room, presumably because they knew the heat barely worked, but didn't help very much with 28° air hemorrhaging underneath the balcony door which had absolutely no weather stripping left on it. I had to use one of my two towels to place under the door to keep the air out. The walls were paper thin, and we could hear the couple next to us trash talking their new son-in-law, and after about an hour of that I have to agree that Jeff was not a good addition to the family. The only highlight was the food at Metate room.

We loved our night and morning at the Far View Lodge, and we wished that we had planned to stay here longer. Already we've planned to return and spend a few days so we can enjoy the ambiance longer. I've seen the reviews of others and we seem to have had very different experiences. Our "Kiva Room" with two double beds felt like a very nice cabin-like experience. The decor was new and very nice and appropriate for the theme. The beds were actually amazingly comfortable -- our favorite of all the places we stopped over a 1.5 week trip. All the linens were soft and clean. Our room came with AC (only Kiva rooms have AC), and we ran it just to circulate the air out. Otherwise it was already rather cool, even with it being late June. Absolutely every aspect of the room, including the back porch/balcony was clean and well kept. It's true that there's no TV and no cell phone service. Wifi is provided but it seemed spotty. Quite frankly, we didn't come here for such things as that. We came here to get away from all that and be closer to nature. So we were quite happy to have it not there at all. I read others complained about space. Again, we didn't come to sit in our rooms, and we felt it was spacious enough for the situation (with the exception on the bathroom, see below). I didn't feel crammed into the room at all. Yes, there's not much excess room to relax and hang out, but who wants to sit inside anyway. Least favorite aspect of this room: the bathroom. Someone needed to tighten down the wobbling toilet. And maybe relocate the TP dispenser to give a little more room to that area. That part of the room could have used some extra space. The shower stall is also quite small. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that it was all quite new and clean as well. Even though it was smaller, I was happy with the bathroom and it didn't affect my opinion of the experience. Favorite aspect of this room: the back porch area. And the view. We were up at dawn just for the fun of making coffee (provided with the room and quite good actually) and sitting out on the porch. We opened the back door completely and enjoyed all that fresh morning air. And then sat outside and watched the rabbits out eating their breakfast. Great memories. I included a photo of our view looking out the room onto the porch area. As you can see, while not large, it was spacious enough for the three of us to sit out there and enjoy the morning.

We stayed at the Far View Lodge for 2 nights and got a great room with Amazing views. The staff was very friendly, the rooms were clean, the 700 year tour was great, and the tour guide was very informative. I learned so much at this park and will be returning in the future with my son. Definitely recommend staying about 2 nights to get the full Experience of the beautiful Mesa Verde National Park.

The only lodging right in the Mesa Verde National Park and totally worth booking it for the sake of convenience; otherwise, you're spending a lot of time driving to/from to the nearest town's accommodations. It's called a lodge, but it's not really. There is a main building with a small lobby, small gift shop, and where one checks in. The staff was friendly and helpful. It also has two restaurants--the downstairs one is more formal (though not in how you dress) and the upstairs one is more pub-like with a full bar, a small menu, lots of windows for inside dining, or outside dining with a panoramic view. We ate upstairs (burgers and margaritas). As for the sleeping quarters, they look like small apartment complex buildings. Each room has a view with a small balcony, and its own parking space. We had two queen beds which was a little cramped, but do-able. There was a small fridge, decent enough bathroom. If we were to do it again, we'd stay here. We also bought the tour offered by the lodge. It was the Balcony House Tour as the Cliff Palace Tour doesn't restart for the year until Memorial Day weekend. The tour is on a very nice air-conditioned new bus. Our tour guide, Mark, was very informative and we learned a lot. We made a few stops after which he hooked us up with a park ranger who did a great job guiding us through the Balcony House. Climbing the ladder up to Balcony House is not for everyone, but if you want to do it, they are encouraging while making safety their priority.

We stayed here two nights. Perfect location while enjoying Mesa Verde National Park. We have stayed in many lodges in National Parks. This lodge is updated and clean for the most part. We enjoyed our balcony and the view. Unloading was super easy because we could back right up to the door. The AC unit stopped working, but luckily my husband was able to unplug and reset it, and then it was fine. The pillows seemed old and flat. This is why I gave it 4 stars.