Swiftcurrent Motor Inn

Location location location! After spending time at Fish Creek Campground and St. Mary's campground in Glacier National Park, we stayed at this National Park Hotel our final two nights in Glacier. After experiencing driving to trail heads daily the location to all the Many Glacier hikes in this area cannot be beat! If you still want to cook your own meals, you also have the option of using the picnic area directly across the street so that's not an issue. We enjoyed breakfast at their cafe, and the food served was definitely value for money and tasty! Vegan and vegetarian options available to set you up for a day of big hikes. Staff was very friendly. Giving the rooms a rating of 3/5 stars as the room did not have many outlets (after six days camping we had a lot to charge) and there was only Wifi in the lobby. After 3PM you could forget about trying to use the lobby wifi at all as it was too many people. Could not get a podcast to download. They also have free ice and paid laundry facilities on site which was an added bonus. Hot water and great water pressure in the shower as well. I would definitely add a stay here on to your trip if you are tent camping most days. It's a nice little treat!

We loved this place! The cabins are cozy and have a full bathroom and separate sink. They warm up quickly (temps in the 40-50’s while there) and include a box fan to help cover neighbor noises. They have a restaurant (good food and friendly staff), gift shop, and general store for supplies. And we saw a bear in the field beside the restaurant :)

Stayed for one night. We had a cabin with bathroom. Very comfortable. Good bed. Good shower. Comfortable. Quiet. Relaxed. Enjoyable stay. To get there you need to drive over a very rough track for approx 5 miles. First part of the road is good as well as the parkroad but I do not understand why the middle part is so very bad. Not a problem of the lodge as it is outside the park but good to know.

The room was average, but the value for money was decent. Timing is crucial if you want to use the public bathrooms, but the shower was better than I expected, though there was a bit of a smell since it was shared. What surprised me was the restaurant. Honestly, I loved the food there, but for some reason the restaurant’s ratings are relatively low on Google. I had the burger with avocado and chicken or beef several times, and it was one of the best burgers I’ve ever had.

This was our favorite lodging during our recent (late June) stay at Glacier (we also stayed at Rising Sun and Village Inn). We stayed two nights, and wish we'd had three since it's such a beautiful part of the park. The buildings are set among some aspen trees. We had a motel room with two beds and they were really comfortable. The room and bathroom were both clean, and had everything we needed, including a box fan. Staff was friendly and helpful. The only downside is that the doors are noisy when they close, unless you close them gently. Unfortunately, we had neighbors on one side who slammed their door each and every time they went in and out. Swiftcurrent is also near the Many Glacier hotel, and you can drive over there and sit in the lodge or outside and enjoy the view. The restaurant at Swiftcurrent was just adequate, which is about par for the course when dining at the national parks.

We are writing this review about the incredible 5 star service provided at this hotel. First if you are interested in seeing wildlife, this hotel is in a perfect location with many trails close by. The general store has a huge variety of snacks and souveniers at reasonable prices. While we did not stay at this hotel, we found the service provided by Kaitlyn and other staff to be absolutely amazing. We had spent several days looking to see wildlife and came up empty handed. We asked rangers, guides and locals. We understand that seeing wildlife is hit or miss. What was so remarkable about Kaitlyn is that she took out a map and gave us many locations to try. She was so pleasant and helpful about where to hike, where to eat etc that we were sorry we hadn't stayed at this hotel. To our delight after following Kaitlyn's valuable suggestions, we did safely see some memorable wildlife and went on several beautiful hikes. Even if you don't stay at this hotel, it's in an a picturesque location in Many Glaciers and well worth the drive.

I elected to stay in a cabin so I could be right by the Ptarmigan Tunnel/Iceberg Lake trailhead after sunrise for a 15-mile day hike. It was very comfortable and the small bed was comfy, I slept like a baby! Perfect for what I wanted to accomplish before a long, magnificent hike. This is for cabins not the Inn. Has a sink but no private bathroom/shower and WiFi doesn’t exist except at the visitor center so keep in mind before booking. I knew all that and didn’t care, it worked out great! You don’t need to be plugged in out here, get out and enjoy the magnificent scenery as Many Glacier imo is the most beautiful section of Glacier National Park. And there are plenty of trailheads close by, ranging from easy to difficult. Wildlife galore. It was definitely worth the money and was beautiful, quiet, and comfortable for me. Highly recommended.

Good food and fairly decent service for what it is. We’ve experienced similar rooms, food, and store managed by the same provider at the nation’s first national park and this experience was better. The rooms are spartan to say the least and the bed could be a lot better but we enjoyed the overnighter. Although they claim not to have public WiFi, it was good as long as you were inside the building.

We arrived very late when the desk was closed but security promptly pulled the keys and gave brief instruction to get to our reserved cabin. The cabin was clean and as expected. Nice to find a built in heater in the center of the dining area.

Had a reservation for a cute little cabin. Very cute! If you're not used to roughing it, I wouldn't recommend renting these cabins. It's summer and there is no air conditioning in the cabins. There is a fan and it did get down to the 40s during the evening, so it was very comfortable. Again, you're in a national park, so leave your "amenities" at home. You get free "limited" Wi-Fi in the lobby only, if you're a paid guest. Did I say "limited"? Take advantage and "disconnect" from your electronic world. The restaurant had some really good menu items. I chose the bison meatball sub (came with a side salad). Very tasty!! If you're looking for convenience, this place is the perfect location to get to the trails. You're RIGHT THERE! I would definitely stay here again, but longer next time.

Worst place we stayed on our road trip. I know this is in the park and that is why the prices are high, but really? The room had two beds in it but it was so tiny. We barely could move around. I know it's a historic motor inn but that made it very uncomfortable I suppose. The cabin we stayed in Grand Tetons was much more spacious at a similar price. These rooms are packed in together and because of the age of the building, it was noisy! This was by far the noisiest lodging of the entire trip. Every time somebody went in and out of the doors at either end of the building, they would slam shut. If they walked down the hall, their footsteps would almost literally shake the entire building. It's nice to be in the park, but if you want a good night sleep, this isn't the place. The sad thing is that it is by far the cheapest accommodations you can find anywhere near and around the park. If you stay here, try for a cabin not a motel room. Probably worth the extra price (unfortunately, those were not available when we booked our stay so book early if you want to stay somewhere comfortable). The restaurant on the other hand is pretty decent. Food is overpriced but it was good quality and they had good choices on the menu.

Location is excellent with many of the major hiking trails in the Many Glacier area right outside your door step. Prices are high, as are most things in the park, and you have to book stays longer than one night 10 or more months in advance. However, there are enough people canceling that if you want to stay in the park for one night, calling the night before might work. I stayed in a motor inn room, which has the bathrooms in the room. Standard 60's era motel room, although somewhat bigger than that era. Room included a table and some chairs which makes it handy to prepare meals for hiking or eat a take out dinner. Only a shower inside the room, no bathtub. Beds are twin size beds, not full or larger like in most hotels, so they feel a bit small. As an older property, there are not enough plugs for everything, and no air conditioning, but they have a powerful fan. They have an iron and a ironing board for some reason, though.

Many Glacier Campground, Glacier NP, Montana I'm only reviewing the restaurant. We ate dinner here twice and breakfast once. Each time everything was excellent. Bacon cheeseburgers with 2 sides, 4 of us ate here and had nearly every side. All except the corn dish were very good. The Mac & cheese and the watermelon salad were great Also, had a great breakfast. Excellent omelets. If you're staying at the campground you'll be in for a treat.

This was our first trip to Glacier National Park and we wanted a place that was reasonably priced and would be great for hiking. The people working at the inn were very nice and the restaurant was pretty good. I was quite impressed with this place. Had a great feel - I felt like I was camping - just more comfortably. I would definitely recommend this place! There are cabins, camping sites and hotel rooms. They also have a laundry which was nice after several days of hiking. The camp store is stocked well and has a nice assortment of gifts and groceries.

This part of the review is about the hotel only. At first glance, this place is way overpriced. However, I think one needs to take into account the location and the culture of the area. The area is very remote and very rustic which is its main selling point. Consequently, there are not going to be many amenities. If you're going to Glacier, you're not going to be staying in your hotel room much anyway. I stayed in one of the Pine Top rooms. It was small but adequate. I would not have wanted to share it with anyone else. We would have killed each other. If you're a hiker, this place is close to so many wonderful hiking trails just steps away. The views are incredible. The front desk staff were all really nice. The gift shop was really good too. Now, for the restaurant. I only have 3 words to say: Go somewhere else. It was average at best. The service was always slow even when they were not busy. The staff were indifferent and incompetent. The food never arrived hot. I strongly suspect it sat around in the kitchen for a long time before the wait staff figured out they should bring it to my table. I ordered a beverage every time I ate there and they forgot it every time. They always seemed to be out of something we wanted. The prices were way out of line for what you got (pretty bad service, food that was nothing special). I am so glad we decided to go out of the park and try some of the nearby restaurants. They were so much better and much more friendly. .

Stayed here 2 nights in June 2011 about 1 week after the park opened for the season. We stayed in the hotel portion rather than the cabins. Our rooms were very clean and comfortable and included a bath room and shower. It's cheaper than the Many Glacier Hotel but in a great location. In my opinion, I would have rather stayed in this hotel than in the Many Glacier Hotel. This hotel is not in one big building, it's more spread out with some cabins scattered throughout. We walked out of our hotel to find a deer right in front of our door eating, it was awesome!! There are quite a few trails that begin at this hotel...some easy, some hard but are well worth the hike....I can say that I have never seen scenery more beautiful anywhere else! There is a little restaurant for breakfast, lunch, dinner which is moderately priced, but not fancy. For a wider selection of dishes, I would go to the Many Glacier Hotel's restaurant. We purchased the sack lunch for $8 by the restaurant which was very good (sandwich, chips, apple, carrots, cookie). We plan to return to Glacier National Park and will be staying at this same hotel. I would recommend this hotel for the price and comforts.

I stayed here for three nights with friends on a recent trip to Glacier. Pros: --beautiful setting --convenient to many trailheads --rangers in the parking lot each evening with scopes set up to watch wildlife --decent general store Cons: --There was absolutely NO insulation between walls in the motel rooms. We could hear every word of the people's conversation next door. Fortunately, the rooms have box fans in them, so we cranked that up to help drown out the noise. --There was a bizarre lack of outlets in the room. There was one outlet in the bathroom. There must have been another one somewhere since there was a lamp in the room, but we could not find it (probably hidden behind a bed). This made charging phones and plugging in a laptop pretty challenging. --The restaurant was overpriced (as most park lodge restaurants are) and the food was mediocre at best. We ate there for dinner one night. Our food also took about 40 minutes to arrive at our table. I ordered a pizza, which was ok, but honestly seemed like a frozen pizza that had been heated up. I would highly recommend going to Babb or one of the other towns right outside the park to eat. I wouldn't rule out staying here again because the location was great, but I would try to get a cabin next time, not one of the motel rooms.

Only stayed here one night before camping but found the accommodations adequate. Clean and comfortable beds and an OK shower in the motel units (cabins use shared shower area). Don't expect anything deluxe here - these are basic accommodations to rest your weary muscles after a hard day hiking in the park. No phone or TV and no bath (shower only) and don't even think about internet access. The place would be extremely overpriced anywhere else, but it is the best deal in the park and in my opinion the nicest location. The restaurant is decent enough for breakfast and in the evening they serve basic Italian fare under fluorescent light ambiance. The red jammer buses stop at the front door and there are typically rangers in the parking lot in the morning and evening with spotting scopes pointing out bear and other wildlife grazing in the mountain above the hotel.

Bought lunch at store. Most disgusting sandwich ever. Bread appeared to have been dunked in water - gummy, nasty, inedible. Turkey mediocre. $6 in the trash can.

The Many Glacier area is in my opinion the best place in the park for hiking. The restaurant is just average but the seasonal employees are friendly. If you want to know about the best hikes and restaurants find a returning employee who has worked more then one season. They can tell you which hikes are the best and which are better depending on how early or late it is in the season.

First and foremost, there aren't many choices for lodging while traveling in Glacier National Park. We chose Swiftcurrent Inn because they had a room available and the reviews weren't terrible. That being said, this is why we enjoyed our stay and would probably stay again: 1. Cabins: I found the cabins/cottages to be quite charming and simple. I loved the retro bathroom (blue walls with black linoleum floor) decor and giggled at the size of the twin beds my husband and I slept in. I would strongly recommend bringing ear plugs. I'm a light sleeper and would not have slept so well if I didn't have them with me here. 2. Italian Restaurant: The food and food choices were many and surprisingly delicious. After days of hiking in the park, this was a great way to fill our bellies and get some much needed calories. 3. Activiites Close By: As we were parking our car, a crowd had gathered at one end of the lot with park rangers and spotting scopes. A mama grizzly with 3 cubs were up on one of the hills nearby grazing. Then on the opposite cliff, there were white Mountain goats grazing as well. There are several trails right next to this Inn which was nice.

August 2012 Motor inn review: Features rustic cabins (cold-water sinks, no toilets or showers; communal facilities nearby) and small, old-style motor inn-type rooms with tiny bathrooms. Nestled in the trees at the base of Mt. Henkel and offering an excellent opportunity to view bighorn sheep, mountain goats, and bears on the mountainside. On-site dining room, gift shop, and camp store. Direct access to a number of great hiking trails. A quieter alternative to the more bustling Many Glacier Hotel in the same highly scenic area of the park. The cabins at this location often are fully reserved more than a year in advance. If you're looking for luxury and modern amenities, this is not the place for you. The entire place is old and rustic. The rooms and beds are small, there's no AC, no in-room phones (and no cell phone service), no TV, and no internet. However, if what you seek is a simple, quiet retreat in one of the most beautiful areas of one of our most beautiful national parks, this is a great place. Restaurant review: Friendly sever totally botched my order and delivered a completely wrong pizza (I didn't notice until after I'd eaten half of it since I was so busy talking). The server apologized profusely and immediately brought the correct pizza, which means that my original order must have still been sitting in the kitchen. Both pizzas were bland and nearly tasteless, but I ate them because I was hungry. The three people I was with had equally bland meals. We also had a breakfast that wasn't anything to write home about. This restaurant is convenient when you don't feel like driving to Many Glacier Hotel, Babb, or St. Mary, but that's about it.

We did not stay overnight at the Inn but wish we had. We did eat breakfast several days in a row at the Inn's restaurant and it was fantastic, inexpensive (comparatively), great food, and best of the service was top notch. We stayed overnight at Many Glacier Hotel and St. Mary's KOA but ended up making this place our primary jumping off point for hikes and ranger lead talks. If I could do it all over again, I'd skip the KOA and get a cabin at Swiftcurrent instead.

Driving into the Swiftcurrent Valley, one first comes across the outstanding Many Glacier Hotel. I will admit to a tinge of jealousy when I saw that esteemed hotel located on Swiftcurrent Lake, where I could imagine myself eating dinner in the fancy dining room while (safely) watching bears scramble across mountainsides and moose wallow on the shoreline. Instead, I headed on down the road to our cabin at the Swiftcurrent Motor Inn which was pleasingly historical and charming. The cabin was spotless and the linens and decor were the most updated of all the places I stayed in the park. And I quickly came to appreciate Swiftcurrent for a lot of neat reasons. Rangers set up telescopes in the parking lot during the late afternoon and evening so you can spy on the mountain goats. The store sells huckleberry frozen yogurt and hiking socks with moose on them. I saw a big horn sheep stroll past our cabin one morning on the way to breakfast. Best of all, you can walk right out of your door and be on some of the best hiking trails in Glacier National Park within seconds. Considering that Glacier is the most awesome national park I have visited yet and that it is a hiker's paradise, plus that parking is sometimes tricky, that means A LOT. The only downside? Public bathrooms and showers. They do give you tokens and towels for the showers though.

Stayed here two nights, once in a cabin and once in a lodge room. We loved the cabin despite not having a bathroom. It was adorable and clean. The lodge was good also. The restaurant is terrible! Don't eat there! We had the world's worst waitress. Couldn't remember her name but she was a short brunette from Alaska. We waited 20 minutes for our drinks. When she brought them, she said she forgot all about her drinks. She had a terrible attitude. The food was horrible, my salad was rotten. Miss dingbat never brought the check, my husband had to go to the cash register to pay. Later that night I decided to wash laundry. Get to the laundry and the employee housing is directly across from it. All the staff youth (including miss dingbat) are outside having a party. This does not look good for the hotel as they were very loud. We will not stay again and instead will pay more to stay at Lake McDonald.

Stayed here for six days in a two bed room with bath. Room was tight for three adults and as previously stated by many, it is not the place to go for all the amenities. If your intention is to have a place to sleep between hikes and day trips on the east side this is the place. We hiked sixty miles in those six days, mostly walking right out the door to the trailhead or a short walk or drive to the Many Glacier Hotel or Grinnell Glacier trailhead. Fortunately we were in the first building right next to the store/office/restaurant which was very convenient. We would return from a hike, put our name on the waiting list for dinner, shower and return to a ready table or very short wait. They dont allow cooking in the rooms so it's the restaurant or a cold sandwich. We actually brought a jetboil and some packs of dehydrated meals and heated water outside the building, like camping but with beds and a bathroom. Our room would have been perfect for a couple, but as stated it was a bit small for three adults and all the gear. Our solution was to keep our necessities in the room and most of the other stuff in our suitcases in the car as there was no closet. We had some issues with housekeeping as well, minor miscommunications and hit or miss service. A couple of days the beds weren't made with no explanation (not aware of any personal items there - never heard that one before), and vacuuming was sporadic. Front desk staff was pleasant and helpful and the waiters at the restaurant were personable. Getting ice did require going to the desk which we did usually in the morning when getting our complimentary cups of coffee, or when leaving the restaurant after dinner. We shopped in Kalispell and Columbia Falls on our way from the airport and made oatmeal for breakfast and sandwiches for lunches which were mostly on the trail. Not much shopping on the east side. The one breakfast we had at the restaurant was fine. Pizza, burgers and salads were good and fresh. Not New York pizza But tasty nonetheless. Many Glacier has a small food store downstairs which has great hummus (among other) sandwiches and breakfast burritos as well as a restaurant or two and is a three minute drive down the road. Rangers set up spotting scopes in the Swift current parking lot in the afternoon to see wildlife on the mountains and we even got to see the sun thru a special solar telescope which was brought over one day. All in all I'd say the Swiftcurrent is best for those looking for a place to sleep comfortably out of the elements and to use as a base camp for adventures. If you want a resort property this is not the place for you. Our other family members stayed at the Many Glacier for a couple of days and were very happy there as well. They had a larger room and balcony overlooking the lake and the lodge has real rustic ambience. We were happy to visit them but realized the Swift was the right place for our needs. We plan on returning.