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Yellowstone National Park Lodges
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10 reviews for Yellowstone National Park Lodges
We got to stay at the Old Faithful Inn last week, and were on the west wing. These rooms don't have TVs, so the guests all kind of end up mingling out in the huge three-story lobby. I LOVED it. I felt so old-fashioned and comfy. The place smelled of wood and leather, people were all out talking to each other and reading and writing letters, and just hanging out. I felt like I was a fancy-pants old-timer.
The bathrooms were down the hall, but they were clean and large and the gigantic showerheads pumped out the hot water just fine. I honestly don't mind that at all, having been an inveterate camper for years and years, and having hot showers without having to drop quarters in the slot or having to stand on those nasty rubber mats or having to head back to camp with wet hair out in the weather was a treat.
I get up early, and happened to wander out onto the covered balcony just in time to catch Old Faithful erupting at about 6:30 AM. That was cool.
There are little desks along the balconies with lighting so you can write, and there were lots of people together playing cards and board games and sipping wine or hot chocolate.
We also stayed overnight in a cabin at Mammoth Hot Springs (see photo). Another walk-to-the-bathroom deal. Again, okay by me, but these bathrooms weren't as nice as Old Faithful Inn, and these also involved walking around outside with we hair. But the cabins were cute, and they will let you barbecue on the porches..... We just grabbed a meal in Gardiner, nearby.
These are not places for those who like the 'slicker' comforts of TV, etc., but if you like rustic and enjoy hanging out with other people, Old Faithfull Inn is 5 stars plus.
Review for Grant Village - rooms in dire need of renovation
This place is so not worth it even with the convenient location. The rooms are in dire need of renovation as the last time the room decor had changed was probably the 1950s. Everything in the room is sparse and worn from the carpet to the bedding to the bathroom fixtures.
On top of that, the walls are paper thin so if you are looking for a good night's sleep, you probably won't get it here. We were on the ground floor and we could hear above us and in the hallways...doors opening, bathrooms running, etc.
I much prefer the Lake Yellowstone Hotel
This is a review for the dining rooms at the hotels in Yellowstone National Park, in particular the one at Old Faithful Lodge.
Why are the servers at the restaurants so cold? I'm not a very high-maintenance diner, and I do not expect perfection everywhere I go. But when I'm spending $30+ per entree, I *do* expect the servers to be friendly! Every night that we dined at one of the sit-down restaurants at Yellowstone Park, we experienced the same disinterensted, cold service.
The worst experience was at the Dining Room at the Old Faithful Lodge. Half-way thorough my mother's salad, she discovered a half-dead moth nestled between the leaves of lettuce. She alerted the waitress, who simply took the salad away and didn't say a word. No apology, nothing. We expected a manager to come out and talk to us, but one never materialized. The salad was not even taken off the bill! We thought about complaining, and we should have. But honestly, we shouldn't have needed to. I believe the situation should have been handled by the restaurant. Needless to say, we will never dine at the Old Faithful Lodge again, and we will advise everyone we know to do the same.
I recently stayed at the Old Faithful Inn the hotel itself is amazing both inside and out. There are no tv's which adds to the charm of the property. We stayed in one of the rooms in the west wing which is not part of the original property but has good views of the geysers.
On July 3, 2006. Second time for me at Yellowstone NP. Anyhow, I didn't make any reservation at the lodge and was not expecting to spend the night. But it was to nice to pass, so we walk in and asked if they have any room available. So, the receptionist bust out a note book with the pictures of all the room that was available for that night. One of the room caught my attention. It was a log cabin with one king size bed and a sink, but no bathroom. The room was very nice (for me) My gf said we only need to take a shower and get some sleep before we move on to our next destination.
I didn't event pause to think about it. Where can you find a place to sleep for just $80 a nignt before 4th of July holiday. Anyway, we were only going to stay for one night and head east to Devil Towe NM, Mt. Rushmore NM and Crazy Horse. So, I took the deal even thought the bathroom is up stair.
So, We spend the night. In the mean time, we took the advantage of sigh seeing around the park before it get dark. We walk around for 2 hrs to see all the hot spring and some we have to wait for the moment. When we came back we lounging in the second floor balcony with hot coco in our hand and a lab top to up load our picture from previous trips.
Note: Travel through Wyoming you have to watch out for wild animals. We saw a Cow, a Sheep, a Bear, an Elk, a Bison, and a Mose. In the middle of the road some try to cross and some just take over the road. So, be carefully when traveling through that area.
I've to give this lodge a 5 stars. One for the price, two for the scenery, three for the dinner, four for comfort, and five for the memory. One of my best road trip destination ever.
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We stayed at Old Faithful Inn and Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel during a recent trip to Yellowstone. I uploaded some photos of the hotels and room.
Old Faithful Inn:
Amazing, and a must-see. The hotel is the largest log hotel in the world - possibly the largest log building in the world. The lobby is sure to open your mouth wide as you gape at the tall wood structure and the people look so small as they look down on you from up above. Literally just steps from Old Faithful Geyser, it is a prime location. Staying in the hotel or not, take time to walk around the geyser area, including trekking to see the beautiful Morning Glory pool. The food in the main dining room was just ok.
Unfortunately, I wouldn't say the Old Faithful Inn is a must-stay or even a nice stay due to the horrific experience we had. The room was sparse for sure - just the bare essentials. We couldn't finish dinner, and we brought back a little food to our room. It was in a styrofoam container, and we placed it on a table. Sometime later, we went to bed. Not quite asleep, I heard scratching noises and turned on the light. Sound gone. Strange. Turned off the lights. Five minutes later, scratching noises. What the heck is that? Turned on the light and walked over to the sound. Some kind of animal faster than Superman scurried away, and I let out a scream I will forever be ashamed of! I must confess to jumping on top of the bed at the same time my blood curdling screaming was going on. It's a mouse! It must be! My wife was very calm and probably thinking why oh why did she marry me?
An urgent call was made to the Old Faithful Inn front desk! Help! The lady at the front said "Oh, we're out in the country, it's not unexpected." Ok, ok... so can you move us? What are you going to do about it? "No, no... we're all booked up... and we are a bit short staffed... we'll try to get some mouse traps out to you soon." Ok, whatever you can do.
About two hours later, exhausted from keeping guard against an animal so fierce and fast it could move across the room in the blink of an eye, we had a knock on the door. No one there, but two mouse traps had been left. So I opened up the package and set up the traps. Watch out little mouse! Lights were kept on and we tried to get some sleep. It was torture not knowing when or if the beast would appear. All was quiet. I must have drifted off at some point cuz a couple of hours later dawn was breaking. I checked the mouse traps and found the mouse (http://www.yelp.com/bi...) (we later learned it was a deer mouse) in the trap (see photo!). Although I was happy the mouse didn't eat me alive as these country mice are rumored to do, I was a little sad... after all, the little guy was just hungry.
Anyhow, the ordeal and the lack of help from the staff makes it impossible for me to recommend the inn.
Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel:
Stayed in a cabin. Upon checkin, we were assigned a cabin, and went to unload our stuff only to find the cabin occupied. Thankfully we didn't walk in on anyone - just their stuff, but it definitely wasn't something I liked, both from the perspective of having to go back and getting a different cabin, but also the security lapse that resulted in hotel staff giving out a key to an already occupied cabin.
Got our new cabin. Comfortable enough - very sparse accommodations, but that's to be expected. One thing I didn't like though is that you get one half of the cabin and another couple or family gets the other half, and you can really hear through the walls. It's quite uncomfortable - we didn't feel like speaking at all cuz we knew they could hear us probably just as well as we could hear them. Awkward! The next morning, there were deer around the cabins which was pretty cool. Had dinner and breakfast at the restaurant, and found the food to be good. I still remember a squash soup there that was perfection.
So.... we found the Yellowstone National Park Lodges to be, um, an adventure! In some sense, we enjoyed it cuz it made the experiences more memorable, but in other sense, our experiences with the lodging impacted how we experienced everything else (and that's the real amazing stuff!) and so I can't recommend the lodging here.
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Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel: 5 stars, great food, great value. The rooms with shared bath are very large and comfortable; there's rarely anyone in the bathroom, anyway. My family would rather share a large bathroom for $80/room, than have a dinky, private bath for $140. Waking up to watch elk graze on the lawn is awesome. Come on, it's perhaps the most diverse, beautiful national park in the country--why complain about the lack of modern in-room "conveniences", all of which you'd have to pay for. This way, you don't hear your neighbor flush the toilet or take a shower.
Grant Village: 2 stars. For $140, we had to listen to the floors creak all night -- even the ground floor! Awakened by the noisy housekeeping at 8am. The largest swarms of mosquitos I've ever seen lurked just outside the building doors, as well as our cars. Yikes. And the bathrooms are possibly the tiniest outside of a submarine. There are better values, and better rooms, in Yellowstone.
Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel - Mammoth Disappointment
While I did realize that the Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel was kept "quaint" - no in-room television, no wi-fi, when I requested a room with a private bathroom, I was quite surprised that the tub that was put in when they built the place hadn't been upgraded to include a shower. Although, there was one in the communal bathroom down the hall. This place is a little too quaint for my creature comforts.
I barely have enough coverage in my personal wi-fi to write this review!
This room also comes equipped with a very large window and a fan in the event it becomes a bit warm. Well, heck, I guess we always do need some clean fresh air that the park provides us, but let's hope the bison don't graze too long on the lawn outside the window.
For those of you who want to travel like it's the turn of the century, this is the place. For those who have come to appreciate an in-room shower, you might want to look elsewhere.
There IS some nightly entertainment in the lounge which I think serves some wine and beer, and there is a coffee bar that's open through the day. However, for my next trip, I think I'll consider Best Western or Super 8 up the road (5 miles) in Gardiner, MT.
This is a must see-and-stay location for your lifetime list.
Stay at the "Old Faithful Inn". It is a national historic landmark and is the most requested lodging facility in the park. Plan well in advance (a year would be good). Make the reservation as soon as it is available.
The rustic-style lodge, with log and wood shingle exterior is located adjacent to the world famous Old Faithful Geyser. The original part of the Inn, known as the "Old House" was completed in 1904 and includes an immense lobby with a huge stone fireplace. Have a seat in this lobby and think of all those that came before you to this place of beauty. Think of the craftsmen who thought up, designed and built it.
The East and West Wings were added in the teens and the twenties, with many rooms having been remodeled in recent years. Guest accommodations include rooms with and without baths. By all means eat at the great restaurant. The views out the windows are amazing. Look across the dining room at your fellow travelers. Many are here from foreign countries as much in amazement as are we.
You are really on vacation here. No televisions, radios, air conditioning or Internet hook-ups are not available.
If you are thinking about going this year it is open from May 11, 2007 to September 9, 2007. Room rates are $90 to $449 per night.
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Since I can't Yelp "Yellowstone" by itself, this seems to be the best place to do it. Man, I don't even know where to begin. I guess I can start with where my gf and I stayed: Grant Village.
Grant Village: Very nice hotel. Very clean. Nice location south of the lake (West Thumb area). Just a few minutes away from all the lake activity spots. Like most (and probably all...I don't know) of the hotel rooms in Yellowstone, this place doesn't have a TV...which is such a refreshing change (even tho not at first :). They really try to convey a sense of being in the wild, and a TV would just destroy that notion. Good move on their part methinks. Everything else in Grant Village was nice. The walk to the lake and the lake view is gorgeous. Stargazing is a must! The breakfast buffets in both of their restaurants are just ok though (Lake House and Grant Village Inn). We didn't really expect much more. I did order pancakes on our 2nd morning there at the Grant Village Inn...it took them 30mins to get them to me. :( But it's all good. With that lake view, I can't complain much. :)
Other Inns/Lodges: Old Faithful Inn was not a disappointment. Awesome nature-y design. It was as advertised. The whole Inn is made of wood. It really is a part of the park. They have a nice snacks/restaurant area on the side serving some goodies (the ice cream was yum!). Lake Village is more modern, but still an old-fashioned style reminiscent of the 40s and 50s. And its lake view can't be missed. I ate roast prime rib bison there...it was delish!!! Mammoth Springs Inn is also old-fashioned style. It is the closest to the border of the park (northern end). Very pretty viewed from the hot springs area. The Canyon Inn was quite a fun place to visit as well. They have a really nice ice cream shoppe there with awesome folks. And all thru the park, we were surprised, didn't cost us an arm and a leg to eat and drink. In fact, they were normal prices. A definite plus.
Wildlife: First off, I didn't expect to see that much wildlife. I was thinkin...a bison here, a deer there, and other animals if we're lucky. Well...saw a grizzly and a moose the first day, and we haven't even checked in yet. By our counts, we saw 2 grizzlies, 1 moose, hundreds of bison and elk, 2 antelopes, 1 coyote (in our parking lot no less), 1 wolf, a few deer, and we think 2 ospreys. Lots of other small animals, but you get the picture...it was awesome. The funniest parts were when, 3 times, a bison or two would be walking on the main road, non-chalant, causing all kinds of traffic backup! But it was all good. You don't see that everyday. :)
Sights: Everything was cool! The Old Faithful area was a beauty. We were lucky enough to see 3 geysers pop during our 4-hr stay/hike there (Old Faithful, Grand, and Riverside Geysers). Lots of nice spring pools, and a few bubbling surprises here and there. The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone was breathtaking! Accented by its awesome Lower Falls. But all the many other waterfalls across the park were awesome as well. Mammoth Hot Springs were equally as amazing. Pretty much the whole drive in the Grand Loop Rd was. Every 5 miles or so of the ~150miles of Grand Loop Rd was a different Earthly landscape. We felt like we've gone around the world and back!
I would have to say that Yellowstone is the prettiest place I've been to. I want to give the Grand Teton National Park a 5-star rating here as well because it was just as beautiful. It was so pristine as if no humans have ever been there. The lake, and I kid you not, looked like a mirror reflecting the mountain range. I have a picture which if you flipped it updside down you can't tell if it was right side up! So if you get a chance, go visit Yellowstone. Fly in to Jackson Hole (south entrance) so you can drive thru the Tetons. And try to stay in the park. You won't be disappointed. I know I'm ranting like a mad man here, but if it wasn't so beautiful I wouldn't be. Plus, it is where my gf and I got engaged. So it holds a very special place in my heart. :) [ok no more sappy stuff :]
