National Park Lodges: Where have you stayed? What did you think?

[Anonymous]

The title says it all.

We've never stayed at one, and I'm curious...particularly after checking out the crater lake lodge site.

[Anonymous]

The Ahwanee at Yosemite. I guess it's now called the Majestic Yosemite Hotel and it was great. Not Four Seasons great, but the setting makes up for a lot!

[Anonymous]

I've stayed in quite a few of the lodges including Crater Lake last summer. Rooms are just fine but worth it to stay in the park and right at the rim (rather than the motel-style rooms 8 miles away). The dining room had better food than many I've been to, including El Tovar at Grand Canyon. Always nice to be in the park in the evening and early morning without the day trippers. Make reservations far in advance for dinner. If you can, also take the boat ride on Crater Lake and reserve for that ASAP. You have to hike down but it's really not that hard. There are area to hike but all up on the rim. We didn't make the island stop and we're happy to do other hikes instead.

[Anonymous]

The Ahwanee at Yosemite is beautiful. I attended a wedding there.

Otherwise, we like to stay at cabins in the parks when possible. Stayed at Curry Village in Yosemite and the kids really like that since it felt like cabins and I liked that there is a dining hall and you are sleeping on a cot, not the ground (you have to bring your bedding). At the Grand Canyon we had a 2-room cabin at Bright Angel Lodge. Great location right on the rim.

[Anonymous]

We like the Big Meadows Lodge at Shenandoah. Nice Great Room. The Paradise Inn at Mt Ranier is cool too. The Volcano House at Hawaii Volcanoes NP has great views of volcanic craters.

[Anonymous]

We've stayed at several lodges and enjoyed them all; here's a quick rundown:

Old Faithful Inn in Yellowstone, a National Historic Landmark. Rooms and dining were meh (as we expected them to be), but we loved hanging out on the porch after dinner until nightfall -- just chatting, enjoying a post-dinner cocktail (or kiddie cocktail, as the case may be), reading or playing cards, and watching the geysers erupt. Once it's dark out, you can move inside to the lobby -- or better yet -- find a cozy corner on the mezzanine. The lobby architecture is glorious -- you can easily imagine what it must have been like for travelers in the early 20th Century to visit. Of course you don't have to stay at the inn to hang out there, so you might consider staying nearby at one of the other, more modern facilities -- there's one within walking distance.

Lake Quinault Lodge in Olympic National Park. Again, rooms were meh, though the restaurant was pretty good. What really made it special, though, were the grounds -- there's a beautiful green lawn in the back where you can hang out, play croquet, etc. The inn has a small beach and guests can rent kayaks, canoes, etc. In the evenings, you can hang out in the lobby. Usually somebody plays the piano or you can play cards or board games, -- and there's also WiFi. The architecture is not as grand as the Old Faithful Inn or the Ahwanee, but there's a beautiful fireplace and the woodwork is handsome. For history buffs, the LQL was built in the 1930s and FDR stayed there shortly after it opened.

Wawona Inn (now called the Big Trees Lodge) in Yosemite. Small, but pretty, rooms; dining OK, but nothing to write home about. Again, though, it's all about the vibe -- we loved sitting out on the veranda and having a drink in the evening before dinner. There's a nice pool and nearby hiking is excellent.

[Anonymous]

I can only speak about Grand Canyon North Rim. Lodging was spartan compared to a hotel room, but pleasant and great view (on the rim). Food was HORRIBLE! I mean, really, really bad. Should have had the pizza bar instead of ordering salmon and rice. Terrible.

[Anonymous]

I stayed at Zion Lodge and I recommend it because you are inside the park and near to the trails. The valley floor (main Zion) trailheads are now accessible only by shuttle, so if you stay in the nearby town, you have a bit of a shuttle drive there and back. (that being said, the town is awesome, so depending on what kind of experience you want, it's no big deal). But I liked that I could come back from a hike and either be at the hotel, or just a few shuttle stops from the hotel. The hotel food was good, too.

[Anonymous]

We've stayed at El Tovar and the Awahnee. Both were lovely with a historical bent (the days of smaller rooms). Can't beat the location!