The Best Ski Resort I've Seen
Written: Mar 04 '05 (Updated Mar 08 '05)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Location, atmosphere, options, service, food.
Cons: Fireplace was dark and cold, restaurant service a little lacking.
The Bottom Line: Highly recommended -- great location, excellent skiing, close to village shopping and trails.
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| bought_it_all's Full Review: Stratton Mountain Inn |
...Of course, it's also the only ski resort I've seen.
I recently decided that at the tender age of 30, I was finally old enough to risk my life by strapping fiberglass to my feet and pushing myself down a mountain. Some people would call this foolish. In retrospect, I'm one of those people. But I digress...
Stratton Mountain is located in/near Bondville Vermont. It is simply beautiful. I have seen other ski mountains, but Stratton is magnificent, looming over the landscape like a giant slippery rock. Okay, not the best simile, but you get the picture. I decided to make my first trip to Stratton because of wonderful word-of-mouth, and I was not disappointed. This is a review of the Inn, but let me say a few things about the resort in total:
1. The trails are well marked, well groomed, and plentiful. You can ski all week (if you survive the first day) and never take the same exact trail twice.
2. The pole and chair lifts are safe, well run, smooth, and there's a friendly face on the other end to lift you off your butt after you've failed to make a 10-point landing.
3. Anything you forgot to bring is for sale in the village. All shops/store/rentals are staffed by knowledgable, friendly, happy people, eager to take your money. Bring money. You don't want to let these happy people down, do you?
4. The restaurants, bakery, bars and coffee shop all serve excellent food at a fair price. Not cheap, but fair.
5. The village is adorable, accessible, warm (in personality, not temperature) and friendly.
Now, on to the "Inn At Stratton Mountain"...
We checked in for a mid-week 2-night stay during Presidents' Week, so the prices were somewhat higher than they would be at other times of the season. However, we managed to get a decent deal with a little shopping around (~$190/night, plus taxes). The Inn is located behind the LiftLine Lodge, across the street and down a little hill from the village. We passed it twice before finding it. Parking was a little tight, but that may also have been due to the "peak season." The front desk is staffed by young, friendly people who checked us in an hour before the official "check in" time (4:30pm). The room was clean and cute -- all you could want in a ski lodge. Ours had a semi-firm queen bed, sofa, tv, coffee niche (with coffee pot and complimentary Green Mountain coffee), and ample dresser space. The bathroom was also your hotel standard, but very clean and new in appearance. Check-in was smooth, and we were on our way in no time.
The Inn has a restaurant on site -- "The Stone Chimney Grill." It is a very comforting environment -- high sloped ceilings, wide expansive view of the back trails, and natural wood everywhere. There is a large fireplace inside, as well as directly opposite in the lobby. However, it never got lit the entire time we were there (something about wet wood from a recent ice storm). Somewhat disappointing, but we got over it. The food here is quite good. The menu is a mostly American fair (steak, burgers, chicken, some pasta dishes, fish), and the prices generally run between $12-22 per entree. The service left a bit to be desired, though. Our order took a while to arrive, and when it did, there was a little mix up. My girlfriend had ordered a burger with the sweet potato fries, and I asked for "the exact same thing, with onions too." So, my burger came correctly, but her's had waffle fries. No big deal right? It seems the waiter didn't think so, and told us that we hadn't been specific. Whatever. We shared, as opposed to making him try to figure out how to correct this ponderous wonderment. How to fix this ensnarlment? We thought it best to let him out of this impossible quandry. Enough big words...
We also had breakfast there the next day, and they had a nice buffet spread. Old man on the omlette bar telling us about the fresh snow that fell last night (4 inches!), fully stocked trays of sausage, bacon, eggs, pancakes, waffles, bagels, danish, cereals, fruit, hashbrowns and more. I was more satisfied with breakfast than with dinner, and the price was better - $10 per person. Then we went skiing (free shuttle service leaves from the front lobby every 15 minutes, but you can walk to the lifts from here, maybe 10 minutes with gear in tow).
After skiing, I felt broken and beaten, as though someone had tried to use me to break in their new industrial-strength tenderizing mallet. What to do? Ah yes, the hot tub! The Inn is equipped with a hot tub (seating for approx 4 or 6 very familiar people) and a whirlpool (much larger). The temperatures were perfect, somewhere around 104 degrees, the water was clean, the bubblers bubbled and the jets jetted. The muscles were greatful for this, and the room stayed open until 11pm. The sauna also looked good, but I didn't try it. There are two changing rooms down there, but the doors curiously refuse to lock. The room has glass ceilings and a glass wall that faces the outside, so you can experience the view, should the sun be up. There are no showers, soda machine or swimming pool here, however.
After a soak, we went for a drink. The "Bear Bottom Pub" is located in the Inn, between the lobby and the pools. It is a quaint little pub with darts, a pool table, music, and alcohol. Nice place to stop in for a drink. I think they also had bar food, but don't quote me on that. I only stayed there for a drink or two, so details are sparse. It was also late, I was in pain, slightly damp, and rapidly getting soused...
Housekeeping is efficient, and early. I think they started their rounds at about 8:30am. If you want to be left alone until 9am, use the "Do Not Disturb" tag. Really, they were already done with our room by the time we returned from breakfast at about 9:15am. Plenty of towels and freebies, though.
The concierge (a.k.a. - "Front Desk") was very helpful in giving us some ideas for off-resort entertainment the next day. Mostly, the town of Manchester (20 minutes north) is a great little outlet shopping town, and we spent the day and lots of money there. When our vacation was over, check out (by 11:00am) was fast and smooth. We settled our tab, and bid them a fond adieu.
In closing, let me say that I loved my Stratton experience, and will gladly return next season. This Inn offered excellent hospitality, a great setting, decent pricing, and amazing location to the mountain. Stay, and enjoy!
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
bought_it_all
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Location: Wilton, CT, USA
Reviews written: 82
Trusted by: 9 members
About Me:
A decent guy with opinions to spare.
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