Far View Lodge - Mesa Verde

There are currently no comments for this hotel.

Most of the rooms have fantastic views of the surrounding countryside and mesas. The hotel is nicely appointed.

We just spent two nights at Far View Lodge. What a mixed bag! We don't think we'll go back to this property, partially because they charge an "energy surcharge" without advising you, and for no apparant reason.

The room itself was nicely appointed, as previously mentioned, but the exterior was not in step with the interior. And some rooms hadn't been updated yet, so were in pretty sad condition. Our room, for example, had no air conditioning -- a must in that part of the country in the summer.

Environmentally:
There was a towel-reuse sign and option, but not one for sheets. In our case, they honored our request to not change our towels, and didn't change our sheets either (we have no idea how often they change sheets). People in our group did have their own towel taken by housekeeping, a towel that hadn't been found by the time they left the park. There were four pillows, which we enjoyed.

We had ample fresh air, between operable windows and a door to our balcony. There was also a live plant in our room. There was also faux-potpourri in the room, ruining the fresh air so abundant in the area.

The trash cans were lined with plastic bags, which was an unnecessary step since the cans were washable. They did have durable coffee cups and water glasses (though it's not clear as to whether they refresh those or just wipe them out with a cleaning rag).

They provided fair-trade coffee in the rooms. The Metate Room, the nice dining room at the lodge, had lamb raised locally and seafood from sustainable operations.

The sink faucet was fashionable and interesting, but the shower head was old. The shower needed lots of work between grout and caulk, getting rid of mold and filling in gaps. There weren't any towel bars in the bathroom either. There was a bulk soap dispenser, but it clearly hadn't been used in awhile. The soaps they provide at least are nice. We had a heat lamp that didn't work quite right, but no fan or vent for the bathroom.

We were also disappointed to notice that their busses, used for tours, weren't run on clean fuels -- at least there was no promotion of that. We were impressed with the clean transportation at The Grand Canyon (a different concession operator) and thought this operator would also strive for clean transportation. If they run on biodiesel, they sure don't promote it and educate the public about it.

Style and comfort:

The room had a wonderful CD-player-alarm clock, one waffle-weave robe, one luggage rack (we would normally like a second for our second suitcase though) an iron and ironing board, and binoculars for viewing the mesas and wildlife (look for the wild horses). However, there was no place to hang our clothes, either in the guestroom or bathroom.

The desk in the room was a nice touch, giving us a place to put our travel brochures and make notes about our visit.

The front desk staff was variably friendly. The woman who checked us in was fine, but the woman who checked us out was testy and unpleasant. When I noticed the energy surcharge and complained that I hadn't been advised of that earlier, the only comment I got in return was "We're sorry about that but there's nothing we can do about that. This is a National Park rule.". Since I just stayed in a National Park a month ago, and wasn't charged an energy surcharge, that line was difficult to believe. When I suggested she take the surcharge off since we hadn't used much electricity during our stay, she just repeated her original line; not a very satisfying exchange.

Another tactic Aramark, the concession operator for Mesa Verde, has is to charge more for tours booked online. You actually save money by booking their tours when you get there. How can a company justify charging more for a ticket when they save money by your not using their staff to book your plans?