This ski lodge is a gem. It is particularly a good value. We stayed here for 4 nights at the beginning of February, a Friday through Tuesday stay. We occupied a 4 bedroom condo, which (as I understand it) is the only 4 bedroom unit in the lodge. The price for all 4 nights for 8 people in 4 bedrooms was about the same as the price we would have payed PER NIGHT at the Park Hyatt Beaver Creek for less overall square footage. We have actually stayed at the Park Hyatt twice in the past. It is wonderful, right on the slopes. But, you really pay up for the location. The Elkhorn Lodge provides many of the same benefits, but at a dramatically lower price point because it is located near the lower end of Beaver Creek Village and not right up on the slopes. We paid approximately $3200 for the 4 night stay at Elkhorn. I priced out a similar scenario for our party of 8 at the Park Hyatt, which would have involved piecing together two separate suites just to get enough sleeping capacity for 8 people, and the price per night would have been in that range. The Park Hyatt is great, but the price point is simply much higher.
At the Park Hyatt, you literally walk out the door onto the slopes. The Elkhorn Lodge is also ski-in, ski-out. But, they accomplish that by having a chair lift that leaves right from the hotel. The chair is a slower, older chair (not a high speed, detachable design), so that first ride of the morning out of the hotel is chilly and slow. But, it gets you up on the mountain, and then you can ski off to whichever side you choose. The trail from the top of that Elkhorn chair gives you the option to ski over to the main Beaver Creek side (which we much preferred) or to go the other direction to the Bachelor Gulch side. To get back to the Elkhorn Lodge, you ski on a rather fun trail that winds through the Beaver Creek village and takes you right back to the back side of the lodge where the base of the chair lift is located, and where the ski locker room is conveniently located.
The lodge is done in the classic western Rocky Mountain style ski lodge motif with heavy wooden logs and beams, a large stone fireplace in the main lobby, and lots of warm brown tones. It is just really inviting. It looks and feels like a high-end ski lodge, not like a low-priced bargain property. The staff were very friendly and helpful. There is heated underground parking right under the lodge, with one designated parking slot that matches your room number. We drove a rented GMC Yukon XL from Denver International Airport, so it was really nice to have this dedicated, heated, covered, underground parking space available. The elevator goes right from the parking level up to any of the floors of the lodge. The ski locker room is also on that level, so when your ski trip comes to an end and you need to pack up your skis in their ski bags and head back home, you just drive your vehicle down to the appropriate end of the parking garage and load up in a warm and dry place.
There is a free shuttle bus that will take you anywhere in Beaver Creek Village that you want to go. So, the fact that the Elkhorn is located somewhat away from the heart of the village is not much of a drawback. The bus will take you anywhere in the village that you want to go. You just ask the front desk to call ahead for the shuttle, and about 10 minutes later, the shuttle is right there at the front door of the Elkhorn. Then, to return to the Elkhorn from the restaurant (or wherever else you may have gone), the shuttle is called again and back you go. You can actually walk up to the area of the Vilar Center, ice rink, Park Hyatt, and other shops and restaurants right at the slope side. It takes about 5 to 10 minutes (uphill to get there, downhill to walk back).
Our 4 bedroom condo was really enjoyable. It had a lot of room, probably around 2000 square feet (somewhere in that range). The kitchen area was beautiful with nice appliances and countertops. It had a living room area right in front of a fireplace with a living room/kitchen table (open floor plan, kitchen and living room as one continuous space). Then, it had 3 bedrooms on the main level, and a 4th (master) bedroom on the 2nd floor along with a loft space with a large screen TV and large sofa for TV or movies as you wished. All of the bathroom fixtures were high quality with nice showers. There were dedicated bathrooms for each of the 4 bedrooms.
There are two outdoor hot tubs with a partial view of the slopes. There is no actual swimming pool. There is no restaurant at the Elkhorn either, but there is a nice bistro in The Charter, just around the corner and slightly up the hill from the Elkhorn. It is called the Black Diamond Bistro. The food was excellent there, and it was close and convenient.
If you are a family and somewhat budget conscious, but want a high end, ski-in, ski-out experience at one of the best ski resorts in North America (in my opinion), then the Elkhorn Lodge might be your place too.
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
