I was driving through and looking for a reasonable place to stay. The person behind the reservation desk was helpful and kind. the room was very nice, with a view of the sunrise the next morning. The room was clean, and quiet.
I've had much worse experience for $50, this is highly recommended.

I stay in Hotels very frequently. Reservations were made, well in advance, with Eric, the front desk supervisor. This was for Thanksgiving, to visit family. When we arrived our King size bed that we requested, was not available, instead we got a room with two queen beds. Okay, stuff happens. My wife and I were polite through out this ordeal. They agreed to rectify the problem the next morning. It didn't happen. The staff at the desk were arrogant and very rude. The lady behind the counter, stated that she didn't care about our problem and any place in town would state the same. Naturally, I went up the ladder to the VP. He was nice and apologetic, and even gave us a free night. However, the front desk locked us out of our room, when we returned from Thankksgiving dinner, I can only assume why.The reason I am writing this, simply put, Eric, and two of the girls behind the counter were extremely rude, no guest should be treated with such arrogance. Eric, even had the nerve to spout off his disapproval of us meeting with the VP to my wife, he waited until I was not around. Very nasty people. We never did get the room that we reserved. The family visit was great, this thing just put a negative spin on our trip to Colorado.

I want to address several issues.

In general, the rooms in this property are as good as most of the Marriott and the Hilton properties that I usually stay in. The room was absolutely spotless, the furnishings were really nice, and the rooms pleasant.

The Ute employees were extremely friendly. We booked a $69 room. The front desk clerk told us that if we would sign up at the casino club, we would get a $10/ night discount +$5 per person in cash for the slot machines. AND there was **NO** hotel taxes added to the bill!!! That saved us $30! I will admit that the front desk folks were not as polished as a Marriott front desk but they made up for their inexperience with enthusiasm.

The casino was VERY SMOKY, some of the worst ventilation. The buffet was very inexpensive but nearly inedible.

There was NO hotel in nearby Cortez that could hold a candle to this property.

If you need a place to stop on the way to Mesa Verde or the Four Corners this hotel is acceptable, but don't expect much. The check - in process was unfriendly and unhelpful. To get my agreed upon rate I had to leave my luggage at the front desk, walk through the casino and fill out an application. The room smelled of cigarette smoke and the carpet was dirty. The vending machine (just outside the lobby) didn't work. When I requested a refund at the front desk they told me that the best they could do was take my name and address and bring it to the attention of the vendor. On the positive side, the restaurant was OK and inexpensive. There was a nice pool and plenty of parking close to the hotel.