We were six girlfriends who went to celebrate our 50th birthdays. We got a suite (master befdroom, pull out couch adn adjoining room with two queen beds, plu sdining room table and full kitchen)facing the mountain although we didn't hang out on the balcony as it was too cold...not yet winter , but it was snowing when we arrived and there was already snow on the mountain. Beautiful view. Everything is pretty new so it looked good and was very comfy.
The reason I did not give it a 5 * rating was for a few small things that happened.
When we arrived to our room, the adjoining room was locked so we ahd to wait for the manager to open the room. He did come quickly and did surprise us soon after with wine and cheese. That was a very nice touch.
Another thing we didn't understand were the lights! You had to turn on the main switch when you walked in and it affected all the other lights. However, when we turned everything off to go to bed, I had to go to the bathroom several times in the middle of the night and had to go in the dark. It was not fun feeling my way from the bedroom walls, to the door to the toilet to the sink and back! Otherwise we would have left on the light in the bathroom!I was not about to call the front desk for instructions at that time nor wake up my roommates.
The other disappointing part was our dinner at the Solstice restaurant. I will review that separately. Breakfast was perfect and enjoyed by all, and the best part was that it was included in our stay.
A few girls also went down early to get coffee to bring back up to the room but there wre no paper "to go" cups.
We all had massages or a facial and enjoyed the spa area as well-beautiful, relaxing, and needed! Rachel was especially helpful in explaining where everything was , as it ws a bit of a maze in the women's locker room and how to get to the spa center.! We used the hot tub and sauna which were fantastic. The showers were modern and had all the essentials. I particularly loved the feel of the spa robe too! There were lots of towels available nad gel flip flops in case you don't bring your own.
The hotel itself is very large, expansive and beautifully decorated in country colors and wood. Personally I did not get such a warm and cozy feeling from it...may be because it was so big. SInce we were only there overnight, we didn't take advantage of any other facilities. We saw there was a games room for the kids as well as fitness center. Instead of using the fitness center, we did take a walk on the bike /rec path (a short drive from the hotel) which is open to the public; it's easy and mostly flat so any age can do it. We met a lot of people from NYC and CT who were escaping the after effects from Hurricane Sandy.
It's the perfect location for skiers as you are literally right at the mountain-there's nothing closer than this resort!!!
I agree with the others that valet parking is expensive. It is what it is.Because it was off-season, we did not have to wait and they were very friendly.

relax, relax, relax; a little far from village; bar outstanding; all service : A1; will return for ski season; was in room 221/had great view of Spruce peaks area; first snow of season; great place to start a long walk up through the notch when it closes

We were upgraded to a ridge line studio from a timber line studio so we had a better view of the ski slopes. The rooms comprise a large king bed, sofa, coffee table and arm chair by a fire. There is also a mini kitchen of an oven, fridge, dishwasher, sink, gas ring and cupboards of plates and glasses etc so you could cook something up. They even provide washing up liquid, dishwasher tablets and salt and pepper along with a coffee percolator and 2 types of coffee. We were here 2 nights and after a long day travelling had room service the first night and ate in the restaurant on the second, although you could drive the 7 miles back down towards Stowe for restaurants and bars. The meal in the restaurant had slow service that night but upon commenting they provided a lovely free peach sorbet which was handled well. This isn't a cheap hotel but rather luxurious with an inside/outside pool, spa, golf course and of course skiing from the reception. My tip would be to stock up on some basics from the local Shaws supermarket in Stowe before driving up here so you can enjoy a glass of wine at a slightly more reasonable price!

Free wifi is fast, the valet parking is expensive at $19 per day in my view, it is not as if we are in a city centre up here!

We ordered a pillow which came after 2 calls and was the wrong one and the food took a little longer than they anticipated. It was good, we recommend the wet chicken wings - quite a pile for a starter! The other thing to bear in mind is that the fire has a constant flickering pilot light (you push a button to ignite the gas flame - it is a sealed unit so no smell) which you can't turn off so at night we had to cover the fire place with a blanket as it kept us awake. Still nice to have fire though.

We did the Arbor trek zip lining (about 6 miles from the hotel) and booked before we travelled to the US to avoid disappointment and get the time we wanted, and of course Ben and Jerrys ice cream factory outside Waterbury (beware they don't produce ice cream at weekends) so we didn't bother with the tour at $4 and just enjoyed the vast selection of ice creams on sale including some trial flavours. To us the ice cream tasted better than it does at home, perhaps as it doesn't have to be shipped in frozen containers! Zip lining was excellent and a great way to see the forest.

You must also visit (all on the road between Waterbury and Stowe) the Cabot cheese shop (amazing amount of free samples) which has some excellent cheese, the chocolate shop in the same complex and further towards Stowe the cider factory. Again further towards Stowe on the left is the Stowe Maple products shop selling 3 types of grade A maple syrup much cheaper than the tourist traps up and down this road. Well worth a visit.

We stayed 2 nights.

You can see my other reviews on our New England trip by searching for these hotels and places. We did 14 nights in total with a mix of 1 and 2 night stays with Boston at 4 and Cape Cod at 3 and hired a car from Boston airport in our return from Niagara on our last night there:

Colonnade hotel, Boston
Portland harbour hotel, Portland
Merril farm, North Conway
Woodstock Inn, Woodstock
Marriott, Newport
Belfry Inne, Sandwich

We were there for the Fall foliage, which was spectacular, but we could see going back there for the Winter sports and the Summer lounging or vise versa. The hotel staff was very attentive and helpful. The room was lovely. I was ready to take apart the whole bathroom and bring it back to my house. The best bathroom I have ever been in. Separate shower, separate toilet and a deep soaking tub that I used both nights I was there. However, the complimentary bathrobe and the towels were stiff and uncomfortable against my then tender and soft skin. I understand they try to be Eco-friendly in their maintenance but a little water softener is really called for at a hotel. Really. The mattress needed an upgrade also. We were glad we were only sleeping there two nights. We could feel every bony part of our bodies all night long. I gave the place five stars, though, the fireplace in the room, the ambiance, the quality of the place, the spot on top notch restaurant, and the location makes me forgive those dreadful towels and uncomfortable bed.