Obviously, we stayed here because we wanted to see Mesa Verde without having to make the long trip to the ruins from some location outside of the park. I could only get one kiva room for my wife and I. I got a two bed room for my teenage son and his friend. The kiva room was ok but I think a better job could have been done on the refurbishment. I guess you can only do so much when you are remodeling old motel type structures in a national park. The bed had an exceptional mattress and our room was nicely decorated in a southwestern style. There is a shower without a tub. The shower head had not been cleaned fro mineral resider and kind of spewed in several directions. The shower curtain did not keep much of the water from spilling out of the shower stall. The toilet was so short that I felt like I was squatting when I sat on it. The view from the balcony was breathtaking even though visibility from pollution seems to be an increasing problem at the park.

The room for the teenage boys was actually very nice. However, it had no air conditioning and they threw a fit because it was very hot. My son felt that he was being slighted and treated as an unwanted child. (I explained to him that was not true. We in fact love him as much as his older sister but if he complained much more, we would take the pets on vacation next year.) He did have some legitimate complaints about spiders which seem to have free access to these rooms.

The Metate Room Restaurant served a very good meal. The upstairs bar had two outdoor patios, one of which was crowed with viewers of the gorgeous sunset. The bar and restaurant had a good wine selection. It took about 30 minutes to be seated but the good was good.

Personnally, I would rather camp at the Morefield campsite in cooler weather but my wife will have nothing to do with that.

We recently spent one night at the Far View Lodge in Mesa Verde National Park, and had a disappointing stay. Part of the issue was outside the control of the lodge, because it snowed on us (end of May!), which made the long hilly drive up to the lodge nerve wracking (we were on a motorcycle). However, I did not find the lodge staff to be helpful in any way with the weather issues. Our room did not have a TV (which we knew about ahead of time), but that meant we were unable to check weather conditions or radar that would help us make travel decisions, and we had no cell phone service. The lodge front desk had a posting of the weather forecast, but it was 3 days old, and when we asked for an updated one, they would not get it for us and said that the latest forecast was "basically the same." We felt isolated and frustrated with their response and wondered briefly if we'd ever get down from that mountain! Because of not having cell service, we had to use a pay phone, something I haven't done in 20 years. The room was also a disappointment. We knew from the reviews that it wouldn't be luxurious, but thought the convenience of being inside the park closer to the cliff dwellings would be worth it. I don't think that is the case now. The walls were paper thin, and I've never seen a tinier bathroom. There was a tiny shower, and the soap for the sink and shower were both liquid dispensers on the walls. I felt like I was using a convenience store bathroom! It was nice to have the private balcony, but it basically looked out on a road, with no view to speak of. The lodge restaurant was probably the nicest part of the experience, but I thought the food was somewhat overpriced in relation to the substandard lodging. The cliff dwellings themselves and view from the top were amazing, and I'd highly recommend them. The drive to and from the lodge is lovely with lots of curves and scenic overlooks. We saw several different kinds of wildlife, including deer on the drive. However, if I had to do it again, I would stay in Cortez or Durango and drive into the park for the day.

After reading the previous reviews I was sure to book a KIVA room. I am glad we did! My friend didn’t and there IS a difference! The KIVA room was worth the cost difference!

The Far View Lodge delivers what it promises… it definitely offers a far view! There are “wild” horses and deer that hang out around the lodge and make for some exciting sightings! The interior of the room’s decor was cute, our room was clean and the linens were nice. As previously noted, there is no tv… but I liked the quiet of NOT having a tv, (especially the part where you don’t hear your neighbor’s tv through the wall!)

Oh yes, Beware! The walls here are thin, so be please come prepared to be a good (quiet) neighbor. Heads-up… there is also NO cell phone service and they provide a very limited/slow wi-fi service… you would be wise to bring along something to entertain your family during the evening hours.

The aforementioned air conditioner issue was a big one for us… my husband likes to sleep in a room with a cool temperature. We turned on the “unit” in the room and it was very loud! If it would have stayed on constantly we could have become used to it… but just as you were dozing off it would either kick-on or kick-off. We did not get a very good night of sleep.

If you are interested in seeing the cliff dwellings… check into the Visitor’s Center as soon as you get up the mountain… you need to buy the tickets ($3 per person) to get into the dwellings and you are limited to how many sites you can see each day. The quicker you check-in with the Visitor’s Center Ticket Desk the more options you will have. Remember you can also buy tickets for more than one day at that time.

Overall, the room was nice enough… but the cost of the room was a bit too high… you are definitely paying for being inside the park. Lastly, I want to make the positive note of the fact that the front desk staff was very friendly and helpful.

We just finished a one-night stay in a Deluxe Pinon Room at the Farview Lodge at Mesa Verde, CO. Room had air conditioning, a balcony, king-size bed and was very roomy. Easy in-out with parking outside the door. This was our best experience at a National Park lodge; we've stayed at Yellowstone, Zion and Bryce Canyon. The food was VERY good, again unusual for a park lodge, where they've got you as a captive audience. Bravo to the nice people and great chef at Farview!