We stayed at the lodge for two nights. Since we were going to be leaving early in the morning the day we were checking out we settled up when we checked in. As I prefer to pay in cash that is what I did. My mother stood right there as I gave the owner Dave the money and he gave me change from the cash box at the desk. After a very early morning, flight, the drive to Estes Park and getting checked in I don't recall if I was ever given a receipt. I then received a receipt a week later showing my credit card was charged. After talking with the owner Dave several times in an attempt to resolve the issue and since he was not able to find the transaction on his books I was charged double. Apparently the customer is not first at Glacier Lodge. If you choose to take the chance staying at Glacier Lodge do not pay in cash and even if you do pay with a credit card keep all of your receipts and don't take for granted that all is well after you leave.

I booked the Glacier Lodge based on TA reviews and was not disappointed during our six night stay there in late September. My wife was also extremely pleased. The location is excellent though we found the entrance to the lodge over their own bridge easy to miss even after several days there! Glacier Lodge is close to the Beaver Meadows entrance to Rocky Mountain National Park - maybe 5 minutes away. This puts you close to the road to Bear Lake. A trip into town is about the same distance, though a grocery store is much closer.

Glacier Lodge’s off season begins a little earlier than some other places in town so we got a great rate. Estes Park was very crowded on the Sunday afternoon we arrived and I wondered if we had made a mistake on coming there. The next morning the crowds had vanished and remained gone until the following Friday evening. The aspen leaves were beautiful and we saw elk by the hundreds in Rocky Mountain National Park and by the dozens in town. This proved to be an excellent time to stay at Glacier Lodge.

We stayed in one of the newer “chalets” with a mountain view. The cabin was almost too large for just the two of us. An open loft bedroom with two twin beds would make these newer units perfect for a small family. I do not recall ever checking into a hotel that was more clean than our cabin. The kitchen was spotless and well equipped for cooking. The bathroom was of a nice size and again very, very clean. The mini-blinds were all open and the lights were on to welcome us. One bundle of wood for the fireplace was provided each day. Towels were changed out as needed. We found the location to be very quite and the grounds well manicured.

Our cabin, being a mountain view unit, was near the horse stables. Some evenings, if the wind was not blowing, the smell was objectionable outside our cabin. (In fairness to the management we had been told in advance the cabin was near the stables.) This didn’t affect us as we didn’t do much sitting or cooking on the porch, on the provided grill. If someone wanted to do those things they might consider asking for a cabin not so close to the stables though. There was no smell inside the cabin though - we kept the windows closed as the nights were quite cool.

We looked in one of the large family units that slept 12. It was nice but not as open and modern as the chalets. The same could be said for the one riverside cabin we looked in; a few of the riverside cabins were triplexes which didn’t appeal to me. For the money the chalets seemed to us to be the best value on the property by far. If , however, I had a large family reunion planned and wanted everyone to stay under the same roof I think the big cabins would be an excellent choice.

Management provides free newspapers and (I think) coffee every morning. Everyone was very helpful and made good recommendations about where to eat, etc. (The Dunraven Inn for excellent Italian and the Ram’s Horn for the best breakfast you’ve ever had are not to be missed!) The pool was closed for the season but was nicely located. A playground for kids was provided as was a nearby small basketball court.

My only complaints are pretty minor. Our television was pretty small and the cable reception was not so good. I know that one doesn’t go to Estes Park to watch TV but late at night just sitting around it would have been nice to have been able to watch TV more comfortably. Also there are no phones in the units. A pay phone is located near the office. My cell phone did not have service at Glacier Lodge. There was wifi available but it did not reach our cabin - we also had been told in advance it would not reach our cabin but it would have been nice; free internet access and wifi were available in the office.

There is no question that we will stay at Glacier Lodge on our next trip to Estes Park.

Glacier Lodge is fantastic! This is the fourth year in a row that we've stayed here. The first year we stayed 4 nights, the 2nd and 3rd we stayed 6 nights, and this year we're staying 7 nights. Our daughters would stay all summer long if possible. This is the perfect family vacation spot. Great activities for kids and peace and quiet for adults. The owners couldn't be more hospitable or helpful. We will be guests here every summer for a very long time. Make reservations in December or January!

This mountain retreat is EVERYTHING we were looking for. Beautiful riverside property with extremely clean and homey cabins. The owners are friendly and helpful. We are definitely making this our vacation destination.