The Stanley Hotel has received some negative reviews on this site but those individuals must have stayed at a different hotel than the one at which I stayed. I had an outstanding experience! I went with my girlfriend to Estes Park for New Year's Eve weekend, 2005-2006, with plans to propose to her (in case you're wondering, she said yes!). I had alerted the staff at the Stanley what my plans were so they were prepared. They were very helpful: for example, they made sure the flowers I ordered were placed in the room before our arrival. They were also very discreet and they didn't say anything explicit about my plans when my girlfriend was around (so as not to spoil the surprise). I found the staff to be extremely friendly and professional. That evening we ate dinner in the Cascades Restaurant. The food was delicious and the service was attentive. We stayed in the Manor House next to the main building and had a sound night's sleep. The bed was luxurious and we didn't have any trouble with the room temperature. Overall, the experience was outstanding and we will definitely be back. Some people who give more negative reviews of the Stanley probably have unrealistic expectations. This is a historic hotel (circa 1909) so of course it won't have every possible amenity and the floors will creak, etc. Nevertheless, it is completely modern, well maintained, and one of the best hotels in the region. If you're looking for a luxury hotel with history, character, mystery, and beauty, then this is definitely your place! And the Stanley can certainly provide the icing on the cake for a very romantic weekend getaway.

Stayed in a deluxe room for $129. We tried to get room 217 but it was booked, so we got the room directly above it--room 321. The interior was marginal, the beds were clean & comfortable and the bathroom was clean. The deluxe room was spacious but the tiny TV was so far across the room that we found ourselves moving furniture to get it closer to view. The view from our room was nice, of the front entrance/pool/mountains. We had lunch at the Cascades restaurant and our waiter was condescending and rude when we asked him questions about menu items. The food was below average. The room service meals we ordered were just ok. Only one front desk clerk was professional and personable, all the others were unattentive and had very bad people skills. I didn't sleep at all the night we stayed because the wind was blowing something terrible and the windows creaked and banged all night. The room was like a sauna at night even though it was 30 degrees outside. I also heard alot of very creepy noises in our bathroom and outside our door in the hallways. I was so terrified that I had to get out of bed at 4:00am, left my room to retreat to the lobby cause I figured there would be a front desk clerk, security or someone around. I
got down there and the front desk clerk came out after a few long minutes and she was half asleep and dishelved! Must be nice to get some shut eye on the job when I couldn't even get any as a guest in thier rooms!! I sat in the lobby til then sun came up and did not see the front desk girl again--she went back to sleep. During this time, 4am-6am, the MacGregor room and Dunraven bar were very active with huge thumps and scary sounds for the next couple hours and not a person was anywhere..I would not stay there again mostly because I was scared out of my wits, but also thought for the money there are alot of really nice places to stay in Estes Park without the fear factor. Go visit and trek around the property and you will get your fill of the wonderful charm and history of the hotel without paying to rent a room there!

For $130 a nite, I was expecting clean and comfortable as the basics and didn't get either one.
The bedding was dirty and uncomfortable. I slept on the floor a good part of my stay because my back hurt and I was trying to get closer to the window in hopes of getting a bit of cool air. The room was on the top floor and the sloped ceiling over the bed was nothing short of claustraphobic, not to mention the innumerable times I hit my head on the ceiling because of the poor furniture layout. Why they would put the phone in this area is beyond my comprehension.

I might also add that this hotel has no ammenities one would normally expect, like a pop and snack machine or indoor pool or hot tub. You can go to just about any other hotel on the strip and get that for much less.

I stayed in downtown Paris in May. Europe is nototious for the small cramped rooms. But my hotel room in Paris was cleaner, more comfortable, about twice as large and HALF the price, even with the unfavorable exchange rate. I think that says a lot.

If you don't care about cleanliness, comfort or value, and just get a thrill from the "historical" fact that a movie was inspired here, etc, then stay at the Stanley. If you want to enjoy yourself, stay somewhere else. My parents were big antique hunters and I enjoy history and the unusual, but the Stanley is really nothing special. Just go there for dinner. The food is great. Don't torture yourself by actually staying there.

Finally, I have to say I was appalled that the housekeeping staff scraped the glycerin soap bar I was given off the tub and set it out for re-use. No new soap. I felt like I was in a homeless shelter. I am all for recycling, but I'd prefer to scrape my own soap if its gonna come to that.

My girl friend and I stayed in Room 405 which is supposedly one of the haunted rooms over the Xmas break... turned on the tv in the room to see that the movie Shining was playing...which was inspired by Stephen King staying here...this must have been an omen of things to come...because I felt like we were in a movie nitemare...me being the Jack Nicholson character..wanting to use the ax to escape my room instead of going in...the room was relatively clean (except for a stain found on the bed cover..eek) but it was very small with low ceiling and extremely hot even in the middle of the winter... We opened the window to let the outside breeze come in (was around 35 outside) so we could get some sleep..didn't happen...We just felt incredibly hot and the soft mattress in the middle didn't help either...it was a relief to get out of the room and get some cooler air even in December!

I heard that the hotel is haunted by the ghosts of Mr and Mrs Stanley of the Stanley Steamer fame..if that's the case then they must have "steamed" our room because it felt like an sauna.. I definitely wouldn't recommend staying here for the summer especially in this room unless you enjoy the experiences of being in an sweat lodge..

The place does have one redeeming feature though..the hotel has a great restaurant and wait staff.. we ate in the bar during our first nite and was treated to tasty buffalo chili nachos and some great wine...the Xmas buffet was incredible and the buffet staff was extremely gracious, courteous and accomodating (maybe they found out we stayed in Room 405 and felt bad for us)...we even ran into the same friendly waiter who served us in the bar the nite before.

the front desk though is manned by some younger kids and they weren't as accomodating or helpful..

my conclusion..stay elsewhere..but come here for the food and drinks...