Wife, daughter and I stayed three nights in The Ahwahnee in the course of an October Yosemite visit. The public areas are beautiful, the rooms are small and worn. The restaurant is fine for one dinner but the menu is not extensive and nothing changes from night to night. The breakfast buffet is very good and it is impressive how they succeed in mass producing high quality Eggs Benedict. The hotel staff is typical Yosemite -- good people who know their stuff. The dining room staff is a bit of an anomaly as I am seldom served anymore by folks who are older than I am ... but no contest here! Maybe my expectations were too high but I just was not impressed by The Ahwahnee. Yosemite Lodge is a better choice for in-park accommodations. As an aside, the park was lovely in October, the weather was great and some of the falls were still running.

My wife and I decided to spend a few days in the fall at Yosemite and signed up for the Vintners' Holiday. This was a welcome experience. Arrived Sunday the 4th of Nov and attended the welcome reception, where we could taste four different wines from the four wineries participating in the event. A very nice crowd in a great mood and everybody seemed to be there to have a pleasant time. The wineries participating in our event where Wild Horse, Simi, Halleck and Louis M. Martini. It was a time to learn about wine making, tasting and mingling with the winemakers at a beautiful setting. The fall in Yosemite showed lots of colors of reds and yellows, but little water. There was no water in Yosemite Falls and a trickle in the Merced river, but that created a peace and quiet in the valley. My wife and I walked all over the valley and enjoyed the wonderful weather (72F) and scenery and took a lot of pictures. If you have never been to Yosemite in the fall, try it. No crowds and peace and quiet. Of course we were fortunate with the weather, because a storm was coming in that weekend. No chains for us required. We enjoyed the Vintners' Holidays and if you like tasting wine and mingled with a great group of people you should definitely try it. By the way we stayed at Yosemite Lodge and used the shuttle bus service available free in the valley.

I have been visiting Yosemite Valley nearly every year since 1955. Most of those visits have been camping in Lower Pines Campgrounds and enjoying every minute. A couple years ago we decided to splurge and stay at the Ahwahnee right after a snow storm. What a treat! The grand lobby with the massive fireplaces, the iconic restaurant with the tall raw timbers and views make this spot unforgettable. Take a quiet, evening walk in the snow and listen to the stillness and view the beauty.

I've lived in California all my life (not saying how long that is but it's past the real point you don't like!) but just went to Yosemite for the first time. My parents debate whether we went when I was a kid but if we did I don't remember. Anyway, what an awesome trip. Late October of this year (2012). Roads up there had been recently resurfaced. Drove the BMW which really shows why they call it the Ultimate Driving Experience! Beautiful, fun mountain drive and then you hit the valley and it's jaw dropping. Stayed at the Ahwahnee. Majestic lodge. First, let's get real. It was built in the 1920s and they haven't done the "multi-million renovation". I think that's a good thing -- it adds the charm. Room was quite comfortable with a good bed, small sitting area, view of Half Dome, a fine, functioning bathroom, and a big walk-in closet. Great hot water and water pressure. Nothing bad about this at all. I loved that to get ice, you walked down to the elevators and opened a rustic chest and inside was an ice chest of ice!

We went to attend a wedding held at the Ahwahnee. Breathtaking. And the dinner was probably one of the best banquet meals I have ever had. Also had several meals in the Dining Room. It's a grand dining hall with beautiful huge windows with views of the towering cliffs outside and the woods around the hotel. I'd give the food a 3.5. A little overpriced for the quality. The banquet was actually better food (go figure). I will say that for one dinner we had prime rib and it was very good. The accompaniments didn't match the quality though. Also had the Sunday brunch which is quite the production. As buffets go, I was pretty happy. Tons of selections. Be patient with the service though. This is in the sticks, not Manhattan! They were all very nice.

If a stay at the Ahwahnee is on your list (I hate bucket list!), I would highly encourage you to go. October was terrific. The weather was great and crowds very manageable. Only downside is that there's very little water in the falls. I hear May is incredible but can still be quite cold. We had high 70s and on the last night, it rained so there was snow on the mountains as we drove out. What could be better than that!!