Mohonk Mountain House Sauna
Mohonk Mountain House Sauna Pictures & Reviews (New Paltz, NY)
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... we bring our own or must we order drinks from the bar? 5) Can you use the spa area - sauna/outdoor mineral spa, etc without buying a service? Is there a fee one can pay just...
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Dec 2023
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We just got back from a 3 night post-labor day Mohonk experience. I decided to write this review because even Mohonk's employees acknowledged and recognized how terrible this resort is. In fact, they said it is an open secret that this resort relies on its history and brand name to overcharge customers.
Every person we spoke with this week has had almost the same feedback--the resort is a rip off and not worth a fraction of the cost.
Here is what you ACTUALLY get when you spend over $1200+ per night here:
1. A sparse room with the bed you asked for and sometimes a balcony, bare minimum toiletries, and 2 bottles of water. No decorations or small details (maybe for $1000+ a night, you'd leave a chocolate on the pillow or something) to make you feel like the room is worthy of this price. (But WAIT! it's not just the room. Keep reading and you'll see why I keep bringing up the price tag).
2. Your three meals are included, but if you go during the weekdays, the ONLY dining option available is from the Main Dining Hall. You're ONLY allowed to order one item per course, which makes sense if the portions or value are all relatively equal. One steak entree was huge, but the fish option was half the size of my palm. Now the question is, when you have a resort in the mountains, and you have people hiking, swimming, rowing on the lake etc., are you expecting people to be happy with ordering only 1 item and for that item to be a size that can't even be considered a starter?
Not only that, the food was overcooked, over-salted, and in my case, burnt.
To be fair, our servers did allow us to order more than one item from each course, and ONLY 1 of them gave us attitude about it. At the end of the day, the food and the service here isn't the worst part of the experience. Keep reading if your interest is piqued at how the Smiley family (Founders of Mohonk) have basically capitalized on their ancestors' success and has now turned this resort into a money grabbing operation.
3. Let's talk activities. Yes, Mohonk is quite beautiful when the sun is out. All the activities the resort boasts though has nothing to do with the resort itself.
So what happens when it's raining, which is quite common in Mohonk? Absolutely nothing.
If it rains heavily on your trip, you're out of luck. You can't hike because the paths are too wet; you can't go onto the lake because who wants to row in a lake when it rains. Archery and Tomahawk throwing gets cancelled; no lawn games because it's raining. No horse riding because it's raining. Basically, EVERYTHING the resort promises you becomes nonexistent when it rains.
You'll say "well the resort can't help if it rains." Yes Act of God and what not. Except here's a question: if you know there is a tendency for rain and if you know most of your activities are outdoors, wouldn't you make some effort to think of real alternatives?
Here is what you can actually do when it rains: hike anyway and get drenched; go to the game room which has 4 table games; sit on the balcony and watch the rain; or endure the terrible and off-key musical acts Mohonk hires.
Now back to what happens when the weather is nice. Yes it was nice today, our last day here and we spent it on the lake. The row boats and canoes were fine, but get this: you can rent fishing poles, BUT THEY RAN OUT OF BAIT LOL.
You can also do some archery and tomahawk throwing but every bow is broken and all the arrows are either missing feathers or just worn out. The tomahawk throwing was fun though. You may think I'm exaggerating, but we checked each bow (there were only 4).
Now if you've read up to this part, I commend you because the first three points should be enough to warn anybody to be careful about booking this trip. But in case you still don't believe me, keep reading.
4. THE SPA IS NOT INCLUDED in your stay, no matter HOW MUCH they allude to this when you speak with them on the phone.
The SPA is only accessible for people who PAY for an extra service. Yes. For $1200+ a night, you must also pay additionally to use their minuscule mineral pool, sleep in their rest area, and use the locker room sauna + steam room.
The pool they rave about? Unheated. It was clean but hardly anyone went into the pool because of how cold it was.
Were the massages good at least? Save yourself the trouble. They claim their massages are one thing, but end up giving you a normal swedish massage. I was promised Thai stretching; i did not get stretched. I was promised a calf and foot massage, I got a foot rub with some exfoliating lotion on my calves.
TLDR: the cost (room, dining, activities, spa) is just not worth what they give you. The Mohonk name may be historic, but it is not worth $1200+ a night.
Save yourself the agony and book an all-inclusive resort experience in Cancun or something. That's what we should have done.
Every person we spoke with this week has had almost the same feedback--the resort is a rip off and not worth a fraction of the cost.
Here is what you ACTUALLY get when you spend over $1200+ per night here:
1. A sparse room with the bed you asked for and sometimes a balcony, bare minimum toiletries, and 2 bottles of water. No decorations or small details (maybe for $1000+ a night, you'd leave a chocolate on the pillow or something) to make you feel like the room is worthy of this price. (But WAIT! it's not just the room. Keep reading and you'll see why I keep bringing up the price tag).
2. Your three meals are included, but if you go during the weekdays, the ONLY dining option available is from the Main Dining Hall. You're ONLY allowed to order one item per course, which makes sense if the portions or value are all relatively equal. One steak entree was huge, but the fish option was half the size of my palm. Now the question is, when you have a resort in the mountains, and you have people hiking, swimming, rowing on the lake etc., are you expecting people to be happy with ordering only 1 item and for that item to be a size that can't even be considered a starter?
Not only that, the food was overcooked, over-salted, and in my case, burnt.
To be fair, our servers did allow us to order more than one item from each course, and ONLY 1 of them gave us attitude about it. At the end of the day, the food and the service here isn't the worst part of the experience. Keep reading if your interest is piqued at how the Smiley family (Founders of Mohonk) have basically capitalized on their ancestors' success and has now turned this resort into a money grabbing operation.
3. Let's talk activities. Yes, Mohonk is quite beautiful when the sun is out. All the activities the resort boasts though has nothing to do with the resort itself.
So what happens when it's raining, which is quite common in Mohonk? Absolutely nothing.
If it rains heavily on your trip, you're out of luck. You can't hike because the paths are too wet; you can't go onto the lake because who wants to row in a lake when it rains. Archery and Tomahawk throwing gets cancelled; no lawn games because it's raining. No horse riding because it's raining. Basically, EVERYTHING the resort promises you becomes nonexistent when it rains.
You'll say "well the resort can't help if it rains." Yes Act of God and what not. Except here's a question: if you know there is a tendency for rain and if you know most of your activities are outdoors, wouldn't you make some effort to think of real alternatives?
Here is what you can actually do when it rains: hike anyway and get drenched; go to the game room which has 4 table games; sit on the balcony and watch the rain; or endure the terrible and off-key musical acts Mohonk hires.
Now back to what happens when the weather is nice. Yes it was nice today, our last day here and we spent it on the lake. The row boats and canoes were fine, but get this: you can rent fishing poles, BUT THEY RAN OUT OF BAIT LOL.
You can also do some archery and tomahawk throwing but every bow is broken and all the arrows are either missing feathers or just worn out. The tomahawk throwing was fun though. You may think I'm exaggerating, but we checked each bow (there were only 4).
Now if you've read up to this part, I commend you because the first three points should be enough to warn anybody to be careful about booking this trip. But in case you still don't believe me, keep reading.
4. THE SPA IS NOT INCLUDED in your stay, no matter HOW MUCH they allude to this when you speak with them on the phone.
The SPA is only accessible for people who PAY for an extra service. Yes. For $1200+ a night, you must also pay additionally to use their minuscule mineral pool, sleep in their rest area, and use the locker room sauna + steam room.
The pool they rave about? Unheated. It was clean but hardly anyone went into the pool because of how cold it was.
Were the massages good at least? Save yourself the trouble. They claim their massages are one thing, but end up giving you a normal swedish massage. I was promised Thai stretching; i did not get stretched. I was promised a calf and foot massage, I got a foot rub with some exfoliating lotion on my calves.
TLDR: the cost (room, dining, activities, spa) is just not worth what they give you. The Mohonk name may be historic, but it is not worth $1200+ a night.
Save yourself the agony and book an all-inclusive resort experience in Cancun or something. That's what we should have done.
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
I stayed over for several nights with family. The lodge is beautiful, with many porches with rocking chairs, and many vistas to enjoy the surrounding view. Most service and the food were great overall. And numerous nature trails and rock scrambles are immediately accessible from the property.
The biggest disappointment for me was the LACK of true FITNESS CLASSES. There were only 4-5 classes offered per day (August peak time), and many were meditation or relaxation without any cardio or strength-training. This would have been nice, especially on the rainy days, which were half of my stay. The tai chi/acupressure classes were good, but it would have been nice to have other options as well. I attended Zumba with Alisha, but this was disappointing as she repeated all of the songs twice.
The on-site SPA is lovely, but *only* accessible if you have a treatment that day (or $25 for a day pass). So I wouldn't really include it as an amenity, even for overnight guests unfortunately. The jacuzzi/sauna/steam room were nice, but the treatments for me were hit or miss. I had a mediocre massage with Susan, and an excellent one with Hope.
DINNER in the formal dining room and the buffets for breakfast and lunch were typically delectable, with only a few exceptions. Sometimes parts of dishes were over-salted, all of the grains were mushy/overcooked (risotto, quinoa, etc.). There was also one evening in the West dining room - Monday, perhaps - when the dishes at our table were poor across the board. Service was often slow.
TRAILS on-site were excellent, although sometimes poorly signed. Despite directions from different staff members on multiple days, we never managed to find the "Lemon Squeeze." The trails and scrambles I did experience were lovely. A good range of difficulty levels, with many lookout points and benches to enjoy the beautiful scenery.
If you get a chance to go ROCK CLIMBING through Alpine Endeavors on the property, that is highly recommended!
Would possibly go back for additional hiking and/or a spa treatment, but not to stay overnight.
The biggest disappointment for me was the LACK of true FITNESS CLASSES. There were only 4-5 classes offered per day (August peak time), and many were meditation or relaxation without any cardio or strength-training. This would have been nice, especially on the rainy days, which were half of my stay. The tai chi/acupressure classes were good, but it would have been nice to have other options as well. I attended Zumba with Alisha, but this was disappointing as she repeated all of the songs twice.
The on-site SPA is lovely, but *only* accessible if you have a treatment that day (or $25 for a day pass). So I wouldn't really include it as an amenity, even for overnight guests unfortunately. The jacuzzi/sauna/steam room were nice, but the treatments for me were hit or miss. I had a mediocre massage with Susan, and an excellent one with Hope.
DINNER in the formal dining room and the buffets for breakfast and lunch were typically delectable, with only a few exceptions. Sometimes parts of dishes were over-salted, all of the grains were mushy/overcooked (risotto, quinoa, etc.). There was also one evening in the West dining room - Monday, perhaps - when the dishes at our table were poor across the board. Service was often slow.
TRAILS on-site were excellent, although sometimes poorly signed. Despite directions from different staff members on multiple days, we never managed to find the "Lemon Squeeze." The trails and scrambles I did experience were lovely. A good range of difficulty levels, with many lookout points and benches to enjoy the beautiful scenery.
If you get a chance to go ROCK CLIMBING through Alpine Endeavors on the property, that is highly recommended!
Would possibly go back for additional hiking and/or a spa treatment, but not to stay overnight.
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Responded Aug 30, 2014
Dear Alex,
Thank you for taking the time to share your review of Mohonk Mountain House regarding your recent stay. We are delighted that you enjoyed our facility and took advantage of the many offerings that are included in the price for overnight guests. We are always interested in learning about what is important and of interest to our guests. We take pride in our ability to offer a wide variety of activities during every season and make every effort to accommodate all interests. Our rates do include three meals a day and afternoon tea and cookies, and whenever possible our meals incorporate seasonal, local ingredients prepared by award-winning chefs. Vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free options are also available.
Please contact us at bmoran@mohonk.com so that we can discuss the ways in which we can make your next stay with us even better by providing opportunities for the types of activities you most enjoy and also, whenever possible, provide for you the menu items that better suit your taste.
Brian Moran
845.256.2149
Guest Relations Manager
Thank you for taking the time to share your review of Mohonk Mountain House regarding your recent stay. We are delighted that you enjoyed our facility and took advantage of the many offerings that are included in the price for overnight guests. We are always interested in learning about what is important and of interest to our guests. We take pride in our ability to offer a wide variety of activities during every season and make every effort to accommodate all interests. Our rates do include three meals a day and afternoon tea and cookies, and whenever possible our meals incorporate seasonal, local ingredients prepared by award-winning chefs. Vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free options are also available.
Please contact us at bmoran@mohonk.com so that we can discuss the ways in which we can make your next stay with us even better by providing opportunities for the types of activities you most enjoy and also, whenever possible, provide for you the menu items that better suit your taste.
Brian Moran
845.256.2149
Guest Relations Manager
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Sitting along the banks of Mohonk Lake, the Mohonk Mountain House is nothing short of breathtaking. This resort boasts lakefront old world charm that includes impeccably kept grounds and hiking trails. A visit to Mohonk always gives a feeling of traveling back through time. With its grand structure, part of which dates back to the late 1800's, big wrap around porches and balcony rooms, Mohonk is as inviting as a warm blanket on a chilly winters day! Once inside, you will find big sturdy wood beams and doorways, old photos hung about and lengthy beautiful windows, that accent both mountain and lake views, as you walk the graceful halls of this historic landmark.
There are a few different types of rooms. For the romantic I suggest the older, darker rooms complete with fireplace and balcony. For a girls spa/hiking weekend, you may wish to reserve the newer, brighter, recently refurbished rooms near the spa.
The spa is exudes a modern type of serene luxury, complete with a wonderful staff. The ladies working the spa's check-in desk were helpful and courteous and the spa manager went above and beyond to make our spa experience the very best. My girlfriends and I all had the "Red" treatment on day one and an extended 90 minute massage on day two. We were all very happy with our services and our therapists. The indoor pool looked so inviting but we did not have the chance to enjoy it as our schedules were packed. We did manage to relax and take in the view from the outdoor mineral spa, which was wonderful. We also visited the steam room and the sauna, enjoying both. The spa's common areas are beautiful, with floor to ceiling windows overlooking the trees and mountain tops. The facility was immaculately clean and the showers and delicious smelling bath products added to a wonderful experience.
Speaking of a view, the dining room is also a wall of windows offering a spectacular view of the property and the valley and mountain beyond. It is the perfect place to watch the evening sky turn rich colors of reds and oranges as the sun sets. We ate breakfast, brunch and dinner in the dining room during our stay and loved every meal.
The trails make for a great, healthy day trip. The grounds are beautifully maintained and the view across the lake can be breathtaking! On a nice day you may find a local artist making magic with oils and canvas.
We even saw a wedding. How grand to see a double horse drawn carriage pull up under the massive rock arch out front and have the happy couple and their family board the carriage. It just enhanced that old world Mohonk charm.
I am on Mohonk's mailing list and, must admit, waited for a mid-week sale...this made the resort affordable to our entire party and left us more options when choosing our spa treatments.
Having visited Mohonk a few times, I must say --in my opinion-- autumn was the best time to visit. All the beautiful colors reflecting off the lake made for a picture perfect setting but April was beautiful as well, as the trees began budding and the greens along the grounds started growing. NO time is a bad time to visit!
Can't wait to return!
There are a few different types of rooms. For the romantic I suggest the older, darker rooms complete with fireplace and balcony. For a girls spa/hiking weekend, you may wish to reserve the newer, brighter, recently refurbished rooms near the spa.
The spa is exudes a modern type of serene luxury, complete with a wonderful staff. The ladies working the spa's check-in desk were helpful and courteous and the spa manager went above and beyond to make our spa experience the very best. My girlfriends and I all had the "Red" treatment on day one and an extended 90 minute massage on day two. We were all very happy with our services and our therapists. The indoor pool looked so inviting but we did not have the chance to enjoy it as our schedules were packed. We did manage to relax and take in the view from the outdoor mineral spa, which was wonderful. We also visited the steam room and the sauna, enjoying both. The spa's common areas are beautiful, with floor to ceiling windows overlooking the trees and mountain tops. The facility was immaculately clean and the showers and delicious smelling bath products added to a wonderful experience.
Speaking of a view, the dining room is also a wall of windows offering a spectacular view of the property and the valley and mountain beyond. It is the perfect place to watch the evening sky turn rich colors of reds and oranges as the sun sets. We ate breakfast, brunch and dinner in the dining room during our stay and loved every meal.
The trails make for a great, healthy day trip. The grounds are beautifully maintained and the view across the lake can be breathtaking! On a nice day you may find a local artist making magic with oils and canvas.
We even saw a wedding. How grand to see a double horse drawn carriage pull up under the massive rock arch out front and have the happy couple and their family board the carriage. It just enhanced that old world Mohonk charm.
I am on Mohonk's mailing list and, must admit, waited for a mid-week sale...this made the resort affordable to our entire party and left us more options when choosing our spa treatments.
Having visited Mohonk a few times, I must say --in my opinion-- autumn was the best time to visit. All the beautiful colors reflecting off the lake made for a picture perfect setting but April was beautiful as well, as the trees began budding and the greens along the grounds started growing. NO time is a bad time to visit!
Can't wait to return!
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Room Tip: If you are looking for bright and airy, ask for one of the newly refurbished rooms in the spa wing.
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
My husband and I stayed for one night over Memorial Day weekend. As an overnight guest, you are welcome to use their facilities for 2 full days. Check in is at 4, but we arrived much earlier and roamed the property to see what was going on. Also, I made a spa appointment for 3pm, so I'd be ready to check in at 4. More about that later.
The staff could not be more helpful. And, there is an abundance of staff. Everyone is gracious and extremely pleasant and welcoming.
The property is OLD, but very well maintained. The décor is period style for an historic property. We stayed in a king room, and it was spacious and very clean with a well appointed bathroom. No TV (my husband gasped). The bed was pretty squishy. I might recommend upgrading the mattresses. But, the linens were gorgeous and the pillows were top quality down. In the common areas, so many rooms to relax by a fire, grab a book or newspaper, play a game, etc. For us, this was great as our visit was during a few rainy days.
If you enjoy the outdoors, this is a fantastic resort for you. So many hikers ... seems like most guests were geared in Under Armour attire ready to climb. There's also a golf course, pool, boating, horseback riding, among many other activities planned by the resort for people of all ages.
The spa is absolutely gorgeous. I loved the waiting area with lounge chairs and fruit & beverages. There are showers and steam room and sauna for day guests as well as overnight guests. I arranged for a facial and some hand/foot treatments. The woman who performed my facial was very thorough and gentle. She asked the right questions and was obviously very well trained. I'll admit, it was not the best facial I've ever had, but it was far from the worst. The hand and foot treatments were $20 each and I think I'd skip those if I went back.
The food is plentiful. They offer a very nice assortment sure to please every taste or diet. I would say the food was very tasty and well prepared. Way better than you might expect for mass produced offerings (the have to feed SO MANY guests!). We ate at the buffets for each meal, so I cannot comment on the formal dining room. I found the food to be very good, but not overwhelmingly gourmet in any way. For the price, we felt compelled not to miss a meal, but personally, I just cannot eat that much. We went to dinner the first night, breakfast the next morning and lunch before we were ready to check out. By lunch, I had 2 small scoops of chicken salad and called it quits.
Speaking of checkout...1pm checkout is fabulous! Most hotels require morning checkout, and I always feel rushed. 1pm was a nice relaxing checkout time.
Lots of activities were going on during our stay. There was a family celebration with lots of people running around, many families with children of all ages, older couples, younger couples... this place offers something for everyone. I definitely recommend Mohonk very highly.
The staff could not be more helpful. And, there is an abundance of staff. Everyone is gracious and extremely pleasant and welcoming.
The property is OLD, but very well maintained. The décor is period style for an historic property. We stayed in a king room, and it was spacious and very clean with a well appointed bathroom. No TV (my husband gasped). The bed was pretty squishy. I might recommend upgrading the mattresses. But, the linens were gorgeous and the pillows were top quality down. In the common areas, so many rooms to relax by a fire, grab a book or newspaper, play a game, etc. For us, this was great as our visit was during a few rainy days.
If you enjoy the outdoors, this is a fantastic resort for you. So many hikers ... seems like most guests were geared in Under Armour attire ready to climb. There's also a golf course, pool, boating, horseback riding, among many other activities planned by the resort for people of all ages.
The spa is absolutely gorgeous. I loved the waiting area with lounge chairs and fruit & beverages. There are showers and steam room and sauna for day guests as well as overnight guests. I arranged for a facial and some hand/foot treatments. The woman who performed my facial was very thorough and gentle. She asked the right questions and was obviously very well trained. I'll admit, it was not the best facial I've ever had, but it was far from the worst. The hand and foot treatments were $20 each and I think I'd skip those if I went back.
The food is plentiful. They offer a very nice assortment sure to please every taste or diet. I would say the food was very tasty and well prepared. Way better than you might expect for mass produced offerings (the have to feed SO MANY guests!). We ate at the buffets for each meal, so I cannot comment on the formal dining room. I found the food to be very good, but not overwhelmingly gourmet in any way. For the price, we felt compelled not to miss a meal, but personally, I just cannot eat that much. We went to dinner the first night, breakfast the next morning and lunch before we were ready to check out. By lunch, I had 2 small scoops of chicken salad and called it quits.
Speaking of checkout...1pm checkout is fabulous! Most hotels require morning checkout, and I always feel rushed. 1pm was a nice relaxing checkout time.
Lots of activities were going on during our stay. There was a family celebration with lots of people running around, many families with children of all ages, older couples, younger couples... this place offers something for everyone. I definitely recommend Mohonk very highly.
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Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
The first impression upon arrival at the Mohonk Mountain House is thrilling. The massive property has both a breath-taking situation, a long and interesting history and warm, welcoming Staff. However, beware that the size of the hotel does not allow for an intimate experience: the vast dining salon is noisy, children are running around the hallways (very audible within bedrooms) and very little space is dedicated to a quiet environment. Three meals are included with the room booking and this is particularly important since the hotel is rather isolated. However, flexibility in the meal schedule was sorely missed (and, dare I say, snacks in between). The award winning SPA was overall a relaxing experience, however, it is a long way from being a top tier spa - the steam/sauna were poor and jacuzzi small. Is this really the "best spa in NY state"? In summary, when booking at the Mohonk Mountain House, you should expect a 3-star hotel in all aspects: rooms, meals and facilities. Particularly suitable for families with young children, this hotel will provide you with a rustic, unsophisticated experience. The Staff deserves a 5 star for friendliness and service. Price-wise, not great value for money.
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
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1. Main dining room much better
2. We had lunch first day and breakfast last.
3. I think around 7:00 or so
4. I think you need to call.
5. You need to ask.