Overall the lodge was shabby, though in a way that might be appealing to some people. But the service was dreadful because they clearly discriminate against families with children, and that warrants the one star.
At breakfast I asked on behalf of my family of four, with two young children, if we could be seated by the window so the kids could enjoy the view while we ate. I had told them of my own memories of park lodges and the fun of breakfast. Instead the waitress said it wasn't possible, seated us next to the door in the worst seat in the room, and then proceeded to seat literally the three groups in line behind us near the window, filling all the empty tables. We asked our waitress if we could move to a table that opened up, and she muttered something about having to see, and then proceeded to ice us out -- we didn't see her again except to drop our food on the table and then have our check unceremoniously dumped on us without asking. Meanwhile, we noticed that the window seats were consistently given to guests with no children, once because a couple asked and the hostess accommodated, while families with children were seated elsewhere. We eventually spoke to the manager, and the answer we got every time was that it had something to do with their wait staff rotation, but in reality there was no reason we couldn't be accommodated since the tables all got filled at the same time and it made no difference who got seated where.
So the staff at this lodge hate children and discriminate against families who have them. Throw in the fact that the shabbiness extended to the gross, sticky floors of their rooms and the musty odor of the place, and your best bet is to go literally anywhere else. read more