I'll start by qualifying the 4 star review by saying it's really 3.5 stars, but until my neverending request for Yelp to allow half-stars in the review is realized, I'll have to just pick one. And I'll round up.
We've stayed at these condos every year for 4 years now and I have no intention of going elsewhere in the future. It's just about right at the base of Canyon Lodge, which unlike Main lodge isnt insanely crowded, and unlike Eagle lodge isn't far out of the way. The Gondola to Mammoth Village is also at Canyon Lodge, so you can take that straight down with no worries. From the condos to the lodge it's about 100 yards, but there's only one other place to stay that's closer and their amenities aren't as good.
Canyon has free parking in a spacious lot, and the options of condo sizes are plenty. This last time we stayed in a 2 BR 3 BTH plus loft, which slept 6 people quite comfortably and everyone had their own bathroom (a MUST!). It also had WiFi (also a MUST), cable TV, a dining room, bar, storage closet, and full kitchen. The living room had comfy furniture (which we used to watch the NFL games on during MLK weekend while we were there) and the heating units do a fine job of keeping the whole place nice and comfy.
Right across the parking lot (about 50 foot walk) is the rec center, which includes a big screen tv, pool table, sauna, laundry, towels, and 2 very nice, large in-ground hot tubs. Normally I stay away from hot tubs since they're the closest thing to a petri dish you can get outside a laboratory, but these are obviously maintained, cleaned, and actually rarely used...I was always the only one there every time I went in the afternoon. They're also private even though they're outside, and nobody can get in without a key to the condo units.
Now we get to the loss of 1.5 stars: 2 things, mainly:
#1- there is no maid service, which is fine since they're condos, not a hotel. And they do towel exchange, which means you can bring all your used towels to the rec center and get all new, freshly cleaned towels. You can do this every day...BUT only between the hours of 3:30pm-5:30pm. While you can argue that is the perfect time, since the mountain closes at 4pm and everyone should be back home during that window, this would be true IF the guy that ran the towel exchange was actually there. But he wasn't, and left a very poorly spelled sign saying to call a number if nobody was there. Only problem with that was 1) the number only had 7 digits...no area code. What area code was i supposed to dial?! and 2) When we figured that part out (we guessed), he didn't answer. We had to call the main Chamonix admin line, and the woman there had to keep trying to get a hold of him for a half hour and eventually called us back when she found him. Only a minor annoyance, but loss of half a star.
#2- This loses a full star: The beds. Please, for the love of the ski and snowboard gods, if you own or rent a condo at one of the most popular mountains in the west coast, at the base of a lodge, where you KNOW people are always going to be renting it, at least get some decent beds! The beds, while mostly comfortable when laying still, were like water beds when you moved even the slightest bit...and they werent water beds. If the other person in the bed moves even slightly, your whole bed will bounce and roll for 3 seconds. It's impossible to not wake the other person up if you move. Both couples in each bedrooms complained about this...word to the wise, we stayed in unit A-2, which by all other accounts is a great unit. Just bring a sleeping bag or plan to sleep on the couch, which is actually quite comfy. read more