My husband and I went to Kit Carson Lodge in July for three days to celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary. We had been looking forward to the trip for months.
I called the day of our reservation to confirm the cabin and there was no mention of a problem. When we arrived to check in we were told that it (Rainbow) was having a septic problem and we would have to check into another cabin (Gray Squirrel). We asked if that meant we would have to move during our stay and the nice girl helping us was unsure. She asked us to check back in the office the next morning at 9 am and the owner would be there. She told us we did not have to pay our outstanding balance yet because she was sure the owner would "take care of us" somehow because of the hassle.
We checked into the Gray Squirrel and unloaded all of our stuff, and since these are housekeeping cabins and you bring everything, that means we unloaded coolers, dry goods, extra cooking supplies, etc. so we could make dinner that night. The Gray Squirrel also seemed to have a septic problem and my husband had to plunge the toilet repeatedly to get it to flush that night.
The next morning we went to the lodge and found we would indeed have to move out of the Gray Squirrel because it was reserved for other guests. The bad news was that the Rainbow cabin was still being worked on. The owner was apologetic and appreciative at our willingness to move and he and another worker helped us move our stuff from one cabin to the other in a golf cart. We may be overpackers, but it was still a pain to hurriedly throw everything into the cart and move cabins. Unloading and reloading the fridge and cabinets of our supplies was the biggest hassle. When we got to the Rainbow cabin we were very pleased with the cabin, view, location, and cleanliness.
Unfortunately, there was no water in the Rainbow cabin due to whatever problem they were having so we could not use the sink/shower/toilet while they were working on it. They were again apologetic, but we were told that we had to walk down to the lodge front desk, ask for a key, and then walk to the outdoor bathrooms anytime we needed to use the toilet or sink. The workers were in, under, and in front of the cabin for most of the day working in an open sewer pit right off of the deck. Nice people, but not quite the privacy we had planned for our 20th anniversary celebration. Finally, shortly after 3 pm, they let us know that all was well and we could use the bathroom and they were leaving us.
That evening I went to take a shower and found we had no hot water. It was after 9 pm and the front desk was closed. I boiled hot water on the stove to wash dishes that evening and the next morning. The next morning, we awoke smelling gas. My husband checked the pilot light in the oven and it was out so he lit it. When the office opened we went down to let them know that we didn't have any hot water. It turns out they had blown out several pilot lights the day before and had either not realized or forgotten that our cabin was affected. We went back to the cabin and the maintenance folks soon showed up to relight all of the pilot lights in the cabin. At this point (mid-Wednesday morning) all of our maintenance issues had been resolved. (We had checked in Monday). We made the best of it and had a wonderful time, but we were a bit irked that out of our entire stay only 24 hours of it was in a trouble-free cabin. The staff was very kind and apologetic and kept telling us that Mike would "do right by us." One of the workers brought us a bottle of wine that evening and although I told him we didn't drink, it was a nice gesture.
Upon checkout, the girl at the front desk still didn't know what to charge us. Mike was off the property, and she was sure he was going to give us some sort of discount. She asked us to pay the entire balance and said he would call us later that day and they would provide a credit. Once home that afternoon, My husband called and asked to speak to Mike and was told that he was still unavailable. He ended up calling three separate times and Mike wouldn't even get on the line or give him a call back. We were shocked that he wouldn't return the call, even if to say that he wasn't doing anything for us or refunding any of our money.
Other than the maintenance issues and the situation with Mike not returning our call or making good on his promise, EVERYTHING else was amazing. The food in the restaurant, the service in the restaurant, store, and front desk, and the setting were all exceptional. We thoroughly enjoyed everything about the trip, the location, the resort, and the employees, other than our cabin issues. The accommodations are pricey, but I think it would have been worth it - IF - everything had been working and the cabin was truly ready for us when we arrived. The maintenance issues and lack of follow up by the owner has left a bit of a bad taste in our mouths. I think we would return again, but am not entirely sure. read more