Amazing location. Almost don't want to leave a review so it can remain a secret. Mt. Baker Lodging did a great job setting us up. Highly recommend, great for families with kiddos 12 and younger. read more

Snowater Resort - Views from the Snowater - Vacation Rentals Near Me - Deming, Washington

Snowater and Resorts West Vacation Club: Esoteric Cascades Mountains The genesis for this business/ski trip was serendipitous. A primary professional organization to which I have been a lifelong member decided to hold a membership lottery. I have presented scholarly papers, chaired several committees, served on the national Board of Directors, and certify national higher educational programs for this organization. The national organization prepared a lottery for professors who recruited new members, and I was entered automatically in the lottery. The lottery prize consisted of two coach tickets to any national/international conference anywhere in the continental U.S. Little did I suspect that I would win free airline tickets. I already had papers accepted for presentation at an international conference in Vancouver, British Columbia. Remember the airline tickets were negotiable for the U.S. I know U.S. and Canadian geography. We redeemed the prize tickets for round trip coach tickets to Bellingham, WA. Do you know the location of Bellingham, WA.? Bellingham, WA. is beautiful town located on the Puget Sound, and Bellingham is one and one-half hour south of Vancouver, British Columbia. Nearby is Snowater and Resorts West Vacation Club. Snowater and Resorts West Vacation Club is only a twenty-minute drive to the Mount Baker Ski Area that has an average annual snowpack of 250 inches and fantastic skiing from November through April. Delta quickly redeemed the lottery prize, and we used our Delta Elite membership to upgrade to first class from Dayton to Sea-Tac international airport. Normally Sea-Tac international airport has a hefty cab fee into Seattle, and the rental car drive into Seattle might be an unpleasant experience due to heavy traffic. However, we were able to by-pass this problem because we connected with Alaskan Air to Bellingham, WA. We were somewhat amazed at the quality of service of Alaskan Air. Naturally, we were flying a commuter flight from Sea-Tac to Bellingham, WA. To our surprise the flight attendants were serving free wine to all passengers aboard the flight. I know several large carriers that could learn some lessons from Alaskan Air. Bellingham is a very small airport, and the car rental is a few steps from the luggage area. We always pack our own skis and ski boots for any ski trip. It is too much of a gamble to use rental ski equipment. Following deplaning we were home at Snowater and Resorts West Vacation Club within an hour. The following day we drove to Vancouver, B.C., presented the papers, found a great seafood restaurant for lunch, and returned to Snowater and Resorts West Vacation Club to prepare for nearly a week of skiing. Snowater is situated on the Nooksack River at the edge of the Mount Baker National Forest. Mount Baker is part of the Cascade Range. The Cascade Range is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to northern California. Many peaks in the Cascades exceed 10,000 feet, including Mount Hood (11,235 feet), Mount Rainier (14,410 feet). Most of the summits are extinct volcanoes, but Lassen Peak (10,457 feet) and several others have erupted in the recent past. Mount Baker (10,778 feet) steamed heavily in 1975, and Mount St. Helens (8,365 feet) erupted in 1980 and again in 1981. The Cascades are beautiful to view from a commercial jet, from the urban areas, and especially from the ski slopes. The Interval International website does not do justice to the interior and exterior beauty of Snowater and Resorts West Vacation Club. The cedar siding of the townhouses blends in with the mountain forest. Check in required minutes, and there is absolutely no confusion in locating the specific condo. The kitchen is very functional, as is the cookware and plate ware. The dining room and living room are comfortable. The fireplaces are essential for the ambiance of a mountain retreat. We had a two-bedroom unit, and the master bedroom is very usable and comfortable. We had plenty of room to spread out our skis and all the ski apparel. The window seats with the extended large windows permitted the outdoors to merge with the condo. Snowater and Resorts West Vacation Club is at an elevation of only 1,000 feet. This meant that it was virtually spring at the condo, but winter at the Mount Baker Ski Area. We were able to find provisions nearby. There are a few restaurants in the area. Our holiday focused on intense skiing, and we were pleased to prepare most of our meals at the condo. Following an exhaustive day of skiing, the Snowater and Resorts West Vacation Club sauna, hot tub, and heated pools were beneficial to tired muscles. We transitioned from a mountain of snow to a national park setting in spring conditions in a few minutes. Often in Centerville, Ohio, we might receive eight - thirteen inches of snow overnight. My snow blower will clear the driveway and sidewalks in less than an hour. read more

I wasn't sure at first what to think about the resort or the unit we rented for the week, but we were hopeful that the inside was more updated than the outside. Unfortunately we were so wrong! The The Snowater Resort is located next to a beautiful river with gorgeous surroundings of forests and on Mt. Baker Hwy. The resort offers 2 indoor pools with recreational tennis courts, basketball and playgrounds for the kids. The downside :0( our unit needs a lot of love & care from the owners and timeshare holders. There are 131 Full share owners & 43 Time share owners, which I would think the bulk of the group would pay more attention to update the facilities & units. One pool needs some love badly but the other pool is in great condition. The courts are well maintained & the 1 of the playgrounds is very new with lots of swings kids. Our unit was not clean. The dishes, cookware, bathroom & kitchen area felt dirty when we walked into the unit. The bulk bed upstairs could literally fall apart if you move the wrong way. The sponge for cleaning was black and stinky, the shower door did not close all the way which allows water to flow all over the floor. We will never again will stay here! This place is far from a resort status & don't check with ABNB, go here or google & get an honest review of the units. That was my mistake. I should have checked other sites prior to spending all of our vacation funds here. Side note: After speaking with the office who was very accommodating & helpful they explain we rented a private unit & not one of their units which are cared for much more & are updated/clean. There's a great spot pizza & coffee too! See next time & always support your community with love! read more

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If you are looking into getting away from your daily routine. This is definitely the place. Calm and quiet. We traveled the week of thanksgiving. read more

We are here in May 2021. What pandemic? This is definitely a quiet retreat far from bustling civilization! We visited Nooksack Falls and drove as far as possible, and intend to come back in August to visit Artists Point. Apparently one needs snowshoes to visit at this time of year. Skiing is closed for the season, so not much traffic and we enjoyed the views along the way. This resort is independent -- not part of a chain. We booked through RCI. We enjoyed the (very clean) indoor pool and spa, but - four flights of stairs to descend two stories get there!!! Nice locker room with showers. The second pool was closed. Table pool and table tennis are available for teens or anyone else. Outdoor equipment is available for bocce, pickleball, etc. The 3 story authentic historical log house is open to guests with a key. It has its own wifi and opportunities for card games, etc. The unit is homey (not "up to date" but clean and well equipped). One-person kitchen with jennair stove. Love the fireplace that turns on if it gets too cold. It has a thermostat. The best part of the resort is the Nooksack River and the trail. Did not mind the cleaning fee. That seems to be standard these days. In each unit: Direct TV, free long distance phone calls (cell phones don't work), and weak WIFI. Four stars because this place is just short of perfect. read more

Snowater Resort - Authentic hand-built historic log house. - Vacation Rentals Near Me - Deming, Washington

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Just bought one of the incredibly affordable Snowater timeshares because we loved the place so much. This is our first stay and the kids just love it. Perfect getaway with enough recreation to keep the little ones happy (they want to swim 3 times per day!) and enough beautiful scenery for the adults. Grounds are very well kept. Let's of families here this week and lots of long time owners as well. All we're very friendly and Snowater staff were as well. Short drive to my favorite ski area, and we can't wait to come back here in the summer and do some hiking. read more

The timeshare/resort: It had a beautiful view of the river. My kids loved the hiking trail, the riverfront beaches/rocks, and the pools. One of the pools is very dated, and has no chairs to sit and supervise your kids if you don't want to swim. My kids didn't mind how dated it was, they just wanted to swim. So both polls worked out great for us. The downside, yes, the decor is dated, but I had a real problem with the cleanliness. The down blankets on the beds are not dry cleaned after each stay. Ours blankets had, what looked to be, drool marks on them and the lamps in the unit were caked in dust. There were pine needles and dirt in and around our beds. Overall, it just felt dirty. Luckily we brought extra sleeping bags and decided to sleep on top of the blankets/beds. If you can look past the decor and deal with the dirt and grime, it's well worth it. Mt. Baker Snoqualmie National Forest: We checked in with the local Ranger Station who gave us a list of easy, kid friendly hikes. In the 4 days we stayed we saw salmon spawning, hiked an old growth forest with trees over 1000 years old, went to Nooksack Falls, hiked Artist's Point, Bagley Lakes trails, took stellar pictures of Mt. Shucksan, caught a glimpse of Mt. Baker and created amazing memories for our kids. read more

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Will never stay here again. I am a weed smoker and made sure to go outside to smoke. I often walked to the river to smoke since we were close to it. While I was napping mid-day, maintenance pounded on the door and lectured my 15 year olds about smoking weed outside. It obviously wasn't her. We were fined $100 (actually my boss was, she let me stay at her place). On the letter with the fee it said we left 10 minutes after my kids were notified that I shouldn't smoke weed outside. We left at least an hour later. I didn't realize you're not allowed to smoke outside. I will never stay at snowater again. The staff ruined our trip. They are on a power trip. read more

Snowater is set in a beautiful location, right in a national park, and used to be a wonderful (if a bit dated) place to stay. Unfortunately, they changed management and I'd strongly encourage you to stay somewhere else unless you want to be hassled and nickel-and-dimed. First, be prepared to be hit with hidden fees which can end up doubling the cost of your stay. The housecleaning fee alone is a surprise $120+ (not stated anywhere) which is ridiculous. Even worse, they don't do a great job of cleaning, you can find a number of other reviews complaining about dirty units. And they also expect you to inform on previous guests if you see even minor damage to the unit (like stains) - or else you will get charged for it. Isn't that their job? You are also required to pre-register any guests and pay a fee if you haven't done so. Checkout time is 10 am and check-in 4 pm, an hour earlier/later than anywhere else. But that's their attitude of management above customers. Lastly, we experienced a multi-day power outage and talking with other guests learned these are fairly common. All that was in the unit was a dinky couple of flashlights. Given the apparent frequency of power outages, you would think they would be prepared to help guests still enjoy their stay. I can't imagine what families would do with children when there is no way to cook (or even keep) food in the unit. Snowater has some wonderful facilities all surrounded by beautiful park. But its so horribly run, I'd encourage you to go stay at any of the other great places in the area (there are lots). On my way out, I noticed that timeshares were selling for "FREE" which tells you what's happened to the place. read more

We traded a week at Marriott's Timber Lodge (Lake Tahoe) for a week in a Snowater Timeshare unit. Our initial impression upon arrival was "what have we done?". We had invited family up to join us for the week and we felt obliged to call them and tell them to lower their expectations significantly. First off, the grounds are utterly stunning, and the pools are well-maintained and immaculate. The office staff is friendly and accommodating. As to the facilities: the unit was described as "2-bedroom". We knew ahead of time that one of the bedrooms would be a loft overlooking the living room, but the divider curtain that could be drawn across the opening did virtually nothing for sound and very little for blocking light either. (I hear that the divider curtains were installed at the insistence of one of the timeshare trading associations (Interval or RCI) because otherwise the units couldn't be called "2-bedroom".) There is a skylight in the loft bedroom, but again, the curtain is paper-thin and blocks nothing - so in midsummer, when it is bright before 5 AM (honest!), I was pretty much up then too. The kitchen is very well-equipped, but it is tiny - think "kitchenette" - and has a 2-burner electric range (albeit also with an electric grill and a full oven). The refrigerator is good-sized. The stairs up to the unit are wooden, and sagging in places. They could use replacement soon. I did see one set of stairs being rebuilt, so perhaps this is an ongoing project. There actually is WiFi service in the recreation center and in the clubhouse - it's satellite and somewhat slow, but it does exist. They only have purchased a certain amount of bandwidth per day though, and when it's gone, they turn the routers off. Only once was I unable to connect, though. They do ask people not to use it for bandwidth-sucking activities such as videos and gaming, but it's useful for email and Facebook, things like that. It's a bit misleading to say they have 2 pools, even though they in fact do, because the clubhouse pool is only open on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and holidays, or when the recreation center pool is closed for some reason. The recreation center pool - which is the one that is usually the only one open - has NO furniture around it. You can stand at the edge, or you can swim. The clubhouse pool has pool furniture and is quite a bit larger, but both are nice. The rec center pool also has no place to sit and overlook the pool - the clubhouse does. There are NO towels to be had at the pools. You must bring towels from the unit. There weren't enough towels for us when we arrived, but the friendly folks at the office quickly remedied that. There was a DVD player in the living room, but the monitor is 19-inch, which isn't exactly great for gathering the family around. The washer and drier were fine, if a bit small (it's a stacking unit, as might be expected). They are in good condition. The bathrooms are TINY! Barely enough room for the toilet and a one-piece shower-bath stall made of something plasticy. Don't expect tile or marble or even granite countertops. Formica is the theme here :-) In the kitchen, the counters had several burn marks from hot utensils or perhaps cigarettes (?). As a two-bedroom goes, it feels pretty small. I think the square footage they list may include a side room that is unfurnished, unheated, unwindowed, and available pretty much as a storage area only (although in a pinch you could put people in sleeping bags there). Little touches that are missing really make the whole place feel a bit tired. For example, the exterior door is just a plain painted wooden solid-core door with probably the cheapest doorknob you can buy at the hardware store. I don't care about the door or the doorknob per se, but each of these individual little things add up to an overall impression. The resort is definitely showing its age. Would I go back? Probably not - which is a shame, because the area is great, and the grounds are nice indeed. Still, it was adequate for our needs, which is why they get the second star. read more

We (2) rented 203 for 3 nights to get in 3 good hikes. This is like a small apartment with a loft. It was fine for us. Ceiling fans kept us cool on 90 degree days and the deck was nice and cool under trees. It was very clean. Had a coffee maker, full sized small fridge, gas stove and oven, kitchen table and small couch. Climb a ladder to the loft with a double bed and 2 bunk beds. Road noise wasn't a problem and people who live there were quiet. For us it was fine because we were hiking all day and tired in the evening. I'm not sure I'd like to be in there with 6 adults! We appreciated the location, quietness, and price was fair. read more

My family (hubby, 8 year old daughter and I) really enjoyed the Glacier WA stay. During our first part of the Washington trip, we stayed in Seattle, dined at Purple Cafe (OMG - so good) and did all the touristy thing like the duck tour. When we were done with the city travel, we stocked up at a Walmart off the 5 North, and headed up to Glacier. The overall impression of the towns Glacier, and its surrounding towns Silverlake and Bellingham... they remind me of a strange ghost town like the ones out of a Twilight Zone episode. (hey, I'm a city girl and a snob.) But the roads and scenery leading up to Glacier and Snowater resort are absolutely stunning. The grounds of the Snowater timeshare are spectacular. There is a big river, Nooksack" that runs adjacent to the timeshare with gravel walking trails. I read the other reviewers, and felt bad that they felt like there wasn't much to do here. I think it's all in your attitude. You have to relax, unplug your phone (literally because there is no connection) and just enjoy the time with your family. We hiked pretty much all morning, met some really nice people who stayed in Snowater, came back to the condo for lunch, and went back out for a stroll or swam in the community pools. We didn't mind the rain during our hikes because the trees sort of shielded you from all the downpour. The condo itself is a bit old and tired looking, and you are not getting the Heavenly Bed or the amenities of the Ritz Carlton, but I absolutely enjoyed sitting by the window sill, sipping tea, listened to the gushing river nearby, and enjoyed the majestic landscape that surrounded me. In the evening, we played board games and read books. Really, that's all there is to do, but when does life give you the opportunity to slow down like this? PROs about the condo: 1) Nice rec rooms with big pools and jacuzzis. 2) Beautiful walking gravel trails adjacent to the river. 3) Ample amenities in the kitchen, full sized refrigerator 4) Clean all around 5) Good wifi connection (good enough to stream netflix on your ipad) 6) Stacked washer/dryer in room CONs about the condo: 1) Dated Decor interior and exterior 2) Floorboard heating is a fire hazard 3) No housekeeping service and will charge you a cleaning fee 4) Small beds, and bathrooms 5) No TV, no phone connection read more

We exchanged our week into Snowater through Interval International. We have had such good trading luck before this! Snowater is out of the way, rainy/wet as to be expected and lacks television, cell phone access and wifi. Wifi can be accessed if you slog over to the pool/clubhouse through a spotty, slow connection. Bring your own DVDs in case you want something to watch in the rain; there were some books. Our immediate displeasure and disappointment was checking in Friday night and being informed that ALL GUESTS ARE CHARGED A HOUSEKEEPING FEE, ON TOP OF OUR $189 EXCHANGE FEE. If you didn't agree you had to leave. They must have had lots of trouble with this UNDISCLOSED CHARGE. They actually had the 2nd page from Interval International's online confirmation site PHOTOCOPIED WITH PENNED IN BRACKETS around the phrase about "most resorts do not offer daily housekeeping; if they do it is usually at an additional charge" THEIR POSITION IS THEY CAN CHARGE GUESTS OVER $70 TO DO THE NORMAL CLEANING OF THE UNIT AFTER YOUR DEPARTURE! Not DAILY service, just the regular service done after every guests' departure. (We are in communication with Interval International. I was told there will be an enquiry as this mandatory fee is HIGHLY IRREGULAR and heretofore unknown). The unit's "master bedroom" is a loft upstairs over the living area and pull out couch. They have a folding curtain that makes it "offically" a private room. No privacy is afforded! Everyone can hear each others' sounds as you are really all in the same room. There is no way to block the daylight from either the downstairs or skylight over the bed. Don't plan on sleeping past daybreak! The second (and only private sleeping area) in our "sleeps six" unit boasts two twin beds. No ceiling lights with switches; just lamps like an older motel room. The tiny, galley kitchen was pretty well equipped. The microwave is wedged into an uncomfortable hard to reach corner. The area is nice if you like wet woods. If you are from the west northern coast you'll be fine there. There is a large contingent of persons enjoying the trails at all times. If you need a place to crash after skiing at Mt. Baker as a group you might not mind the undisclosed extra charges if you are sharing costs. As a timeshare owner we felt trapped and considered their undisclosed gouging to be outrageous behavior! read more

This resort is not as cheap as it appears! They also have a "cleaning fee" of 130 dollars (and don't even clean everyday) making it much more expensive. Our radiator made an awful clicking noise keeping most of us up all night, even after the maintenance guy tried to fix it. Beds were extremely uncomfortable and the blankets were about as warm as single ply toilet paper. They have a charge for nearly every minor thing, and ask that you report any stains so they can charge the previous tenant. Very unprofessional resort. Only good things were being so close to mount baker and having a pretty nice recreational center. read more

I am at the resort as I type this. The grounds are beautiful, and the accommodations are very clean and well appointed. We are here off-season, so it is very quiet. They charge a resort fee for Direct TV and WIFI access, but do offer free local and long distance phone. The WIFI is sketchy with access, especially in the evening, probably due to others streaming movies, even though they tell you not to. Each unit has a washer/dryer, so that was helpful, as I flew, so didn't have to pack for the whole seven days, and did laundry half way through instead. Bring soap and shampoo, since theirs is just one of the hotel-size, which will not last a week. The only negative I have is the extra "resort fee" of $104.00 (for the one bedroom) which includes cleaning of the unit. There are check out instructions when you leave, and you need to take out the trash, start the dishwasher, etc, which is normally included at other resorts. All in all, this has been the most relaxing vacation I have ever had. Thank you Snowater! read more

Snowater Resort - Beautiful! - Vacation Rentals Near Me - Deming, Washington

We Just got back from our spring break vacation at Snowater. I decided to book Snowater because it was the only timeshare available within driving distance from us (5 hours still) . I brought my 3 children (ages 14,12 and 8) and our exchange student (16). First of all I would like to say that the unit is very clean and well maintained although furniture and decor needs updating. It is also very small! We booked the 2 bedroom unit that says sleeps 6, there is a fold out sofa in the living room but the living room is so small that when you make up the sofa bed it takes up the entire living room and dining area. The "master bedroom" is not a bedroom it is a loft. This became very frustrating because if someone go up to use the bathroom or get a glass of water or decided to get up early you can hear every noise and movement. We also had a woodpecker that would peck on the chimney every morning from about 6am to 8am. The scenery around Snowater is beautiful we had a great view of the river from our unit and there are some nice trails to explore. It rained every day except one so hiking wasn't really a option. There are two indoor pools the recreation center pool desperately needs updating and cleaning. The hot tub floor and tile is brown and dingy and the pool is starting to do the same. The club house pool was very nice and clean but isn't open all the time so the pool you have access to mostly is the dirty dingy one that frankly I wouldn't let my kids go into it was so nasty. Other than the pools there isn't much to do at snowater. There is no tv service in the units you can watch movies but the television is tiny like the size of a computer screen and even if you turn the sound up all the way its still hard to hear. The closest town with anything to do is bellingham and that is 40 min away. Mt baker ski area is close but was closed due to lack of now so we didn't get the chance to try it out. This resort would be good to go to as a adult relaxation vacation but not a good place to bring kids for more than a couple days they will go completely stir crazy! We booked it for a week but ended up coming home early because there wasn't anything to do for the kids. We will not be returning to snowater as a timeshare owner the units aren't as nice or comparable to others we've stayed in. read more

We are staying at Snowater right now. This is a spectacular property right on the Nooksack River. We are very lucky we have a condo that faces right on the river and the rushing Rapids are so soothing. The forest here is healthy and so beautiful! No complaints. The condo is nicely updated and did not end up with a tired feeling in it. Beds are comfortable, we had a two bedroom and it has a nice balcony overlooking the river. Plenty of hiking here. No phone but they do have internet service and TV but we don't turn it on only to catch the news and weather. The environment is the star here. The national park is up the road and we got amazing hikes and views of the big mountains. We are loving are stay here. The people working here are very nice and helpful too. read more

My husband I stayed in a 2 bedroom unit October 2018. Unit 1008. While the location is lovely, beautiful trees, hiking trail and a little bit of a river, that's all I can say that was good. The unit is in a 1980 time warp. I can only imagine when it was last refurbished. Uncomfortable chair and couch, finishes on the furniture worn and sticky, lighting was absolutely horrible and a hodge podge of old pictures somebody brought in from home. No one bothered to check the lamps for light bulbs or whether they even worked. Old track lighting. Carpet was disgusting. Every room had something broken or that didn't work right. Our week rental ended up being 3 nights. The unit was very, very dark as in few windows. Check in was not the friendliest. Extra charges on the benefits of staying there. Really? Given a list of infractions that a guest would have to pay if they were too loud, didn't do this or didn't do that. Very negative place. I couldn't get into the common area to look around, even though I had my magical key and clicker. Just gave up. It's very far away from any town so make sure you bring EVERYTHING you need from paper towels, laundry detergent, coffee, creamer, etc. You will have salt and pepper there for you. My suggestion - spend some money and update the unit. It's past time. read more

just came back from a weekend at snowater and could not have asked for a better experience. Rich W tells it like it is on one level, yet I would hate for others to not consider this wonderful spot. It is a great escape, no need for high end amenities, the solitude and access to one of the most beautiful places in Washington. Mt. Baker is spectacular, and amongst all the peaks up there above the tree line, you are on the top of the world, just by driving up to heather medows, before you hike or ski or go sit in the lodge to stare at Mt. Shuksan. Getting away from tv and electronics is relaxing. The condos work fine, two bedrooms have two bathrooms, I was up with college student children and we had plenty of space. Not a problem cooking a fine meal in the small kitchen. If you don't want to eat in there is a great pizza place just a short walk or drive down the road. The river is a treat to walk along. you can walk along the path on the condo grounds, and you can go on for two or three miles up the river without having to get in your car for a mountain adventure. This place has a lot of other places beat in the way of opportunity for adventure, or relaxation, read more