Lake Quinault Lodge

I will not bore you with wordiness because when you read all of the following reviews they hit the nail on the head. You come here to unplug, not a bad idea. The scenery is breathtaking and the hikes are serene. We found the meals to be quite good, nothing special and no surprises for the price you pay, but well done. But there is just no way that this lake Quinalt Lodge deserves what you pay until perhaps the day they upgrade their very outdated rooms that have multiple imperfections. I cannot understand why the staff is as unfriendly and unwelcoming as they are. The management should really pay attention to that. When I’m paying $500 a room per night for a so-so room, a little TLC would be welcome. Would I come back? No. An I glad I had the experience in the Olympic peninsula? Indeed!

This review is on the King Fireplace Room at Lake Quinault Lodge. I have mixed feelings, but mostly good. My son and I stayed here for 1 night, as the final stop of our Olympic NP visit (stop 1 Port Angeles; stop 2 Forks). Quinault RF area is less busy than other parts of the NP. From Quinualt, our next stop was over at Mount Rainier NP. I didn't finalize our itinerary until late May (for mid-July stay), so the only room left was the King Fireplace room (the priciest option). I think it is even more than what I paid for our room at the Old Faithful Inn at Yellowstone last summer. Having said that, the room itself is VERY nice; it's right next to the main lodge, though our room (Room 110) is probably the worst among all their king Fireplace room. Why? These rooms are billed as "lake view" but our very own patio (our room is downstairs) has a big tree right in front, blocking half the view. The other half is tall shrubs, so unless you are standing up, you cannot see the lake. All the rooms next to us have a clear lake view. If I were staying for longer, I would be very upset. But since we were only there for 1 night, we really didn't have time to sit out on our patio to enjoy the "non view." Apart from the no-view, the rest of the room is really lovely, nicely decorated and spacious, and very very quiet at night. There is a mini-fridge and coffee maker. There is no a/c. We were there on a rather hot day so we had the (box) fan running all evening trying to get some cool air in from the outside. A ceiling fan would have been quieter and more tasteful than a box fan. Also, as others pointed out, there is only 90 minutes of free wifi available per day, per device. The 90 minutes is continuous, so once you start, the clock starts ticking. There is zero cell service on the grounds. Make sure you download everything you need during those 90 minutes. (I was able to get cell service on lake quinault during the boat cruise - more on that later) Okay - now the good part. The Lodge itself, the building, the lawn and grounds are just beautiful. I can imagine myself sitting in one of the many Adirondack chairs on the lawn relaxing and reading a book. The lake itself is very peaceful; the "beach" is essentially our own beach. The Quinault tribe doesn't allow motor pleasure boats, but they do allow canoes and kayaks which you can rent at the lodge ($25/hr). We really enjoyed watching sunset at the beach. The next morning I got up around 7am and had the entire lawn and beach to myself. Lake Quinault is so much more peaceful than Lake Crescent, where we had visited a few days earlier. Lake Crescent was packed with day trippers, families, and tons of pleasure motor boats and jet skis. Even though there is no wifi/cell service, there is plenty to do to occupy your time. I wish we had time to stay another night (well, maybe not at that room rate) since there are plenty of hiking trails nearby. you can also rent kayak/canoe or swim in the lake. Inside the lodge

The most we've ever paid for a night's stay. It did not really meet my expectations for the cost, but it was in a beautiful spot. We did enjoy our time there. Prices in general were very high. Hated having to pay so much for a little cup of iced tea. Getting pizza from the less expensive eating place and taking it out to the deck proved to be a good option. The oatmeal in the nice restaurant was the best I've ever had - with blackberry compote! The worst thing was the shower which was hazardous to get in and out of and only had lukewarm water.

Historic lodge overall ambience is amazing. Sitting on the lawn watching sunset and playing games in main hall is just amazing. Staff was great. Rooms themselves. Show the 100 plus year history. No hair dryer, air conditioning, no cell service and limited pops satellite WiFi. Go for the escape and not the comforts and you won’t be disappointed. Do plan for the no cell coverage. As your maps and searches will not work!

As a family of four, we spent the week of July 4th first hiking Rainier and then three nights in Olympic Nat’l Park. The Lake Quinault Lodge and area are beautiful. You’re welcomed in to a large grassy area with Adirondack chairs, lawn games and view of Lake Quinault. For our room, we had two double beds with large windows that opened up with a decent view of the lake. We also had a couch with a hide a bed in it. The room also had a small fridge, a tv, a couple of fans and a small bathroom. The rooms have potential but are showing signs of wear - torn fabric on the headboards, peeling on the bathroom ceiling and the bathroom faucet was jammed allowing only the shower option. We ate a couple of times in the restaurant. The food was obviously overpriced with the location but was decent. Pretty basic, limited menu that catered to most palettes. The bar had some great cocktails that you could enjoy outside in the Adirondack chairs but again, you’re paying for the ambiance. Sadly, with the evenings staying somewhat light past 10:00pm, it was disappointing that the restaurant and bar closed around 8 or 9:00, especially on July 4th. We came for the many hikes in the Nat’l Park but this lodge was simply too far away which left of driving 1-2 hours to the popular hikes in Hoh or Lake Crescent. If the park is your focus, consider staying on the Crescent Lake Lodge and saving yourself hours of driving.

Apparently for many people getting away from the city and back to nature isn’t a good experience without full time WiFi. I am giving the lodge a one star to hopefully discourage people from booking so we can avoid these ******.