The Viking Lodge - Downtown Winter Park Colorado

This was a nice place to stay during our cross country-hiking trip. The girl at the front desk was very friendly and helpful. The room was adequate, somewhat disappointed the second bed was in a loft. Location was good, walking distance to restaurants and small shops.

As adult ski bums, we tried out 4 Winter Park inns under $200/night in this season. Viking Lodge is our favorite and the least expensive. It is an old lodge and exactly what they advertise: a very basic room with private bath and a refrigerator. If you can enjoy an old fashioned ski lodge, this is a perfect place. (If you need glamour and upscale, this is not your place.) The room was very comfortable with lots of extra pillows. There is no breakfast (same as 2 of the other lodges we stayed at), but they have coffee, tea, a microwave and surprise amenities of free snacks and real dishes and silverware for guest use to prep their own breakfast. A great benefit of staying at Viking was the proximity to the ski bus—the pick up is just across from the hotel parking lot, and the drop off is just across the street. All of the shuttle bus lines stop there. The management (husband and wife) were lovely and took care of our needs. There are a few things that would be nice additions, but not serious shortcomings; more on the level of adding a second towel rack in the bath. For comparison, the other places we stayed are Gravity Haus (modern decor but not very clean), Valley-Hi (a second favorite for the old wooden hot tub and a barely-adequate breakfast), and the Winter Park Mountain Lodge (great location but a HORRIBLE, run down place that has major safety issues and a COLD hot tub). If you want a comfortable stay for a reasonable price, we recommend the Viking Lodge.

Viking Lodge is a perfect name for this property, as it oozes "hygge": Super friendly, cozy and fun. It is the Winter Park equivalent of a small European family lodge. We had a party of 4 in one of their loft rooms. It is small and vertical--with a new staircase for son/nephew to get to their bed upstairs. Everything works and is functional--nothing more or less than what you need. Sink is outside the bathroom (toilet/shower), so a bit dorm-room'ish. Owners (appears to be a couple and grown daughter) are around, but try to be as efficient as possible (cleaning, office work, etc.), so check-in/check-out can be fairly self-service (which I like). Common area feels like a living room--fireplace, turntable w/ records, sometimes a wonderful 3-legged German Shepherd--and is a great place to relax, with Celestial Seasonings tea, coffee, and some occasional snacks available all the time--with local baked goods put out (first come, first serve) in the morning. Parking is included and just out back. Location couldn't be better--many restaurants, bars, and shops nearby--and you're on the main bus line--and first/last stop before Winter Park resort. If you're looking for luxury, this ain't it--but if that's what you want, you're probably not going to Winter Park anyway. Instead, if you want cozy, great location, and affordable...Viking Lodge is for you!

Great room and great price for a winter stay. Convenient location.

Clean, basic, quaint decor Clean and met basic needs for a short ski trip. Quaint, rustic ski lodge decor a plus. Be aware it's an old building lacking in some comfort. Even though we had a king bed, it was a small room with a tiny bathroom, and was missing the little amenities common in chain hotels - for example, no in-room microwave and coffee service (though both were available in the lobby area). No box of tissues in the room. No lotion, so if you have dry skin bring your own. No hooks for towels in the bathroom. Toilet paper holder so close to the toilet that it was awkward to use, especially for a larger person. Noisy plumbing when other guests were showering/flushing, and we could hear footsteps from the room above us, as well as voices from nearby rooms. No A/C, which was not a problem in winter obviously, but wouldn't want to chance it in the summer. Lots of ice during a late February stay that made for treacherous trips to and from the car. (Only saw a tiny bit of ice melt applied in one spot during our stay - surprised not to see more attention given to this basic safety issue.) No hot tub - something that other hotels nearby do have , and we found we really missed not being able to soak our tired muscles after a day on the slopes. The biggest plus was the location - right next door to a number of restaurants, and close to the ski area, with bus service right outside.

We loved this place! Quaint lodge style. Everyone that worked there was outrageously friendly and helpful. The location is fantastic - shuttle, rental, pub, restaurant & shops all within easy walking range (literally just a few steps away). The lounge area is very nice - we enjoyed the pod coffee-maker and used the microwave to make cereal (that we brought) in the mornings - and we played games at the table in front of the gas fire (operated by remote control, that is left out for the guests to control). We had one of the double queen rooms, that was fantastic, and a king room that was 'just' normal. Even the other guests were friendly. Thanks for having us. PS: You can rent ski gear along with the reservation, and collect it from the rental place over the street (not the rental place that appears to be part of the lodge building)