The Ahwahnee

The hotel is beautiful, but we could not enjoy the amenities. The lobby was too cold to sit in and there were about 12 children, screaming and yelling when we were there. Instead of staying in the room of their private party, they emerged into the lobby to chase each other, and scream, which made it very unpleasant. The pool was also unavailable, because it’s under renovation. We could not get into the dining room for dinner, even though we tried to book ahead of time. The bar was closing by the time we checked in and we’re ready to go. The room was nice and the bed was very comfortable, but not worth $700 a night which it costs with fees, taxes and the mandatory valet parking. The dining room is stunning, but very difficult to get into. We enjoyed our $85 breakfast for 2 one morning, but the price kept us from returning. The view from my room was so lousy which made me wonder why this room was so expensive. In general, the staff was accommodating. We found, however, that we were so busy outside in the park that it was not worth it to spend that type of money only to come back and crash in the room. Since we could not get a dinner reservation, the swimming pool was closed, and the lobby too cold to sit in, we felt that it was difficult to take advantage of any amenities. I would suggest going there for a meal and walking around the grounds, but if you’re going to spend a lot of time in the park, it’s not worth the extra cost to stay here.