We’d been to Ellicottville several times pre-kids. We have friends who basically grew up there in winter, and eventually bought places of their own when they had kids.
So while I was no stranger to this quaint little town in upstate New York, we’d never been there to ski nor had we stayed onsite at any of the Holiday Valley properties.
It was a delight to be hosted on-property at the Inn at Holiday Valley for a recent family ski weekend. (You can read more about Holiday Valley in TravelingMom!)
THE GOOD
Our suite was huge! With pine ceilings reaching at least 25 feet, a stone fireplace, dining area and a separate master bedroom with an enormous ensuite, a family with a lot of kids could easily share this space by bringing in some extra cots. (The king bed for us and the pullout sofa for the kids suited us perfectly.)
We found the beds comfortable and had no trouble with noise at all at night.
The ensuite had a two-person Jacuzzi so big that not only did Big B and I fit in it together (unheard of!), but when The K Man jumped in with us, we still fit!
Having a pullout couch for the kids in a separate room is something we LOVE LOVE LOVE.
Our room also had a nice dining area, with plenty of chairs that doubled as our drying-out racks after ski days.
If you’re decent skiers, you’ll love being able to ski in and out of the Inn. There’s a chair lift right outside and there are easy runs to get you over to the main lodge area, which is where lessons meet and where you’ll also find the bunny hill and other chair lifts to take you to different trails at Holiday Valley.
The property has a lovely indoor-outdoor pool onsite, accessible from the lobby area. The indoor water temperature is very warm, which we loved! Heading outdoors, it was still on the warm side and you could see steam rising into the cool afternoon air, but it wasn’t warm enough to remain outside for long with Miss Q.
Breakfast is included with your stay at the Inn at Holiday Valley, which is a nice perk. And it’s better than continental! Offering oatmeal, fruit, breads and pastries along with yogurt and some breakfast meat, you can fill up quite nicely. One morning, they even had English muffins, poached eggs and round sausage patties — our crew very quickly turned this combo into yummy breakfast sandwiches.
Wonderful front desk staff complemented by mostly on-demand in-resort shuttle service to get you where you need to go make for a really nice stay overall. There is no question that we will return to Holiday Valley and we would absolutely consider staying at the Inn again.
THE GAFFE
The kitchen area was a bit lacking. For its size, there wasn’t much available if you wanted to prepare any meals onsite. There was still a bar fridge in which you could keep a few beers and some If milk, but don’t stay here thinking you’ll save money by staying in to eat. Unless you order pizza.
The pillows were fine but nothing out of this world, and I would prefer a down duvet for a wintery lodge…makes slumber so much cozier!
For those who aren’t comfortable yet on chair lifts or are super-beginners when it comes to skiing, you won’t be able to ski in and out of the Inn at Holiday Valley. Instead, you’ll have to schlep your fam and all your equipment (if you brought your own, that is) on a shuttle and head over to the main lodge…then schlep all your stuff and your kids down several stairs to reach the foot of the hill. It’s not effortless.
THE GEARS
4/5
Jeffery Williams says
Dude, that looks like a nice hotel room! Would love to stay in a place like that.
I’ve been wanting to try skiing (and more specifically, snowboarding) for a while now, but I’ve never gotten the guts up to do it. It seems so darned scary! Usually when I’m going that fast I like to be enclosed by large quantities of reinforced steel/metal. Being out there in the open seems a bit terrifying.
Have any advice for someone who wants to give it a shot but is a bit hesitant on actually going for it?
Mommy Gearest says
Dude – it really was! 🙂 A lot of rustic charm. Honestly, I get it. It’s totally scary starting something new as an adult. When we’re kids, we don’t have fear. We don’t understand risk. And falling frankly hurts a heck of a lot less. I tell everyone that the key to learning fast and effectively is private lessons. And I’m not talking about a one-hour lesson on your first day and then never again. I mean lesson after lesson after lesson. And not just in year one either. I am in year two of skiing and I *still* take lessons when I can. Not as often but I take them. There’s always something new to learn, tweak and practise.
But at the end of the day, you really do just have to go for it. And who knows, you might really surprise yourself. 🙂
Jeffery Williams says
Dude, that looks like a nice hotel room! Would love to stay in a place like that.
I’ve been wanting to try skiing (and more specifically, snowboarding) for a while now, but I’ve never gotten the guts up to do it. It seems so darned scary! Usually when I’m going that fast I like to be enclosed by large quantities of reinforced steel/metal. Being out there in the open seems a bit terrifying.
Have any advice for someone who wants to give it a shot but is a bit hesitant on actually going for it?
Mommy Gearest says
Dude – it really was! 🙂 A lot of rustic charm. Honestly, I get it. It’s totally scary starting something new as an adult. When we’re kids, we don’t have fear. We don’t understand risk. And falling frankly hurts a heck of a lot less. I tell everyone that the key to learning fast and effectively is private lessons. And I’m not talking about a one-hour lesson on your first day and then never again. I mean lesson after lesson after lesson. And not just in year one either. I am in year two of skiing and I *still* take lessons when I can. Not as often but I take them. There’s always something new to learn, tweak and practise.
But at the end of the day, you really do just have to go for it. And who knows, you might really surprise yourself. 🙂