How was your room the last time you stayed in a national park lodging?/Kurt Repanshek file
Across the National Park System you'll encounter a variety of concessionaires, but there are four main companies that manage lodgings and restaurants. How do they rate in your eyes?
Unless you're a frequent, or even constant, park traveler, it can be hard to get an accurate impression of concession operations. Conditions can change from location to location, year to year, month to month, and perhaps even day to day. That understood, how would you rate the concessions operations in terms of cleanliness of your room, upkeep of lodging, service and meals in restaurants, staff helpfulness, and, of course, value?
Here are the major concessions companies and the parks they operate in:
Aramark Destinations
Badlands National Park, Cedar Pass Lodge
Bryce Canyon National Park, The Lodge at Bryce Canyon
Big Bend National Park, Chisos Mountains Lodge
Denali National Park and Preserve, Denali Park Village
Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, Glacier Bay Lodge
Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Lake Powell Resorts and Marinas
Grand Canyon National Park, Grand Canyon Lodge (North Rim)
Grand Teton National Park, Signal Mountain Lodge
Isle Royale National Park, Rock Harbor Lodge, Windigo Camper Cabins
Mesa Verde National Park, Far View Lodge
Olympic National Park, Log Cabin Resort, Lake Crescent Lodge, Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort
Yosemite National Park, The Ahwahnee Hotel, Yosemite Valley Lodge, Wawona Hotel
DNC Parks and Resorts
Grand Canyon National Park, Yavapai Lodge,
Kings Canyon National Park, Cedar Grove Lodge, Grant Grove Cabins, John Muir Lodge
Olympic National Park, Kalaloch Lodge
Sequoia National Park, Wuksachi Lodge
Shenandoah National Park, Big Meadows Lodge, Lewis Mountain Cabins, Skyland
ExplorUS
Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park, Volcano House
Mammoth Cave National Park, the Lodge at Mammoth Cave
Xanterra Travel Collection
Death Valley National Park, The Inn at Death Valley, The Ranch at Death Valley
Glacier National Park, Lake McDonald Lodge, Many Glacier Hotel, Rising Sun Motor Inn, Swiftcurrent Motor Inn, Village Inn at Apgar
Grand Canyon National Park, Bright Angel Lodge, El Tovar, Kachina Lodge, Maswick Lodge, Phantom Ranch, Thunderbird Lodge
Yellowstone National Park, Canyon Lodge, Lake Hotel, Lake Lodge, Grant Village, Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel, Old Faithful Inn, Old Faithful Lodge, Old Faithful Snow Lodge, Roosevelt Lodge
Zion National Park, Zion Lodge
Comments
Anything run by Xanterra is a no from me. A horrible company to deal with... This comment has been edited to remove gratuitous language.--Ed.
Great topic, Kurt.
I'm not a lodging kind of parks visitor, so I have no opinion on the services provided, other than an occasional visit to a dining room.
I understand that no matter the concessionaire, they have a nearly-impossible task of trying to reach a profit, typically on seasonal basis, using facilitities that they do not own, using facilities that they are unable to modernize while spending their own money to maintain, all the while at the mercy of a NPS that all too frequently closes the park, park features, or park roads because the NPS is unable to maintain those faciltiities for visitor access or because weather intervenes. As a result, the concessionaire must charge outrageous rates to meet the bottom line.
The only worse scenario is the alternative of not having these hospitaliity facilties/lodges available because no concessionaire wants to be in the business of losing money.
I love the concession operations in the parks. They help make a trip enjoyable. I especially liked the Jenny Lake Lodge in Grand Teton National Park. The food was spectacular. The lodges in Glacier National Park are very special as well. However, the concession stands on the National Mall need a refresh of the menu in my opinion.
Delaware North has trademarked a number of names in Sequoia NP, similar to their actions in Yosemite NP.
Bearpaw Meadow High Sierra Camp 11 miles into the backcountry on the High Sierra Trail (established 1934) has fallen apart on their watch, with no action on their part to get it going again, a tragedy.
Visited Mesa Verde in October 2022 and lodging was a disgrace. Clogged and/or frozen pipes, carts overflowing with dirty laundry (including one overturned in the parking lot and one outside my room, where both stayed for three days), and an understaffed (one server), frigid dining room. Complained to Aramark, but received zero response or compensation.
As to the pressures of these corporations turning a profit, make no mistake, they wouldn't continue operations in the Parks if they were losing money.
I've had good and not so good experiences at many of these parks. The operations are only as good as the staff they're able to hire. Staff housing is very minimal and undesirable. Wages for unskilled labor are dreadfully low. Especially in the remote parks that has to be serious limiting. I wouldn't want to try to run a business inside the park. All that said, I stay inside the park whenever possible.
The reason Bear Paw Camp is closed is because the NPS has not tested or fixed (or both) the water supply at BP Camp. The concessionaire is NOT responsible for such infrastructure, or to repair the camp--that's on the NPS.
Maybe you are unaware of what really happened to ear Paw. Mostly snow damaged the old structure. NPS is responsible for any repairs in the backcountry.