This property is the big commercial heavyweight in a town full of cute boutique-hotels. This resort immediately impresses with 10 stories of industrial-modern architecture that echoes the town's mining heritage.
Although the groundwork is in place for a luxury hotel, service is merely so-so. That said, the renovated guest rooms are lovely, and the breadth of facilities and superb location are compensation for most travelers.
Rustic elegance reigns from floor to ceiling with flagstone floors, massive carved beams and pillars, beautiful art and textiles, old iron, distressed wood and walls of windows. Sunlight glistens off the polished surfaces, as public rooms are oriented for full southern exposure (a rarity in these mountains). Most common areas and guest rooms in the complex boast soaring panoramas. The three-story lounge known as the Great Room features a high-powered brass telescope, an enormous fireplace and snack service.
The restaurant scene is lively, with lunch and dinner served in a panoramic room. The eclectic menu is modern American, and despite the lovely dining room, the preferred setting
is the terrace. The terrace is also popular for apres-ski drinks, dining and music. An upscale coffee shop provides options for all meals, although it closes—as do all the restaurants—intermittently during the off season. Legends, with a Native American theme, offers buffets for breakfast and lunch, as most diners are eager to get to the slopes. Guests seeking a tipple at other times can find one in the small lobby bar.
Most guests at this resort are drinking in more than the stunning mountain vistas, as the hotel harbors one of the region's top health and beauty facilities, the four-level Golden Door Spa. This sybarite's dream is the heart of the hotel operation, decorated along the lines of the ancient Honjin inns of Japan. Its extensive facilities include men's and women's kivas offering saunas, Roman pools, Turkish baths, a rock climbing wall, whirlpools, an indoor lap pool, a 15-ft spiraling water slide, a weight room and a juice bar. There's even an oxygen bar to alleviate hangovers and altitude sickness. Guests pay reduced rates in 44 treatment rooms offering such goodies as brain therapy, whereby guests are suspended in water but do not get wet, thanks to a dry-float system.
Balls fly fast and far through the thin air on the 18-hole golf course and on the five outdoor tennis courts. All the services and amenities one would expect are present as well, from upscale shopping to laundry and concierge services. Ski-in, ski-out access is available for beginning and intermediate skiers. Those seeking tougher terrain will find themselves hiking to other lifts. Ultimate indulgence is found at the Doggie Spa where pampered pooches are primped, massaged, fed and often participate in "guided play."
Conference space includes a divisible ballroom with a built-in kitchen for up to 250, and four wood-paneled meeting rooms complemented by a full slate of business services. The Telluride Conference Center is steps away for larger events. On-site parking is expensive, charging around US$27 per day, and many guests opt for the nearby public lots.
The oversize accommodations are divided between Alpine Vista rooms facing the slopes (which are usually in shade) and preferable Sunset Vista units that face Mount Wilson. The updated pastel decor provides a subtle backdrop for the striking mountain views from most rooms. New TVs, DVD and CD players, minibars, coffeemakers and safes are standard. Wired and wireless Internet access is also provided in most rooms.
Standard rooms have one king or two double beds with down comforters and high thread-count sheets, while suites (which are mostly oversized guest rooms) have king beds and sitting areas with sofa-sleepers.
The large combination baths are a show all their own, with dual basins set into marble vanities, glass-enclosed stall showers, humidifiers, hair dryers, robes and slippers. Disappointingly, the lack of tubs in some rooms is shocking for a spa hotel. There is no air-conditioning nor is there rarely ever a need for it; fans compensate. Still, summer guests would be well advised to close the plantation shutters when leaving for the day.
Rooms with balconies (more than half the total) cost more, but many balconies are in fact wide, shared terraces. Also available are 28 suites and 12 penthouses with outdoor terraces.
The staff works diligently to satisfy the demanding clientele here. The slightly off-center location is a plus for groups and those with cars, but individual travelers may feel a bit out of the loop from both the slopes and the pedestrian village square.
