Bryce View Lodge — Attraction in Bryce Canyon City

Bryce Canyon View Lodge, Bryce Canyon, UT A flee-bag without the flees!!, We didn’t catch any yet. You would think that for what they charge, we would leave with a “memento”. Sarcasm aside, this is one crummy place, thanks to its people. They must be the most incompetent, dim-witted, ill- mannered, rude I have seen, assembled in one organization, in over 46 years of intense business and leisure travel. This confirms earlier reviews. However, it is not entirely the fault of the employees, because: They didn’t hire themselves to the job (some “Einstein” in the “chain of command”, including the property owners/management, made these “astute” decisions. It is Management’s failure (incompetence) to test people’s suitability to serve in the “hospitality” sector. It is a Management failure to properly train employees on processes specific to their enterprise. It is a management failure to properly supervising employees to ensure that they are delivering at some level at or above mediocrity. It is inescapable to conclude that this abysmal service delivery is a direct product of utter incompetence that permeates the entire org. structure up to and including the property owners. What makes this place stand out like a “sore thumb” is its geographic location. In our travel through this part of the country we met some of the most kind, warm, proper, caring human beings, just beautiful people. Then, you run into these “things” and you don’t know what to make of them. One can help but ask: Are these things (“people”) a human anomaly or are they a representative sample of the people of Utah? I’ll spare you the gaudy experience, except: I called four times to ask that they remove a hold on my credit card in $25 security deposit. In the 3rd time, the insolent and insignificant little bugger, they call “Accountant”, forward my call to a blind alley (2 rings then disconnected). In the 4th call, the dirty bum hung up on me!!! IF THIS IS THE KIND OF TRASH YOU FEEL COMFORTABLE DEALING WITH, THEN BY ALL MEANS. The check-in experience (really comical). I was asked to provide a paper confirmation of my reservation, which they should have on record (computer) but clearly she did not know how to download it or even look it up. I gave her my copy and asked her to copy it for my records. Would you believe it? She phoned another woman to learn how to operate the copying machine!!! A while back the XeroX Corporation employed Chimpanzees to operate its copying machines, in its commercials, to demonstrate the ease of using them. This incident became a case study in business schools for another set of reasons, but XeroX’ point remains: monkeys can operate copying machines. At this point I had driven 640 miles that day, yet watching this comedy unfold, I still had the energy for a hysterical laughter. Did I tell you about the long black hair my wife found in the tub? Oh well, it is this...

We tried to book into Ruby's Best Western over a month in advance but it was full and we were steered by Ruby's staff to their "sister hotel" (their words, not mine) Bryce View Lodge. We assumed that this too was a Best Western. When we arrived mid-afternoon to see if we could have an early check in to just drop our bags off, my wife was rudely told a terse "NO ... why would we disturb the maintenance staff." Ok then. Red flags begin to go off!! When we did get into our room later in the day we found it dirty and small. I'm not expecting the Taj Mahal but this was too small for 3 adults. The bathtub creaked when you moved in it. Worse yet the water was grey and when my wife called the front desk to inquire about this they said not to drink it and don't give it to pets as it was not drinkable. When asked they did not even offer a couple of bottles of water for each person!!! When we checked in we told the front desk staff that we had a service dog that was not presently working due to a lame rear leg that happened a month before (he's presently a tripod without the leg removed to see if he will regain use of it). We later noticed a $30 pet fee had been charged to our room. After a bit of back and forth the charge they had put on our bill was removed and off we went. Later in the day when we were traveling to Park City my wife noticed that a charge for our pet had been put back onto our account. Now my wife became a dog on a bone and she called the hotel. The same miserable woman who we had dealt with on check in said they could do nothing and that my wife would have to contact the accounting department. Later in the day she eventually got through to someone in accounting after numerous calls and messages. This person insisted that our pooch was an emotional support dog and not a service dog, which is not true, and how he would even know this is beyond me. He was just as miserable as the hotel staff ... maybe he did the hiring!!! He argued for about 20 minutes over a lousy $30 bucks and dismissed my wife off the phone. I wonder if Mr. Accounting knows how much goodwill was lost due to their crappy attitudes. That $30 does not go very far in their advertising budget if they are actually trying to get people to stay there. About 2-3 days later my wife noticed a pending refund of $30 from the hotel (which still hasn't cleared) ... but did all this really need to happen! My recommendation is to stay away and find somewhere else to spend the night and your money. While we certainly didn't allow the staff at Bryce View Lodge to impact the awesomeness of Bryce Canyon it may do so to others, so stay away!!! I'll give it a 1 because 0 is...

Note: I also reviewed on Trip Advisor.

I was pleasantly surprised and impressed with the Bryce View Lodge. This is a Ruby's Inn Property, the least expensive choice. I read other reviews, some which were negative, but my desire to stay close to Bryce Canyon National Park, on the free Shuttle route, at an affordable price, caused me to book the Lodge. I am happy I did; it was a good experience and I highly recommend.

My Bryce View Lodge room was on the second floor (in Building #2). The room was clean, had excellent wifi and TV, good beds, and was decent sized. The bathroom had a full size tub/shower, good water pressure, and plenty of hot water. The air conditioning worked great. There was a mini refrigerator and a small microwave. I liked being on the 2nd floor and having the balcony/walkway from which I could check out the surroundings. There is a pool guests can use but I did not check it out as I spent most of my time at Bryce Canyon National Park.

An unexpected benefit was that the Bryce View Lodge provides guests with vouchers for a free breakfast buffet at Ebenezer's Barn and Grill, located about 50 yards from the property. The buffet had eggs, breakfast meats, breads, fruits, cereals, coffee and juices. Ebenezer's is a large venue so there was always plenty of seating. The food was good, the buffet and coffee were kept stocked, and the buffet area and tables were kept clean.

I really liked the Bryce View Lodge's location, which was very close to Bryce Canyon National Park, has a stop for the free Park Shuttle, and is walking distance to a few restaurant choices, a general store, gas stations, and the other Ruby properties and the Best Western. The nearby stores allowed me to purchase snacks for my days exploring Bryce Canyon National Park. I also enjoyed browsing the gifts and merchandise at the general store and other lodging venues.

I prioritize lodging that is clean and insect free, well located, safe, comfortable and affordable. The Bryce View Lodge met all my requirements. Again, I...