UPDATE: See addendum.

Imagine a trip to the DMV but paying hundreds of dollars for the ‘privilege’.

Congratulations! You booked a luxury ski vacation at a ski-out resort. Upon arrival things quickly become less luxurious.

At check-in, they do not have the lift tickets or rental vouchers. Instead you go to another desk to pick up the rental vouchers and tickets. If you want to ski out tomorrow morning, you’re going to need to get your equipment. Not now though, you can’t rent for tomorrow until 730pm the day before.

At 730pm, you go stand outside and wait for the bus that takes you to the rental place. One luxurious bus trip later, you get to the rental place. Once there, you stand in line while a handful of employees ignore you. Eventually you flag one down and they tell you that the piece of paper that says “rental voucher” isn’t the piece of paper you need to rent equipment. You leave the line and go to a different desk in a different building and answer questions about boot sizes. Then you get a different piece of paper that says “rental voucher” and return to the line. It’s never made clear why one piece of paper works and the other does not. Eventually you get boots and skis and poles and you’re ready for tomorrow. Except the rental place won’t transport your gear to the luxury ski-out hotel.

You go back outside and wait for the bus. You carry your gear onto and off of the bus and into the hotel. Then, the valet can have your gear delivered to the ski out and you’re ready for tomorrow.

Tomorrow comes and you’re excited to hit the slopes. You’re just going to grab a breakfast sandwich and a cup of coffee and hit the slopes! Except the line for coffee and a sandwich stretches 100’ from the stand to the lobby and beyond. There is a single register open and zero sense of urgency. There’s a second register in the coffee stand, but they won’t use it. There are 5 employees in the stand, but mostly they stand around while one person fumbles at the register. Keep in mind there’s no coffee in the room and this is the only coffee stand in the resort.

40 minutes later, you’ve got a pre-made sandwich and some caffeine. Suggested slogan: “All the quality of fast food but double the price in triple the time.” Catchy!

Nobody in the service industry could see the line for coffee and think it’s acceptable. Camelback Resort isn’t run as a luxury hotel. Camelback Resort is run as a fly-by-night carnival with better decor. The attitude is the same: ‘We’ve already got your money, so why should we care?’

That attitude works for a bit, but eventually word gets out. This is me getting the word out: Ski and stay somewhere else.

If your heart is set on Camelback Mountain, you’ll get better service at the Best Western around the corner (and save a few hundred dollars)

Blue Mountain and Elk Mountain both have much better slopes and lifts. Jack Frost / Big Boulder have similar facilities and there are tons of rental properties near by. Camelback Resort isn’t worth it.

ADDENDUM We just walked down to the ski out and they’ve lost 80% of our equipment. All that time spent waiting for the bus and and waiting in line and now our gear is gone. One of the sets of skis and poles isn’t rented. Camelback Resort has crossed the line between indifferent incompetence and criminality.