Moraine Lake Lodge — Hotel in Alberta

Ok... so I am torn on this review. I guess I will try and break it down into the Good , The bad and The Ugly..||First the good - LOCATION!!!! You can not say enough about the beauty of this lake. We rented one of the cabins near the lake and the cabin was wonderful. Comfortable and roomy. The only bad thing about teh room was the shade covering the sliding door to the balcony was very long and it never rolled up correctly and would go crocked and not be able to open the correct way no matter what we tried. It was very tall. I would have recommended some other type of door covering. We never grew tired of sitting on the balcony or in the room looking at the lake. Breathtaking!! Especially when the day visitors left and the view was unobscured without the people. The lodge gave us two metal water bottles and chocolate bars in teh room as a welcome gift which was a nice touch.||The breakfast was included with the room and it was fantastic!! It changed daily and always had a breakfast meat, pastry choice and a carb like pancakes or toast with avocado and potatoes and juices...You have to sign up for what time you want it so that was a hassle as we didnt know if we were going to sleep in or get up early and head to the rock pile which I did.||So now for the bad - The food choices for lunch and dinner! So there was a light lunch type set up for guests which we didnt get on the check in day since check in is later than the lunch. But the light lunch the next day was bread, soup and salad and it hit the spot!! We had hoped for something like that for dinner and would have paid for it.....For lunch there is a place open for guests and day guest but the selections were awful... The day we went there was pizza slices and calzones.. and that's it.. It would have been so much better to have fresh deli sandwiches or soups or salads. They had some chips and candy and muffins but such sparse choices.. and the calzones were not good... For dinner you have to make reservations which is fine, but the choices were so limited... I really just wanted something light, like a plain salad and a fresh grilled chicken breast without any sauces or thrills, just basic. I even went down to the dining room to see if we could request something simple and light. I was told the chef said no, that what the choices were is the only thing they would offer. I even asked if I could talk to the chef to see if there was anything simple and light I could ask for, even if it was just a grilled cheese. The lady said no.... So we left and made a sandwich in our cabin. and never ate dinner the entire 4 nights we stayed there. A chef should be willing to accommodate all their guests.. I know they are known for their elegant dinning but at least have something simple for guests who dont want something like that. Maybe it's just a personal choice but it seems like a great chef could whip up a simple something .....We were asking for much. So food choices for lunch and dinner are ONE STAR! Oh and they really need an ice machine so guests can have enough ice for drinks and for the water bottles they gave us as a welcome gift.||- On the day we were leaving I went down to the dinning room to ask if we could get some toast and bacon to go as we were leaving. The lady standing there that was the least efficient waitress during our stay said no, they dont do to go and I would have to stay until my reservation time of 9am, it was currently 7:30am. I took her we wanted to get on the road earlier and I was diabetic and could I get anything to go as I was dropping in my glucose as we had gotten up earlier than we expected and she said no. Another lady was watching from the side and as I turned to walk away, she stopped me and said.."Absolutely we will give you all something to go." she then personally went to teh kitchen and came out with two to go boxes and told me to have a great day. Her name might be Michelle but I am not sure and I think the front desk said she was the dining room supervisor. She was a blessing!! And I hope that other lady learned something about taking care of someone. In our boxes she had given us each sausage, toast, little bottles of jellies, butters and napkins and she had given me coffee and water to go as well... Thank you so much to her!!!!!!!!!!!!||And now for the UGLY - PARKING!!! We have an SUV and my husband is disabled. I emailed a number of times to verify that I would be able to park nearer to the cabin on a smooth surface without any trouble. I was told in the email a spot would be reserved for us so it would not be a problem. When we arrived there was a spot with a cone and I assumed it was our spot. I was told it was going to be but now they were saving it for an electric car. This left one spot wedged in between cars already on the lines or a spot that said handicapped BUT it was on an incline and uneven. The parking lot is SMALL and NARROW. There was one other spot next parallel to the building but left me dangerously close to others trying to pull out from the other spots and we have a brand new SUV. And this was all after they promised a spot for me because of my husband's handicap and then gave it away to a stupid electric car. So if you have a larger vehicle good luck and may the force be with you when it comes to parking. I had to climb out of the back of my suv since the other two cars were already parked on the line. ||So yes I ended up giving 4 stars, couldn't bring myself to give 5 even though the cabin and lake and location and breakfast were amazing. I almost felt that parking and lack of dinner choices warranted a 3 but I...

Let's start with the obvious. Moraine Lake Lodge is wildly expensive. I also had a wonderful, relaxing time there. Is it worth it for you? ||ACCESS: One of the reasons the hotel costs what it does is the road to it is only open a fraction of the year. My stay was the day after it opened in early June. And there were people (not lodge staff, park staff) manning the access road gate who didn't fully know protocol yet, meaning I got barred from making a left turn and had to detour several miles until I could turn around and get back to it. ||PARKING: One of the main reasons to pony up and stay here: guests of the lodge are the only private cars allowed to park at the lake. Everyone else must take a bus or shuttle for the 220 minute drive - or you could bike or hike (it's 12 km uphill). There is a small lot next to the hotel with just enough parking for the guests. It is slightly tricky to maneuver. The ability to be at Moraine Lake early in the morning or late on a summer evening, to essentially have it to yourself is worth a lot.||SERVICE: Excellent - one of the best points of the place. Everyone took care of you, both front desk and dining staff, with the right balance of cheerful warmth and professionalism. Staff is proactive, housekeeping was happy to clean exactly at the time I specified. ||FOOD: Chances are you're going to be eating here if you're staying here, unless you want to drive a minimum of 25 minutes each way. Breakfast is complimentary, and a la carte, there is also a complimentary light lunch buffet served in the main hall. The downstairs dining room was upscale, had a lovely view of the lake and wonderful service, plus the food was memorable. Prices were high-ish, but in line with other places in an expensive resort area.||ROOM: The lodge's rooms are well-maintained but keep to the idea of a lodge. They're reasonably rustic, and at least the Wenkchemna cabin rooms are small.||VIEW: Just so you realize - if you are looking for that "money shot" view you see in the photo, NO ROOM IN THE LODGE HAS IT. That view is from "the rockpile" that is immediately adjacent to the lodge, but about a 15 minute uphill hike because of steps. In the famous views of the lake, including the one used as the thumbnail, the lodge is out of frame, slightly to the right. The view you get, at least from the Wenkchemna cabin I stayed in, is a side view across the lake. It's pleasant, but no "money shot." During the day, there will be many tourists walking the paths.||If your dream is to be able to see a view like that as you wake up from out your window, I think the only way to get that is to pay a stiff price for one of the premium rooms at the Chateau Lake Louise. However, I found I didn't mind much heading to the rockpile by myself at twilight and watching the blue, still, lake from there. ||ACTIVITIES: Staying at the lodge includes both canoe rental (which was allowed for guests before day visitors) the opportunity to go on a simple guided hike. Both were enjoyable, if you have never canoed, Moraine is a perfect place to try it. There were also some nature talks given in the evening. The place is deliberately low-tech (but wifi works fine).||CLIMATE: Don't assume it will be warm, even in June. Snow was melting on the trails and I needed a medium winter jacket, gloves and a hat. It's wet because of the melt, bring hiking boots.||VALUE: I hate the maxim "If you have to ask you can't afford it," but I think there's a helpful corollary here: If you're not going to be able to get past the price sticker, it's too expensive.||As for me, I wondered if Moraine Lake Lodge would be "worth it." I don't think it would have had I only stayed a rushed single night. But I stayed two nights, so I could unwind and enjoy the slower rhythm of the Lodge, and I felt both refreshed and taken care of. It ain't a value proposition, but...

It is not inexpensive to stay here, but it is an amazing experience. Moraine Lake is one of the most beautiful places in the world and to be able to stay here for a few days was a bucket list item for my husband and I. We booked a deluxe king cabin a year ahead of our stay. Note to people reading this review, put in your cabin preferences ahead of time. I believe the deluxe king cabins are the ones closest to the water (11 to 18?) Something like that. The higher number cabins (15 to 18) have the clearest view of the lake. Ours was cabin 12 which was just out and up from the canoe dock.

The cabin was beautiful, clean, and well appointed. The bed and bedding were super comfortable. My favourite feature was the wood burning fireplace snd the large picture window. For future improvements a mini fridge would be handy and possibly comfier chairs on the balcony (and slight larger balconies to accomodate). Super minor though.

The wifi is OK. We had no cell signal (which was fine). We had breakfast two mornings at the dining room and it was great though on the first morning our server didn't explain the menu to us at all and we waited while and had to ask how we get something other than the fruit/pastry course.

We ate dinner in the dining room one of our two nights there and it was nice. My meal was amazing but my husband's dietary preferences weren't able to be accommodated. I believe I communicated them when I booked but I would triple check and ensure in the days leading up that they know because they need to ensure they have the food on-site. We were told multiple times that they would be accommodated (plain chicken breast) but then they couldn't in the end and he had chicken tenders which was underwhelming.

Our server was awesome though and the drinks, bread, and desert were great.

We absolutely loved our hikes and taking a canoe out and circling the lake. So amazing.

Though it may seem I'm critiquing, I'm actually just offering some hints to ensure your stay is everything you hope for. We stayed at Cathedral Mountain Lodge a couple of years ago and it was incredible and our stay at Moraine Lake Lodge was amazing as well.

My only other suggestion is to have phones in the rooms that call the front desk. We had our fire going and I was cold so I closed our open window and ended up setting off the smoke alarm. It would have been good to be able to phone the front desk in...