Creekside Lodge Yellowstone — Hotel in Cody

I don’t know who wrote the previous reviews but I have a hard time believing they are all true. After a great deal of research we booked this property for a week. I should have listened to my instincts but I feel people are basically honest. The owner/operators of the Cheapside Lodge are NOT. They are running a sub standard shabby property to milk out whatever profit they can and the heck with their clients.

The property is not well kept and is a poorly run business. On arrival we were charged additional fees not covered in their confirmation email. My wife is a gentle soul who just signed off without question. The cabin we rented was clearly not well maintained or cleaned. A thick layer of dust was on all surfaces. The fittings and furnishings were very cheap from the $10 polyester sheets to the Saran Wrap shower curtain to the metal folding chair that served as seating.

The worst signs of property neglect were the bugs crawling everywhere. We dispatched many in the course of our stay. The doors and windows are in such poor repair that they can not keep a proper closure to keep them out.

Additional serious concerns are for the basic infrastructure. On checkin we were clearly told that we could not run the heater and anything else or the fuse would blow. It was much worse than that. The nights were very cold and heating would have been welcomed if it worked. The space heaters did not heat anything. The electric sockets were in such disrepair that sparks would shoot out of them. Very disturbing and a serious safety issue. I wonder if smoke detectors are even functional in the cabins.

Plumbing was as dated and slow as the rest of the property. Drains were slow to function. The tubs were very slippery and there were no safety handles or bars installed. High flow fixtures appear to be in use here.

Wifi is not operational on 99.99% of the property. And this is a small cramped property. In an area where cell service is non existent, a functioning WiFi is an absolute necessity to communicate with friends and business contacts. The owners clearly stated they would not invest in such an update to provide what is a basic communication in this day and age. When called out on several errors on their web pages, they also stated they did not have the money to fix the issues.

The nickel and dime approach continued with the meager offering for breakfast and dinner (one plate no choice). Considering the inflated rates they charge, coffee for breakfast should not be an issue Dinner is a hard pass.

I submit this as a warning to others. Buyer beware. There are far better properties around Yellowstone that provide comfort, cleanliness, value, safety and security. This is NOT...

Three things! Don't go to YS. In June. NEVER stay OUTSIDE the park!!! And lastly, if there's the slightest risk of snow in your trip, CANCEL and just eat whatever cant' be refunded! In the long run you'll save $$$.

I cannot recommend this place or ANY place outside the park. I did give Creekside 5 stars because the cabin was clean, and comfortable for the one night we actually got to stay there, & the staff was nice. We didn't eat breakfast or dinner there because we got stuck in the park and the dinner menu only has one or two choices at the most. If you don't stay inside the park you run a huge risk of not being able to get in if it starts to snow just a little! We were told by park officials it snows every month there, even in Aug! Very, very light snow (not even sticking to roads) at 8am and they closed the gates before we even got there! So you're forced to drive around outside of the park to another gate that is open (3hrs away) and when you finally get in, if it starts to snow they close the gates again trapping you from getting out of the park and back to your hotel/cabin! This means you have to find a place w/o your belongings and pay for another cabin or hotel room $$$. And don't stay at the Yellowstone Inn cabins, (Snow Lodge) some don't have inside bathrooms, and there is no lighting whatsoever around the cabins in back so you're driving around looking for numbers on a cabin that aren't even lit at pitch dark! They were built in the 70's and they look like it! LESSONS LEARNED, NEVER GO IN JUNE, NEVER BOOK OUTSIDE THE PARK, and CANCEL if there's a chance...

Our reservations were from Saturday to Thursday. Unfortunately we could not get there Saturday so I called to make sure they would not give our room away. The man assured me it would be ours. We arrived Sunday evening about 6:00 after a day of the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone. We had not made dinner plans and Diana offered dinner to us. We had a great pulled pork sandwich and fries. That was the only meal we had while there. We took lunch meat and snacks and ate in Yellowstone every day. My husband did go into the bar at Creekside a couple of evenings and had a nice visit with others there. |The rooms are quaint and there are space heaters and a little fan. We did not use either one, as the normal heater was plenty. |We brought a small refrigerator with us as there is not one nor a microwave. You have the option to use the microwave in the lodge if need be. To stay several days as we did and take food to eat in the park you really need a refrigerator. There is no coffee maker either so I took a hot pot and instant coffee for my husband. Purchase food and supplies before you get to Yellowstone. There are no grocery stores near Creekside and the ones in the park are expensive. But that was expected, so we had brought most of what we needed. While Creekside is just a few miles from the entrance to Yellowstone it still takes you a couple of hours to really get anywhere in the park you want to go. Just plan accordingly. Creekside had a beautiful creek just outside our door and we sat outside a couple of nights. It was a great stay. Diana was...