Spirit Lake Lodge — Hotel in Grand Lake

DO NOT RENT FROM THIS PLACE!!!! Absolute terrible experience! The office staff is rude, completely unorganized, and provided TERRIBLE customer service.

A group of friends and I rented snowmobiles on a Saturday from this place. The trail was terrible and hard to follow. One of the people in our group had a little run with a tree. We informed them about it right away when we returned. The mechanic assessed the sled and charged us for the damage.. No big deal.

Wrong.. that same night they ran an additional charge of $600 for "further damage they didn't see during the initial inspection." They claimed to have called multiple times and left a voicemail.. They called once and left a 3 second voicemail of them hanging up the phone. They claimed that the further damage made it so the sled would not turn left at all.. I found that hard to believe considering we rode it for an additional 3 hours after the run in with the tree with no problems. The mechanic even rode it around after to make sure the skis themselves were not damaged. The following day (Sunday), I called to ask what the additional charge was for. They gave some run around about me signing paperwork that says I will pay for any damage, which we did sign and pay for. However, there was no way for them to prove to us that the "further damage" they claimed the sled had, was from us, considering we rode it for an additional 3 hours without any problems. When I asked why they had re ran the card without speaking to us, they proceeded to tell me they called multiple times, which, like I stated earlier, they called ONCE. When I asked to have EVERYTHING emailed to me, they informed me they would do so within the next hour. This was at 1:30 in the afternoon. I received NOTHING that day. The following morning (Monday) I called and asked when the email would sent over. The lady in the office tried telling me they were "too busy" to send me what I was asking for and I'd have to wait... I'd say that's terrible customer service considering they had PLENTY of time to charge the card an additional $600. The day went by with no email sent. I called again Monday evening at about 6pm. She again told me "my crew is too busy fixing the sled you wrecked to send over the email." After a little arguing she agreed to send the email over that night. I did receive the email at about 8:30 pm with NONE of the documents attached that I had asked for.

This company also charges $100 per hour if a rescuer is needed. While our group was checking out and paying for the damage, another group had called in informing the office staff that they were lost and needed a rescue sent out. Keep in mind it was about 5 at night, dark and extremely cold. The office lady finished checking ALL 6 of us out before calling for rescue.. about 25 minutes later.

If you still choose to rent from these guys, I'd suggest paying close attention to your bank account, considering they continue to run your card for damages you most likely did not cause. Oh, and don't get lost or hurt because they will take 25 minutes to even call a rescue and charge you a boat...

Don’t believe them, when they say they don’t offer insurance because it would be too expensive for customers to afford. If they cared about what customers could afford, they wouldn’t overcharge customers huge sums of money for minor repair at the end of their rental. They don’t offer insurance because it allows them to keep their prices artificially low, so they get people in the door. Then, once they have your credit card numbers on file, they make their money by overcharging you for minor damage that you may or may not be responsible for.

Summary of My Experience

When I reserved the rental, I was told that I could not get insurance on the snowmobile because it was too expensive and people wouldn’t be able to afford to rent the snowmobiles if they offered insurance. This seemed strange to me because my husband is a snowmobile guide in Colorado and his company offers affordable insurance. But, since no other places had machines available in Grand Lake that day, I reluctantly made a reservation.

I arrived a little early to get checked in on the day of our rental. When I arrived I noticed one staff member driving around a snowmobile that had confederate flags all over it which I find racist, threatening and offensive. Then, while I was waiting, some of the staff was loudly complaining about other guests., and one of the staff rudely told me I was in his way, but didn’t tell me where to go to wait. Moreover, after I checked in, they did not give me any instructions on what we should do next. My snowmobile rental did not start on time, which I thought was understandable since people were coming back late, but I was frustrated that none of their staff talked to me to explain what was going on or to apologize for the delay. To be fair, they did let me come back late to compensate for the delay.

When I finally did get my rental and was able to go ride, it wasn’t very fun (especially for my friend who rode in the back) because the trails SLL recommended were extremely bumpy as if they hadn’t been groomed for a long time. This was especially frustrating because we were charge a fee for grooming.

When I returned, they found damage on one of the snowmobiles my friend rented—there was a crack in the pan under the machine. They said the repair would cost $700, which seemed outrageous for such a small repair. On the invoice, they charged him $100 per hour for labor, but when we talked to the mechanic he told us he only was paid $13 per hour. When we questioned the costs of the repairs, their staff told us they would call the Sharif and then we would have to pay it. We were also pretty sure that they had not yet fixed the machine and kept using it because my friend asked for the used parts since he had to pay for new ones and they kept saying they weren’t ready. Overall, the experience was pretty horrible. I wish I never went...

We searched all over Colorado for an amazing snowmobile experience. We were plagued with expensive options which added on extra money for gear and gas but finally we stumbled across this location. THIS WAS THE BEST FIND OF OUR ENTIRE TRIP! The drive out to this location was nothing more than heavenly and once we got to the location we were amazed by how friendly and courteous the staff were! We all paid 70 dollars each (for a double rider snowmobile) which included all the gas, helmets, snowsuits, and boots!) We were shocked! Mike explained the entire course to us after we signed our paperwork. He told us all the scenic routes, told us all the precautions, and gave us his phone number in case we got lost or needed help! We didn't get lost at all though because all the signs were clearly labeled with an amazing map! The snowmobiles ran amazingly! They were well maintained and the well explained eve for the 6 of us first timers. We understood every button! We checked our machines for any damage before signing the final paperwork and oof we went! The course was so pristine and well maintained. The trails were beautiful and had great views of all the snowcapped conifers and mountains. We got tot he end of our 1 hour mark and had lots of fun going fast, practicing hills, making snow angles etc. It was truly beautiful! The second hour we spent exploring new trails and having a great time! FANTASTIC! A real adrenaline rush! We returned our snowmobiles where it was checked for any damage. Everything was great and we returned to drop off our gear. The people here were so friendly and it was the main reason I decided to write a review. Everyone needs to stop paying an arm and a leg for this experience and this crew knows how to let people have a great time for a great price! We read a review that showed someone had come here every year for 13 years and we even ran into a family that'd done this 3 years in a row now. It shows the true quality of the people and place! ILL...