Idyllwild Bunkhouse — Hotel in Idyllwild-Pine Cove

My wife and I booked an overnight stay here in mid-July - we had checked out the website and some photos and we knew it was just the place for us. When we arrived, we were not at all disappointed. Raj (the new owner!) was gracious enough to let us check-in a bit early since the traffic from Long Beach was so light. Check-in was probably the easiest thing I've ever done - quick signature and I had the key in my hand. Raj made some recommendations for food and entertainment, and told us about the short hiking path down the hill from the motel and we went off to our room.

The room we stayed in was great - big bed and rustic cabin-like interior and design. Cute little signs and things hanging on the walls, and the walls themselves are large pieces of knotty lumber. The ceiling is open-beam and airy. There was a kitchenette with sink, some bowls, plates, cups, mugs and silverware; a small refrigerator and microwave.

Before going out in to town, I was anxious to go explore this hiking trail on the property - so we went on a little hike. Down the backside of the motel is a rough-cut stairway made with rail ties and a winding path that goes down to the creek. There was a little bit of water flowing when we visited, and a few little rest areas in the shade. A really nice little loop - took about 20 minutes of wandering around before we popped back up on the other side.

We went in to town for dinner and a few drinks, then came back and went to bed. The bed was comfortable (I liked it a lot actually!) and the room was able to stay relatively cool with the small AC going all night.

The next morning there was a gentle knock on the door - Raj had delivered a wicker basket with scones, fruit, a few packets of instant oatmeal and some juice. The wife and I went out on the balcony and relaxed in the Adirondack chairs while we sipped coffee and ate our fresh breakfast while we watched woodpeckers, stellar jays and squirrels play on the trees.

At check-out, Raj and his dog were walking from room-to-room checking on the cleaning staff and greeting all of the guests. He is an extremely nice man and seems to be very excited about his new ownership of this motel. I wandered off to play fetch with the dog while my wife chatted with Raj a bit more.

On the drive home, we both agreed that we would need to return to Idyllwild again soon - and when we do, we are definitely staying at the Bunkhouse.

Thank you Raj and the rest...

We made a reservation at the hotel via hotels.com (2 days) We decided by reading the details about the hotel, the photos and comments on their website. (Standart room - pet friendly) We traveled for 2.5 hours in very cold weather to stay 2 nights with my wife, daughter and dog. (14 lb. cockapoo) When we arrived at the reception, the owner of the hotel greeted us. He is very talkative person. No problem. When we showed our room (Room 2), unfortunately, we saw that there was no (AC) heating system in the room, there was no fireplace, there was no window towards the place overlooking the view. Just parking view. The water in the bathroom flows very little and you will get sick from the cold when you bathe there. The temperature in the room was around 50F on average.

We didn't have many room options as we had a dog.

But if you're selling this room for close to $304, you should at least have a decent heating system.

Obviously, it is not necessary to go and stay there. Instead, you can stay in the tent in the same coldness.

What he shows us as heating does not even warm itself! Small electric heater and 35f degrees outside. And snow time!

The floors are carpeted and not good condition. There is not enough light and we started coughing. And also, zero soundproofing in the room! You can hear the sounds from the next room talking people. There is a note written under the television so that you do not watch TV loudly in the evenings, because the insulation of the rooms is very poor! Sound disturbs others.

I left without overnight, saying their faulty service and marketing the room in this way is not correct. We also waited outside in the cold for almost 20 minutes as we didn't want to talk to other customers while waiting at the reception.

The fact that he said he couldn't help with the return is another reason for sadness. For a business that cannot provide the service it says it offers on the web, 'it is not right to say that I will not return'

I immediately contacted my bank on the internet and opened a registration for return transactions instead of finding a hotel in that cold weather. We couldn't find a place anywhere that night, so we had to go back to our house with great sadness. It was very tiring.

I'm sorry I had a bad experience there, we are a family that normally enjoys even a tent vacation, but for a hotel that I pay 300 dollars a night for, my expectation should be a warm room and...

Taylor and Debbie were very helpful and did what they could to address any issues. However, some things should have been addressed before anyone arrives to stay. |Our first stay was in the studio cabin called Hidden Forest, which has a beautiful view. Problem was, the place and getting to the cabin, was not well kept. The stairs leading down to it were in need of total repairs and replacement. The cabin itself is nice but needed better upkeep. The closet was dirty, the shower curtain was moldy and figuring out how to use the remote control for the television was interesting as someone stole the batteries and also required a second control. | Our second stay was in a bunkhouse room. Again the shower curtain was moldy and there were bugs crawling all over the place and even had some fall in our bed from the ceiling. Carpet needed vacuuming as dust was built up around the walls and heater. | Because we loved the location and view, and Taylor was such a good host, we decided to try one one time. Our third stay, this time with friends, we rented another room only to have an issue with a non working a/c unit, and this was in the early July during the hottest time of the month. Although Debbie tried her best to resolve the issue, it wouldn’t work. We ended up having to go to a different motel/ cabin, away from our friends. |It’s unfortunate that we had all these issues as we really love the area where it’s located and the staff is great. But you should be able to expect a certain amount of maintenance and cleanness for the money. |Hopefully this review will bring attention to the owners need to improve the safety and cleanliness of the property and make it become a 5 star place...