Lonesome Dove Guest Ranch — Hotel in Kalispell

Location out of Kalispell in the country. This is not a place where you just arrive at any time. You need to call them during the day and let them know when you are arriving. If you are Teepee camping, this is NOT glamping. The base of the teepee does not go to the ground. It was wide open at the bottom so yes things can crawl inside.. Just saying... A wall tent is more closed. If you can't get down low low physically then don't do a teepee. Had to get on knees to get in and out. I sat on the bed inside and the wood board that held the mattress hit the floor. Had to take matress and all off to get it back on or my head would have been up.and my lower half down towards the floor. There is NO light at all so if you didn't bring a flashlight, you are in pitch dark at dark. Yes a fire ring but no wood there. 1 outhouse is all we saw and it sits right there next to 2 teepees. So yes you hear everything AND the smell was horrible. They were not clean at all. (For the record we are not city girls and not expecting the Hilton). We had pre set up to have a cot or air mattress. Happened to have called to tell them we would be in later than 6:30 and happened to remind about matress. It was forgotten and would not have been in there. Well it might as well have not been because it went flat.

Good breakfast choices.

After a good breakfast came the biggest disappointment of all. Have been a horsewoman my whole life. Walked over to see group of horses in a pine area behind the chickens. The trees were chewed and the area narrow with no grazing but yes there was hay at the moment. 3 horses were not allowed to the hay by the other horses. 1 horses appearance may be due to being low on the pecking order but still....

We walked over to see if the 3 back horses would come over and they did quickly then all of them followed. Why? Because 2 big water tubs were bone and we mean bone dry. The amount of water they drank, told the story that they had been without for too long. So we asked someone about getting water in the tanks. The person didn't seem too happy about doing it and we stayed to watch the tanks fill and horses drink and drink, we also heard from someone more information about those horses. So maybe they have too many or need more help there? This place has great potential.. I'm sure some city folks would think caged chickens, 2 bison behind a fence, 2 cats and a sweet dog are all great. Did not see inside cabins so no review on that. Your opinion of the place will depend on what you expect and what's acceptable. Dont forget no power back there and no water so take...

I booked a cabin at this place back in December of 2022, as soon as the dates for Under the Big Sky came out. When I arrived, I was informed that due to unforeseen circumstances the room in the house that I had booked was no longer being used for guests. The problem with that was I hadn't booked a room in the house, I had booked a cabin. The solutions offered to me were A) stay in a cabin the first night, move mine and my girlfriend's luggage out early in the morning, return later, and dry camp in a wall tent for the second night. Then repeat this process the next day to stay in a different cabin for the third night, or B) accept a full refund and find other accommodations, knowing full well on short notice during the busiest weekend of the year, the full refund would barely cover the cost of a single night at a hotel in town. My girlfriend and I chose to not take our chances elsewhere, so we endured the daily moves for the whole weekend. Now, I understand things happened that were out of the ranch's control. But I booked this stay 7 MONTHS in advance, and my first notice that something was wrong wasn't until I drove 2 days and 1148 miles and was standing in their office. No phone call, no email, nothing. Was the staff apologetic? Yes. Did they present a solution that at least meant we had a bed every night? Yes. But they still failed to do the easiest possible thing and notify me of the issue as soon as they knew, which was apparently weeks in advance. Then I could have posed the question of why I was being told my room in the house wasn't available when I'd booked a private cabin, not a room. As far as my girlfriend and I could tell, we were the only guests who were being bumped around, and this despite booking over half a year in advance, and reserving a different accommodation than they seemed to have us on record for. And on top of all that, the staff tried to make it seem like they'd done us a favor with the "upgrade" into the cabins for 2 nights...despite booking all 3 nights in the same cabin in the...

This was the highlight of my roadtrip! If you are wanting nature and a warm hearted welcome, this is the place to go! ||||From the first phone call to the end of my 1 night stay (I wish I could have stayed longer), all the team were very friendly and went above and beyond to make sure my stay was amazing. ||||I arrived at closing time and Sharon, Charlie waffles and a couple of other ladies were there to greet me. They stayed to make sure I knew where to go and took the time to answer all of my questions. ||||I stayed in the Tipi, which was super clean and smelled great. This was similar to camping but with a bed.. which was very comfortable. I had my camping gear so I was able to provide food for myself as it was pass dinner time. The view I had from the picnic table of the tipi village, buffalo and nature with deer walking through and a turkey wandering the grounds filled my heart and soul with gratitude. ||||Wood for a fire and breakfast was included in the price of the stay. Breakfast was very tasty. I walked through the place and greeted the horses (from outside the pen) all animals were happily munching on hay. They are well fed and cared for. ||||The next morning, breakfast was delicious and I was only able to fit in a 1 hour ride. They went out of their way to accommodate this ride. There was a 2 hour ride scheduled for later in the day but they made the one hour ride happen at an earlier time. It was a private ride and I have to say, hands down the best trail ride I have had. Thanks to Brownie; a quick stepping mustang and Alabama (sorry! forget your human name;)) Taylor I think.... He quickly assessed my riding skill, picked an amazing horse for me and adjusted the ride accordingly. ||||So a huge Thank you to this family owned Guest Ranch/Rescue team! I'm already planning my next trip to stay longer. ||||From reading other reviews on here: Keep in mind people this is a working ranch and rescue and if you are expecting a 5 star hotel experience then go to a 5 star hotel....