Chisos Mountains Lodge — Hotel in Manuel Benavides

First, I want to clarify that this review is only for the rooms. They are beyond needing updated and or replaced. Our toilet barely worked and our neighbors toilet did not work. When they ask for a plunger they brought an entire new toilet and said it was going to make a big mess because the toilet could not be repaired as they are full of calcium deposits and there is no room for You know what to go down the drain. What a shame that they don’t spend money and put a reasonably inexpensive toilet in instead of subjecting you to that. There are many gross things throughout the room including a nasty looking drain with no drain plug which allowed a scorpion to crawl up into the drain And into our tub. We don’t even mind the scorpion but we did mind the nastiness. Any semi-handy person could re-caulk those tubs and tile in an hour and they haven’t even taken the time to do that. There was mold throughout the bathroom on the walls, on the ceiling etc. It is incredible to me that management does not take care of this. I do not even blame housekeeping because this has obviously been a problem for a long time. If you want to see something incredibly gross look at the ring around the inside rim of the toilet which is totally covered with mold. I hope I am not requested to put pictures that I took as it will gross out anyone. One of the doors would barely open unless you put your shoulder into it. The beds are completely worn out. Don’t look for anything under the bed as the cloth is sagging to the floor. The sheets are so old and thin that it barely feels like you have one on. The pillows felt like they were from another era and were hard as rocks. Well not hard as rocks but you get my point. It wouldn’t hurt to see a chiropractor after using them. Haven’t they ever heard of Walmart. They could get some cheap pillows and have a lot of happy customers. Pick up some sheets while you’re there also. I almost forgot to mention that when we checked in there was no water throughout the lodge. It didn’t last long and the next day we noticed that in the adjoining rooms there were notices on the door. We thought it was about checkout or something. No, it was a boil water notice -do not drink. That notice was not on our door or the room next to us and we had been using the water. Couldn’t someone have put those notices on our door, come down and told us, or called us. With that said we fortunately did not get sick. I will give it to them that the shower worked, the microwave and fridge worked and the lights worked. It is definitely a one star hotel. Now, that is my review for the room and I hold management totally accountable for that because every single employee that we met at check-in, in the restaurant, on the grounds, and maid service were very nice and a pleasure to be around. I wish management took as much care with their customers room as they did in hiring great people. Or maybe great people just gravitate towards this location. I believe management has milked all they can out of this joint. There was a nice little store which had a surprising amount of things that were useful on this trip. We also had a good meal at the restaurant and good service. As I stated all of that was only about the room. The location is beyond phenomenal. Do I think it was worth sleeping in this crappy place to be in this location.? I hate to admit it but I do. It is that fantastic. The views are out of this world. We have traveled all over the world and this is one of the great places we have been. The park itself has excellent maintenance, the trails were terrific, all trails were immaculately clean and the views were breathtaking. Don’t let what I said about the rooms keep you from going. We had...

Think twice before going there!

Unfortunately, our family trip to Big Bend National Park was seriously impacted by the extremely poor experience at the only available lodging—Chisos Lodge. The lack of alternatives is a major issue, and it's unlikely we will return to the park, despite having missed several key landmarks we had hoped to explore.

Here’s a breakdown of our experience:

Rooms are extremely outdated and poorly maintained. We're not even talking about minor inconveniences—the rooms are simply old, uncomfortable, and not clean. The beds are small, the toilets were dirty, and everything feels like it hasn’t been updated in over 50 years. For $250 a night, this is unacceptable.

The only on-site restaurant was closed. Before our trip, I reviewed the lodge’s website and found the menu and prices reasonable. Breakfast options were listed with no pricing, which implied they were included. However, upon arrival, we learned the restaurant was not operating at all. We hadn’t brought enough food supplies, and had no choice but to rely on a nearby food truck. Unfortunately, the food was both overpriced and inedible. We spent over $100 for our family, and ended up throwing away at least half of it because it simply wasn’t edible.

The on-site store closes at 6:30 PM. That’s not helpful for travelers who arrive later in the day or need basic supplies after a long hike.

The store has almost no selection and extremely high prices. We survived for two days on instant noodles and prepackaged meals requiring only hot water. That says it all.

The worst part—hail damage. We stayed for three days. On two of them, there were hailstorms—one of them severe, with golf ball-sized hail. Every single car in the parking lot was damaged, including ours. Repair estimates exceed $8,000. Here’s the frustrating part: the lodge was built in 1964 and is located at an elevation of 5,200 feet, where hail is known to occur. Why, in over 60 years, has no one thought to install even basic covered parking with metal roofing? This isn’t rocket science or quantum mechanics—it’s basic guest safety and infrastructure. The lack of protection feels negligent and disrespectful to visitors.

If it were possible to give zero stars, I would. To anyone planning a visit—especially with children—please seriously consider the potential costs and stress. Yes, the scenery is beautiful, but the overall experience can end up being expensive, frustrating, and deeply...

I stayed here on 2 separate nights and ate at the restaurant only once due to my experience. My first stay was in Casa Grande room C2, and the room was absolutely disgusting. Terrible stains on the carpet, walls, furniture, and all throughout the bathroom, so much so that I was afraid to walk barefoot anywhere or touch anything. Extremely musty. I used an entire package of Clorox wipes and still could not bear the smell and was using tissues as protection to touching surfaces. Old and outdated does not even begin to describe. I had to unplug appliances just to have a place to charge my cell phone and Oura ring. Also, the sheets on both beds were so wrinkled giving the appearance (and smell) like they had not even been washed. And by the end of my 8 minute shower, I was standing in 3-4" of water. I think even worse than ALL of that was my experience in the restaurant. I stood at the host station for 4-5 minutes before anyone showed up, and when she did, she did not say a single word to me. No "hi," "hello," "how many" or even "go screw yourself" lol. She stood there with her RBF and major attitude and waited for me to tell her how many in my party seeing as she never asked. She then proceeded to seat me at a table that not only had not been cleaned, but still had the previous diner's bill sitting there. My waiter was overall polite, but just had this weird demeanor about him. Then my burger arrived. It was cooked to the correct doneness (well done) but the patty was cold and did not have cheese like I ordered. I was also not told that I would be given mixed vegetables instead of fries or chips, which would have been much preferred (I needed the sodium after 11.5 miles of hiking). Overall terrible experience and decided to not dine there again. I have stayed inside national parks before, and had much better experiences than this. Aramark needs to take a page out of...