Four Seasons Resort Rancho Encantado Santa Fe — Hotel in Santa Fe

We just returned back with our 3 young children (ages 8,6, and 2) from a restful and amazing stay. The hotel was beautiful, and the rooms were clean and spacious. We stayed in a suite which was perfect for our large family. However, what really set this experience apart was the kindness and attentiveness of the staff. Traveling with young children is not always easy, and it was the small acts of kindness the hotel staff did that made a lasting impression on our vacation. Like our amazing guide for our morning walk, Erika, said, "They truly think of everything," and the hotel truly does. Not only did Erika tailor our walk on the hotel's beautiful property to be interesting to both the adults and children in our group, she was welcoming and provided child-sized walking sticks and water bottles with carriers that fit the kids just perfectly (and made them excited to hike, which let us adults enjoy the hike.) The good experiences continued. We learned from the front desk that the hotel offered a complimentary cooking demonstration for its guests, but we had unfortunately not signed up. To accommodate us, Chef Andrew graciously arranged a private demonstration on a different day that was just perfect for the kids. He taught them how to make homemade pasta and pot stickers. The experience was one of the highlights of our trip! The kids loved being in a "real" kitchen, and even ate food they had previously been too scared to try. A few days later, we were dining at Terra, (which was absolutely delicious!) and Chef Andrew came by our table to say hello and ask how we were. (The kids were thrilled to see him again.) Another day, we set out to explore the surrounding area of Los Alamos and Bandelier. When I ran into the lobby, the general manager had politely greeted me and opened the door. Upon learning we were hiking with the kids, he insisted that we bring a box full of delicious pastries with us so they would not get cranky on the drive, and gave us his business card in case we would need anything. I was taken aback by how down to earth and kind the manager was (even taking the time out of his day to open the door and greet the guests). When the older kids went skiing at the nearby Ski Santa Fe, the hotel kindly arranged a drop off and pick up for my pregnant wife and younger son door to door to the the children's museum. Micheal and the other driver were kind and courteous, prepared with the brochure of the museum, and granola bars and water for our hungry toddler. The concierge also offered wonderful suggestions to a local taco stand that was delicious! The small acts of kindness even extended to the housekeeping- leaving water and glasses next to the bed when they noticed we had used the humidifier - was well appreciated and did not go unnoticed. It's all these little things- the feeling that you are truly welcome; that others anticipate the needs before you have them- that make for an outstanding stay. Thank you for making our trip with the kids stress free, allowing us to have a...

Nestled between distant mountains, dark starry nights welcoming and smiling staff-is what a romantic stay would consist of. Although my wife was here for a conference that didn't take away from the vacation feel of this trip. Located minutes from the Opera House, restaurants and downtown Santa Fe via the nearby highway.

Our large room had a king-sized very comfortable bed with sleep inducing comfortable pillows. We used the fireplace nightly as it got a little nippy at night. When we needed more firewood-we called and within a few minutes firewood would appear outside our door. The room had 2 comfy chairs if you wanted to relax and view the outside via the very large sliding french doors. There was a large drum between the chairs-maybe we could do some tribal strumming. For business you have a large solid wood desk with 2 chairs and fast free wifi.

The normal amenities were included - large screen tv with HD cable and HBO. A DVD player is included-always a nice touch. By the bed there's a modern clock radio-not with the Apple lightening plug-the older Apple adapter, but no big deal. A nice touch was the 2 charging ports one for phones and other accessories and one for tablets.

The heating and cooling system is one of the best we've enjoyed. The thermostat kept the room exactly the temperate we set it at. It was completely silent. And if you travel a lot you know having a quiet room is important.

There's a large closet with a 'motion sensing' light-loved that feature. In room safe-they warn you not to keep valuables inside but at the main safe in the main building where you check in. Ok I don't have anything that valuable. Most of the lights are attached to dimmer switches-nice to set a good mood. The fan is variable speeds via similar light switches. I love the "master shut-off switch" when leaving for a while you can turn off all the lights.

The large bathroom was very nice. Being 6'3" it was so nice to have a very large shower where my arms didn't hit the walls or ceiling. The bathtub was huge-my feet barely touched the other side.

Room service was very fast and efficient and we utilized it twice. We felt like we were home.

A few tips. If you are from sea level like we are, this Four Seasons is about 7,000 feet in elevation. So just take it easy for the first few days. If you feel dizzy or out of breath-no alarm. No matter how good of shape you are in-the change in altitude may or may not affect you. Each person responds differently. Just drink plenty of fluids and get some rest. When we checked in and were shown around the room-they showed us a cool water vaporizer (I use a similar one at home in the winter). I recommend this is something that should be utilized as the humidity may be lower than what you are used to. We are used to high humidity being from Florida, so this vaporizer did help. Our nasal passages still became very dry, but that's normal until your...

We came here for dinner and drinks and the service was excellent. Our server was charming, prompt and made spectacular recommendations. However, after dinner and drinks we tried to order a car for a ride back to our rental property but there were none available. The front desk offered to order a cab and said it would be there within 30 minutes. We waited and waited and 45 minutes passed and no cab. The older man at the front desk gave us the number and the cab driver refused to come out saying it was ordered but not confirmed and they now wouldn’t be able to pick us up. We sought for an alternative solution from the same front desk person and he gave my wife severe attitude and basically told us to walk. Keep in mind the highway nearby has no lights, it’s late at night and they just served us hundreds of dollars of alcohol. Given no choice we all walked along the highway at night dodging cars in the dark. At one point someone stopped to ask if we were okay, during which another person stopped…our waitress from earlier. She gave us a ride and apologized, she was our literal savior and understood the lunacy and risk of serving people alcohol then telling them to walk along a dark highway after the front couldn’t handle properly ordering a cab.

No we weren’t guest, but our meal and drinks were nearly enough to purchase a room. We are regulars at the Four Seasons in Denver and have been offered rides numerous times after dinner regardless of our status as guest. What’s insane in this situation is the front desk would rather us walk in a highway than bother even considering other options…it definitely soured our experience. The waitress came through in an outstanding way, but the old man at the front desk showed us that the “hospitality staff” at the four seasons needs some serious retraining.

In summary, put the waitress in charge and have her show the “hospitality staff” how to do things right. Also, if you’re thinking of using a cab or car service for dinner here-don’t. You might be stuck walking along the highway...