Storm Meadows East Slopeside — Hotel in Steamboat Springs

We stayed at the Trails at Storm Meadows 1/21 - 1/26/09. We've come to call it the Trials and for good reason. First, though, let me say that the condo itself was exceptional. It was comfortable, well decorated, had everything in the kitchen we needed to cook meals there, a private hot tub, a garage where we could store our gear, and was close to the slopes. ||||Upon choosing a resort we had criteria that needed to be met: 3 bedroom/3 bath with separate beds in one of the bedrooms as we had 2 single guys in our group, a washer/dryer, ski in/out, a fitness center, and on demand shuttle service. From the time the reservation was made over the phone, we felt mislead.||||We were quoted $1600 for the Moraine and $2600 for the Trails. We were actually emailed the quote for the Moraine. When we decided on the Trails, we emailed back to request the quote given over the phone. We got an emailed response back 5 days later telling us that the higher quote given verbally was for the Moraine and that the Trails was sold out. Luckily we had spoken to someone in the meantime to reserve the Trails for the verbal quote given.||||Check in was no problem and our condo was ready right away even though it was before the 4pm check in time. After arriving at the condo, all three bedrooms had king beds. There was a set of bunk beds in the downstairs living room, which one of the single guys slept in since there was no bedroom with the separate beds promised. When my husband called the desk to inquire about the twin beds, he was told, "We don't guarantee bedding." It shouldn't have been stated as such then for this particular unit when we made the reservation.||||The access trails are okay for skiers who are experienced. From the condo, we walked from the downstairs bedroom, across a parking lot to get to the access trail. There are quite a few flat areas that were really tough for the snowboarders in our group. They opted for the shuttle service over the access trail. So much for ski in/out.||||The shuttle service, as told to my husband when making the reservation, was not on demand. It's scheduled from 8am - 2:30pm every 15 minutes from shuttle stops throughout the Storm Meadows complexes to the base, except Storm Meadows at Christy Base. They have no shuttle service at all. Not real convenient hiking back with groceries for 4 people. After 2:30pm it's less frequent and only to the base. From 5pm til 10:30pm, the resort shuttle can take you to designated stops: downtown at certain streets, City Market, and the stop for the free city bus. So again, we were mislead about the "demand" shuttle.||||My husband works out avidly and couldn't get information from anyone about where the fitness center was. There was no info about it in the guest info book, the answering service couldn't answer any questions and was unwilling to take a message about it. Once my husband was able to talk to someone at the front desk, he couldn't even give info about the hours.||When my husband finally found the fitness center on his own, it was about 3pm. There was an employee still there but the door was locked. Once my husband got his attention and he came to the door, the employee seemed put off that he had to do so. He told my husband, "The hot tub's not working so the boss is letting me go early." My husband told him he was there to use the fitness equipment. The employee repeated that he was being allowed to leave early. So much for customer service.||||Transportation from/to the airport: We used Alpine Taxi. It's pretty much the only transportation from the airport and is perfect for those not renting a car. They're professional, courteous and on time. It's about $52/person round trip.||||Ski rentals: Sports Authority is across the street from the Mountain Resorts check-in office. They're the cheapest for rentals we've found. So while you're waiting for your condo to be ready Sports Authority is right there and way easier to rent then than trying to get back to the store later.||||Lift tickets: We booked ours through Mountain Resorts since they offered a discount if we bought them 10 days before our arrival.||||As stated above, the condo was excellent, had plenty of room for everyone, the view was great, the hot tub was nice after a day on the slopes, and we were allowed to check out from the condo. Steamboat is a great place for skiing/snowboarding because of all the snow they get. Our vacation was really fun minus the minor frustrations. So before you decide to book with Mountain Resorts, consider all your criteria and ask specifically if those criteria are...

Ski-in/Ski-out accessibility review. Unit 66 (6th floor).

TLDR: YES, Storm Meadows EAST is true Ski-in/Ski-out from the building itself. 109 steps and 37 stairs from the elevator to the slopes. If you are physically able to ski, you should have no problem getting to and from slopes carrying your skis that far. SEE PHOTOS for clarity.

This review focuses on accessibility to slopes. Many reviews of Steamboat rentals are deceptive. We spent hours online trying to find a true Ski-In/Out for a reasonable price, so this is a detailed review to save others' time.

Building:

The building is difficult to describe and is really two buildings on a mountain side connected by walkways. 6th floor is ground level for the parking lot behind the building. 4th floor contains the ground level elevator exit to the slopes. (See Photos) Rooms are numbered based on floors.

To/from the 6th floor, it was a very short, flat, and straight walk to the parking lot. (Photo) (Note that free or guaranteed parking is not necessarily included or even available at all places in Steamboat.) For floors other than 6, you will take stairs or an elevator to your room.

Each floor has lockers on its own floor, which are convenient. Each room has its own dedicated locker, opened by your room key.

See the photos for the walk to the slopes. It is paved and has (by my count) 37 stairs and 109 steps from the elevator. You may find that the walk from your room to the elevator is longer than the walk from elevator to slopes, so it really is not a big deal.

[Unit 10 is right next to the slopes. You could actually ski to within 10-15 feet of the entrance to the room. However, the person staying there told me getting the bags, etc to the room was a real pain. Just FYI.]

Unit 66.

We would absolutely stay here and in this unit again. This unit is not a luxury unit, but that's just fine. It gives off a "place that a family friend owns but lets us stay in" vibe. To my eye it was likely built in 1970s, very early 80s at the latest (popcorn ceilings, oudated kitchen lighting fixtures, wall light switches, formica countertops, etc.) Given the price for staying here vs. other places, this is a great deal and very comfortable. You could easily spend $1000 more for a week and basically only have a hotel room.

We give this place a very high review and recommend it for families, people on a budget, and especially someone who wants the ability to take breaks from skiing for lunch, to change clothes for temperature fluctuations, etc.

If dated electrical fixtures, appliances, and carpets are going to bother you, or you want to stay in the newest place, it's not for you. But you're probably not reading this review if that's the case.... ;)

The only reason we didn't give it 5 stars for the room itself is there are some minor paint, wallpaper, drywall, ugly nail holes, and other noticeable issues that could be updated. But, honestly, if it was my place, I would probably hold off on fixing those minor items until the next time we did a major remodel. The unit was very clean, considering the age of building.

The local renting agency (as of December 2024) was very helpful answering questions before we rented and when we checked in late after hours. The local rental agency website also contained the TOTAL price, which many others do not.

Overall, we were pleasantly surprised at the value and convenience of the unit and the building location. Our expectations were exceeded.

PS I'm pretty certain the owners have a dog in the unit when they stay here. No bad smells, hairs or anything that would be obvious to most people, but I personally am extremely sensitive to the prior presence of animals and would bet money that there is a dog in the unit from time to time. Anyone with severe dog allergies might want to...

We spent a long weekend, from Thursday to Sunday at this condo and enjoyed every minute of our stay. It's an older place but we didn't mind, it has a queen size sofa bed perfect for our 2 girls and a king size bed which we love. The kitchen is complete with what you need but we didn't really cook or used most of them. We brought easy to make breakfast like scones, hot chocolate, muffins, etc. we ate lunches in the mountain and go out to town which is 5 min drive for dinner. |It's so convenient that the lockers are located in the same floor as our condo unit#41, the key card to the room is the same card you use to access the locker. It's over sized so all 4 skiing equipment fits perfectly. The hot tub is 2 floors down, it's small but it's always empty. It's about 20 steps down the stairs outside then there's your access to the mountain, super convenient. |The only issue was parking on our last day, check out is 10am and you need to leave your key in the room. It's not a problem because we do not need the room but the only access to the parking lot is thru the building so we need the key to get to the parking lot. They helped us, just make sure you talk to the office about this and I hope by now they already figured out how to solve this issue.|We highly recommend this condo, will be...