9 Bar W Cabins — Hotel in West Yellowstone

TLDR Version – 3 Stars, it was “okay”. If was a place to sleep, it’s not a hotel, it’ a glorified garden shed. Would I stay there again, no. Would I tell you NOT to stay there also no. The people I dealt with on the phone/email were nice. Beds were super comfortable, it was clean. ||||Now – if you want to get all the tea – keep reading:||||It's all about expectations really....||||We made reservations very far in advance and paid our deposit (50% down). The reservation paperwork indicated that closer to our stay we would receive additional information, including the door code to get into our cabin.||||Nearly 5 days before we were to check in, we were charged for the remaining balance of our stay. I will admit to being a little surprised to look at my credit card balance and see that charge pop up without notice and quite in advance of our arrival. But this isn't a hotel - so I rolled with it. Perhaps an emailed receipt to your guests explaining that you are now paid in full would be in order. ||||The day for us to fly to Mt from Wi was approaching and I had still not received any additional information. I emailed the cabin company indicating we would, likely, be arriving later in the evening of our check in day and asked if there was a code needed. I didn't hear back via email in a timely fashion, so I called. After calling, I was able to finally receive the code needed via email, (along with a list of rules and regulations) for my stay. I'm glad I did because - as this isn't a hotel environment, there isn't a fully staffed check in desk. So, something to keep in mind if you're getting close to your stay...you may need to keep on top of things! ||||The person I spoke with on the phone was very nice, she told me that she would email me the code and leave a light on for us. ||||We arrived after driving from the Bozeman MT airport and around Yellowstone all day, about 7PM. We approached our cabin and tried to enter the door code given and it didn't work. After multiple attempts, even googling the type of keypad door lock to see if we were doing something wrong, I texted and called the person I had been communicating with previously. She explained that the original code I was given had been changed and that she had emailed me with a new code. If you have ever been to the Yellowstone area, there isn't cell service. I was also on vacation, so checking my email is not something I do regularly - even if technology permitted. So, I was frustrated (and, admittedly, tired, cranky, and had been up since 5AM with air travel and driving) but managed to make it into the cabin. ||||The cabin - we were in number 2. It was cute from the outside, but keep in mind, you're basically in a parking lot. Where we come from, these are elaborate garden sheds (She-Sheds) with insulation and a bathroom added, made up to be like a studio apartment. We knew this before making our reservations, so we were not surprised. You park right in front of your cabin.||||The interior - at first blush, is cute! Two double beds which were super comfy! Loved the linens and I slept like a baby the whole trip! But the devil is in the details, and if you are someone who has an eye for detail and basic home finishing/remodeling/construction, you will notice things.||||The drywall ceiling over the kitchenette is sagging. Every possible crack, crevice, butt-joint is filled with wood putty. The drywall and paint work are embarrassing. When we tried to explain it to our family and friends when we talked about our trip – we put it like this: “Have you ever seen the TV show Trailer Park Boys? It’s a little “fancier” than the shed that the character, Bubbles, lives in”. ||||The shower is smaller than a cruise ship shower. Smaller than the shower in my Camper/RV. Hubs and I are both sturdy Wisconsinites and we could not bend over or turn around in the shower. If you weigh more than - say 200 pounds, be warned - you may need a sponge bath. ||||There is a little shelf under the TV mounted to the wall and it has a sharp corner. It’s also at the PEFECT height to stab yourself in the eye, temple, forehead, or seriously wrack your head. ||||The kitchenette – I was super excited there was a Keurig machine! There were a couple K-Cups provided, they do provide some small plastic cups next to the Keurig. These cups however are not large enough to hold one K-Cup’s worth of coffee. So, morning one, I was getting doused with hot coffee, my cup is going to melt, I’m desperately trying to unwrap another plastic cup to catch the remainder of the coffee as it was brewed by the machine. Had someone been watching me, they would be laughing hysterically at my antics. Once I finally had my plastic flavored coffee - I realize the owners of the cabins also own the coffee shop in the parking lot. I would suggest owners put a couple Styrofoam cups into the cabins.||||Maybe the other cabins are in better shape...I don't know.||||That brings us to the coffee shop that takes up most of the lot. After my initial ‘Three Stooges’ attempt at making my own coffee – I figured I’d just go outside and buy a cup. The people working at the coffee shop were super nice – coffee was delicious. ||It’s a very busy coffee shop and it has 2 drive through lanes. We got parked in by coffee shop patrons every morning when trying to leave the cabin to go about our adventures.||||You do need to clean up after yourself. You take out your own trash and put it in a larger bin outside (but you must duck under a tree branch to get to it). Think; “Dr. Livingston, I presume?”||||I’m sure this all seems super nit-picky and I’m probably going to get labeled as a Karen. I assure you I’m not. I am pretty laid back; I have a good sense of humor, and I can appreciate the good in just about anything. ||||However, I also got a vibe here that “I’m going to get charged for something after I leave”. This was no exception. When I arrived home and was looking at my credit card charges, I saw a mystery $35 charge from the Cabin Company. I emailed and inquired what it was for – I received this reply:||||“Hello Jill,||After researching this post we owe you an apology and a refund. It was erroneously determined that the bed mattresses had been reversed and after investigation, we found this to be our error. We very sincerely apologize and have refunded your $35 charge..."||||I do appreciate that they got back to me and that they removed the charge. But I also asked them to email me a copy of my closed folio from my stay which I never received.||||To me, this whole ‘$35 mattress charge’ didn’t sit well. So be sure that you are looking at your credit card charges after you check out in case you wind up with an “erroneous” charge yourself. Seriously though – who would go through the time and trouble to ‘reverse a mattress’ and, more importantly, WHY?!||||My opinion - it felt a bit “scammy”, like someone is hoping that I wouldn’t notice an additional, trivial, charge on my credit card.||||All in all, we paid a grand total of $903.84 for a 3-night stay – which is about par for the course when you’re looking for a place to stay near Yellowstone.||||I’ve been agonizing over if I write a review or not. I don’t like it when I see other reviews where people get called out by the owners if they don’t like something. I, however, would have loved to have read MY review prior to my stay, so maybe someone will...

my family of 4 (2 adults, 2 children) stayed for three nights in early June, 2021. we were fortunate to secure the #3 deluxe cabin with fewer than 2 weeks before our trip. the accommodations were fantastic! very comfortable beds, fully-stocked, full-size kitchen, in-room laundry, bathroom with jetted tub, and private backyard (that we never utilized but was cool to have). everything from booking online (via their web site), to check-in instructions, to the cleanliness and details of the cabin was immaculate! i mean, tip-top. if/when we ever make it back up there, i won't hesitate to give chris a call and make arrangements directly with him. located about 2 minutes from the YNP west gate, plenty of dining options within walking distance, and a full market nearby. i stopped by the adjacent coffee shack on our last morning prior to checkout, met chris and shook his hand to personally thank him. they have a wonderful thing going and i wouldn't ever turn anyone away from it if they asked. in fact, this will be my first, personal recommendation. if there's one knock against it, ever so slight, the noise from the nearby roads is evident. on warm nights we had to crack the windows open and could hear trucks going through town and cars going up and down the street. but i brought ear plugs and my kids are sound sleepers so, the knock isn't a detraction. when the windows were closed, it was near noiseless. again, fantastic accommodations that serve as a perfect jumping-off point for the most wonderful place in the...

Basically there is a lot to like here. The location is nice and in walking distance to many restaurants and the downtown area. Very close to the National Park, you can be there in literally minutes. We were in "Deluxe" cabin 3 for 4 days. It was clean and very well provisioned. The kitchen is large with plenty of room. We especially liked the private side yard, it was a great place to unwind at the end of the day with a glass of wine. There is also a grill available (which we didn't use). While technically the unit can sleep 6 (3 beds available and only 1 is private) it is important to realize that there is only 1 bathroom. This is fine for a couple or maybe a small family, but might not be very accommodating to multiple couples. There is a washer and dryer available, but we couldn't find an iron or ironing board. This could be a nice enhancement. It might be available if you ask for it, we didn't. It is also important to realize that they have very, very strict deposit and cancellation penalties. While we didn't have any issues (we were coming regardless), if you are needing some flexibility you might really consider someplace else. Lastly the tub/shower is difficult to get in/out of and care is needed. This might be an issue if you have...