Garnet Hill Lodge

The trails were groomed beautifully each morning, and the network has something for cross-country skiers at different levels. We were beginners and rented gear from the Outdoor Center for two days. Matt taught us on the first day, as arranged beforehand, and did a great job. The equipment and the Outdoor Center staff were helpful too. We spent three days at Garnet Hill Lodge as a couple during a busy week, with the Sierra Club using much of the hotel and restaurant. The lodge team still looked after us wonderfully. There’s a real fire burning in the main fireplace, with seats where you can read, chat, or have a drink from the bar. The restaurant food was outstanding, especially the Osso Bucco, mushroom appetizer, and French Onion Soup. Breakfast worked for us whether we wanted eggs and bacon or oatmeal, fruit, cereal, and yogurt. Room 8 was spacious and up to date, with a comfortable bed, plenty of closet and drawer space, and a clean bathroom with the amenities we needed. We had a lovely view of 13th Lake and a balcony, though it was too cold to spend much time outside. The heating was easy to control, and the Wi-Fi was surprisingly good for such a remote place. We’d looked forward to visiting for years, and the cold, snowy winter weather made for great timing. We couldn’t have asked for a better stay and will be back.

We went to a wedding at Garnet Hill and stayed two nights in The Birches. The drive up is steep and winding, so keep motion sickness medicine handy. Once there, though, the place was beautiful. Our room was clean and bright, the food was delicious, and the view was gorgeous. Everyone on staff was sweet, helpful, and lovely to deal with.

This was our second winter visit, after Michael and I stumbled on Garnet Hill Lodge last year while planning a Gore Mountain ski trip. It’s about 30 minutes away, and we wanted somewhere to relax after skiing, eat without driving around, play scrabble, read, or sit by a huge fireplace. We found all that, plus fun conversations with people of different ages and from all sorts of places. The lodge sits among rolling mountains beyond a lake, and the scenery is so peaceful. We tried the on-site cross-country trails and snowshoeing, and both were easy and mad fun. The in-house restaurant is great too. I mean, perfectly sautéed string beans in the mountains? Google calls it the best in the area, and I can see why. We’d be happy eating every meal there, with its great menu, chef, and hardworking, cheerful staff. It has an old-school log cabin feel, with room keys on plastic fobs and wickets for ski tickets. Love it. Maybe we’ll come back in fall. The Best January 2026 LizB Long Island, NY

We joined a Roads Scholar group for a week, and the lodge was quaint with quite good food. The trails and skiing were fantastic, and our guides and instructors were top notch. The staff were really friendly too. We loved our stay!