The Olympia

We’ll be back. The Olympia was cozy and comfortable, with a range of room options that each have their own historic character. The rooms on each floor share two bathrooms at the end of the hall. Everything was clean and well kept, and getting to the rooms only meant climbing one flight of stairs.

The Victor hotel staff who run the place were excellent and responsive. There are two shared bathrooms, but with so few occupants that wasn’t a problem. We actually spent more time walking around Victor than gambling in Cripple Creek. The decor has real turn-of-the-century charm. Don’t expect modern construction and you won’t be disappointed. It reminded me of my grandparents’ early 20th-century home.

The building dates back to 1899, and staying there was a great historical experience. The staff were great too. Rooms are small but clean, with shared bathrooms. It’s worth remembering this is where miners stayed after a hard day’s work. If you’re there, take a walk around town. It was awesome.

The Olympia was listed incorrectly as a hotel on Chase Travel, and I didn’t find the official page explaining that it was a hostel with shared bathrooms until the day I was due to travel, when I was trying to call about check-in. I called several times then and throughout the 24-hour drive, trying to reach someone to cancel or arrange something else. No one answered or returned any of my messages. The wrong listing may not have been the hotel’s fault, but the awful service was. I wonder what would’ve happened if I’d shown up instead of booking somewhere more reputable. I wanted the booking site to know this was the last email I sent Chase Travel before they said they were following the “hotels” policies and wouldn’t respond anymore: “You list it as the ‘Olympia Hotel,’ not the Olympia Hostel House. In the current national health crisis, not understanding this is disingenuous at best, and malicious when you say there’s no error and won’t fix it. Fine, if you don’t want to deal with the problem, I’ll call Chase card service, transfer my rewards to partners with accurate information that will protect my health, and cancel my cards because Chase Travel can’t take care of a customer. “I’ll also have to leave a negative review for a business that’s probably already struggling, both because you couldn’t answer or return a call within 24 hours and because you partnered with Chase Travel.”