Yosemite View Lodge - El Portal, CA

The location is amazing on the river and just a couple of miles from the south entrance to the park. We found the service to be good with plenty of people working in the lobby which also serves as a mini-mart. The rooms need serious updating as we felt like we were in the Vacation movie from 1983. Wifi is nearly non-existent which was a problem trying to get some work done. Accept it for what it is, and you will be fine.

This one is hard to review. Check in was easy. They had multiple people and had a nice lodge style area on one side of check in and a nice gift shop/mini mart on the other side. Since we checked in at almost 8pm parking close to our room was tough but we eventually found a spot. We paid for a double room not by the river but were given a king room next to the river. Being right next to the river and directly over the fitness center had its advantages and disadvantages. First off the river is beautiful and amazing but really loud. The room was probably built in the 70’s and has single pane windows that don’t open easily and definitely don’t close properly so it feels like there aren’t any windows. There were cool fire pits next to the fitness center and by the river right outside our windows so people with kids were out there until a little after 10pm enjoying their time but we could hear every word even with the noise from the river. We were planning to get up at 5am and get into the park before the 6am appointment thing. We didn’t have a reservation so that’s what we did. Eventually everyone left and we were able to sleep a little. The room itself was not nice in any area. This room needs a complete remodel ASAP. I can go on and on about how dated and crusty this room is but I’m sure they know. This was the only time I wasn’t excited about the upgrade to a more expensive room. I do appreciate the thought though. I felt a little better the next day when we got back from the park and sat on our balcony staring at the river and beautiful view from our room. Also they have two restaurants here. A pizza place that had good pizza, NULL for an 8 slice medium the other restaurant I ordered a Caesar salad with chicken to go and when I went to pay the cost was NULL. I never checked the price. I just assumed it would be NULL-15 so check those prices because it was by far the worst Caesar salad I ever had. Atmosphere was nice with outdoor seating. I’d stay here again but only because it’s like 2.5 miles from the entrance to Yosemite and it’s less expensive than the hotels inside the parks.

A great location, just 2 miles outside the park, and the river view rooms are just magnificent! The view and sound of the river made our stay. We loved the store located next to the lobby, definitely has everything needed and wanted, from snacks and water to simple meals. As well as clothing bags accessories jewelry souvenirs etc!!! The Restaurant was convenient, and we loved the pizza place they have on site as well. There’s an ATM a laundromat and ample parking.

The only good thing about this place is the location. Rooms were average. WiFi is nonexistent. It is SO slow that you get timed out every time you try to connect. Without exaggeration, early days with AOL phone dial up was faster than this place. How cheap is the hotel management to not upgrade. Can’t get on the internet to map out places to visit. Can’t get work done if necessary. Can’t contact family members back home. That alone should get zero stars. Hard to believe that it is that difficult to upgrade the WiFi equipment. Please hotel management spend a little to make the customer experience better.

To add salt to wound, the tv in the room only works with WiFi. The tv is useless since the WiFi is. If you want to rest and relax in the room in the evening, well you can’t.

If you go to the restaurant, the food takes over an hour to get to be made. We sat down at 8:10pm. Food came out at 9:20pm. We left the restaurant at 10 pm. Restaurant was still full and I would say 75% of the people there did not have food yet. Terrible service. Hotel needs to do something about it. Can’t just say that they’re third party. That’s an excuse to not do anything just like they’ve done nothing about WiFi.

Location wise is good but given the above, I do NOT recommend. Also they’ve gotten plenty of bad reviews with management saying they will look into it. Don’t be fooled by this lip service. Pay more and travel a little more to find a better place. Will make your vacation much more pleasant.

Perfect location if you’re wanting to go into the park, without staying inside the actual park.
This is a very well maintained, clean and tidy lodge. The rooms are great, the beds are really comfortable.
It honestly exceeded my expectations. There are 2 pools which we used every day after hiking in the park.
The laundry facilities are also a great touch, especially after hiking Half Dome and getting super dirty.
The staff at reception are wonderful, I thought the customer service was excellent.
I would absolutely come back again.