This is a very basic ski cabin, lacking some basics (pot holders, laundry detergent) but what was truly lacking was a consistent heat system. Brutally cold in downstairs bedrooms (ice and frost on inside of bedroom patio door in AM). No amount of adjusting helped - either an inferno or an ice chest. Good location. Clean but shower curtain could use a wash (mildewed).
A convenient location that freed us from worrying about driving and parking. And instead enjoy our t
Advertising of unit would benefit from describing need to bring any and all food related items (oils, condiments, spices). And kitchen needs a few things like pot holders and more than a single dish towel in order to be fully functional.
Dirty linens and towels were in bags at front door and had not been removed from unit when we arrived.
Single entry point that is also immediate access to bedrooms needs mat and some towels to mop up water once people enter and get their boots off.
Heat worked, and door lock system worked well and was convenient.
I loved the location. We could walk to the village fairly easily, but thereâs also a shuttle stop outside and never waited more than 5 minutes. The open kitchen was great for hanging out and really appreciated the smart TV.
The dishes and showers were a bit dirty, and dryer did not work. The biggest struggle was the heat. Somehow we couldnât manage to operate the controls; it was too hot upstairs and freezing in the bedrooms downstairs.
Overall, itâs a nice property with a few issues. Would definitely stay again if the heater was fixed.
If the secret to happiness is lowering your expectations, please do so before renting.
This cabin was "fine", once you worked out the kinks with the furnace, and got over your initial frustrations.
Here is why you should lower your expectations:
The furnace is...hard to predict. The first night we woke up terribly cold, the second night we woke up sweating because it was so hot.
The blankets...the ones on the bed are thin (i.e. assuming youâll get the heat right), and there are NO SPARE BLANKETS. (My expectation is that there would be extra blankets in a ski cabin.)
The kitchen has...no oven mitts. (Note to Northstar: if you donât provide oven mitts, we are going to use wash cloths from the bathroom.) In addition, there is no salt, no pepper, no oil. And the knives are horrible.
The washer/dryer...has no laundry detergent.
The ski closet...has no key, despite a hook on the wall that says "ski closet key". (Note to Northstar: if you donât provide a key to the ski closet, we are going to keep our wet skis in the house at night.)
One renters guide to the furnace:
- The tricky thing is that the thermostat is upstairs, but you really care what the temperature is downstairs when youâre sleeping. Since heat rises, it becomes a guessing game to figure out how to balance it.
- We set the thermostat to 64 at night (that meant the downstairs is 5-10 degrees cooler).
- We found that we had to leave all the bedroom doors open (ajar 6-12 inches is fine). This allows even air flow downstairs.
- We found that we had to mostly close the vents in the downstairs bedrooms. If you leave them open, you are so close to the furnace that you get very hot air, and lots of it.
- We found that we needed to cover vents in the laundry room and leave the laundry room door open (speculation as to why: the laundry room can be a very different temperature, and that is the wall that the thermostat is on, so it can lead to strange thermostat behavior).
- Use the ceiling fan when you can...this will help distribute the heat in the upstairs more evenly.
- DO NOT use the gas stove. This will cause the upstairs to warm up tremendously, and the downstairs to be quite cold.
I have to give credit where it is due: the WiFi is actually pretty fast; there was an issue with the fridge and a minor plumbing issue, both of which the maintenance team fixed it in a matter of hours.