The Ranch at Death Valley

We recently stayed here for 2 nights. All the negatives that others have mentioned here are spot on. It's a great location, with high prices for poor quality! We stayed in the 600 building, where the interior of the room was somewhat upgraded, but the hall and doors to the rooms were definitely dorm like. Carpets were dirty and not regularly vacuumed. There is negligible amount of sound proofing, which means we could hear all of the next door people's conversation, and people walking in the room above us! They have a huge property, so they provide a pool, small sports courts, playground for kids, and eating places. They have a captive audience, so you get to experience what lack of competition leads to - poor customer service from most staff at stores and restaurants, and very poor quality food. We would have been okay paying higher prices, if the quality matched it. Most of the staff made no eye contact with us, and had an attitude of doing us a favor when we purchased items at the store. The buffet breakfast was $17 per person, and was worse than camp food. We had their take-out pizza one night, which was ok. The next night we went to Stovepipe Wells saloon for dinner. What a difference! Treated like a customer, greeted with a smile, and good food. Bottom line - if you want a good location to see all the sites in the valley, then stay here. But keep expectations very low. If you want a more pleasant experience, and value for money - drive to Stovepipe Wells and stay there.

This hotel is OK, I'd say. Our room was comfortable the shower was hot, the wifi worked well. Sometimes it didn't get cleaned though, and the TV didn't work (could've just been dead batteries in the remote--I wasn't so eager to watch TV that I bothered to ask for fresh ones). There is a mini-fridge (no freezer). Parking was easy enough. There was a long line at check in. There are a couple of dining options: Steakhouse--sit down dinner. Decent food. Cocktails available. Mains ~$30. Children's menu. 1849 Buffet--Comfort food. Beer and wine available (I think it costs extra). I wasn't too impressed. To be fair, I'm a vegetarian, so not all of the options were open to me. I did get plenty to eat--Spanish rice, cheese enchiladas. Overall quality wasn't great. $30 for adults. Coffee & 'Cream--little cafe with coffee drinks, pizza (14", middling quality), burgers, hot dogs General Store has a decent food selection, including some fresh stuff (pastas, fruit, yogurt, sandwiches) and frozen dinners (Amy's, Stouffer's, etc). There is a microwave to nuke said dinners. One night I assembled a nice meal for us out of a couple microwave dinners, a Cup 'o' Soup, machine hot cocoa, and some fresh crudites for $29. Everything is expensive but that's reasonable considering the location--it's sort of like being on an island, everything is shipped in. Also on-site: Golf Course Shuffleboard Pool (always 87 degrees) Playground Borax mining museum But you aren't really here for the room or the food. The location is ideal for exploring Death Valley. The big visitor's center is nearby, as is a gas station. It's not far to a host of interesting hikes: Badwater (lowest point), Golden Canyon, Artist's Drive (don't miss), Devil's Playground, Salt Creek, Harmony Borax Works. Probably about half an hour to Stovepipe Wells and the sand dunes. I was here many years ago and they have definitely improved the property (with a new improved price, no doubt). If I come back, I won't hesitate to book here again.

Obviously, the only reason to stay here in the middle of the desert and a national park is to visit said park. So the location is outstanding if you wish to visit. The price is very high for the type of accommodation (if the location were somewhere else) but reasonable given the choices. Rooms are well used but reasonably clean. You can walk to the only facilities in the area e.g. a small store, cafeteria, restaurant/bar and pool.