"We visited Dunton Hot Springs with a group for a friend's milestone birthday and had an absolutely fantastic time, although I can understand why reviews are somewhat polarizing -- this is not "St. Regis in the mountains" but a thoughtfully reconstructed ghost town with relocated and restored historic structures and a ton of rustic charm, amazing food, and excellent service. Dunton is miles from anywhere so while you could take day trips, the real joy is talking with friends or family, relaxing in the natural hot springs, hiking through the natural beauty, and trying to digest enough to enjoy the next meal. We were part of a group of 10 in Potter House, the largest cabin, with a spacious common area and fireplace, a full kitchen (though I can't imagine using it), a duck pond, and gorgeous views of wilderness and an unspoiled night sky. (Fast WiFi is available if you can't escape work, but I recommend trying.) A typical day is a leisurely walk down to the lodge for breakfast (the avocado toast with chili crisp is stunning), hiking, hot springs, or exploring the art collection, a 3-course lunch, more activities -- considering the challenges of 8900 ft, if you haven't adapted yet -- and then happy hour snacks and drinks and a delicious 3-course dinner. I recommend as much physical activity as possible to enjoy the dining. Bartenders Colton and Max have assembled a fun cocktail menu but will create anything you want, the included wine options are all excellent choices (particularly the dinner pairings) and it's possible to get anything you need to go in canteens for the hot springs or back to the cabins. Somehow the staff managed to always make up and turn down our rooms despite our varied schedules; we never actually saw them in the cabin. Dunton is an active location that calls for decent mobility and you'll definitely get some mud on your boots, and natural wildlife is everywhere. As long as you set your expectations right, you'll have a great time."

"Great location that’s it. The staff was mostly rude and disorganized. Some of the staff were very nice went out of their way, but overall, it was very disorganized as a whole. The food was terrible for 85% of our stay. We had one good lunch. For an all-inclusive place the snacks were a major disappointment especially a place where you’re doing active things to just throw out bags of chips and power bars is pathetic for the price that you pay. The happy hour appetizers were very skimpy. I’m still very shocked at how poor the food was for the price that we paid. The bread was good at most meals, though. The grounds are cool. We stayed in the pot house which was well done. However, there are a little details that are missing like there’s no hooks toput towels on or hang anything in the bathrooms. There’s no toilet paper holders just random little things.. the hot spring is very cool looking but there’s really nowhere to sit for more than 2 to 3 people and you can’t stand because it’s deep if you’re shorter than 56 and so you have to hang on the edge of the hot spring, which doesn’t seem very relaxing. All in all, I would not recommend this place until they get their act together a little bit more the grounds are beautiful. It is a unique place. It’s too bad. It just fell short, particularly for the price. The value just isn’t there. And to add insult to injury, I sent them an email with my feedback and never heard one response"

"They made my wife's birthday and our 4 year anniversary so special. We were heart broken when we finally had to leave... Thank you to Kyle, Scott, Lee, Susan, Holly, and many others for giving us literally the best vacation we have ever been on. The room was clean and cozy, no bad smells, no hairs on the bed, always had fresh water bottles every time we left and came back to the cabin... Cocktails were great, liquor, wine, beer selection was high quality. The stay was TRULY all inclusive, nothing extra on my bill besides the massage I bought my wife and the gratuity I decided to leave for the staff... which is surprising because I asked for seconds at almost every meal, drank good scotch and wine every night, and had other above and beyond accommodations. I was actually shocked to not see anything extra on the bill. They even let my wife borrow some nice hiking boots because she forgot hers at home. Chef Alex and Chef Dillon made our first night extra special. We sat at the chefs table and watched them carefully prepare our courses. Lots of joking and laughter, and the wine pairings were on point. They let us check in very early on our day of arrival so that we could go on the snowcat tour at 10:30AM. The staff wasn't overbearing like at other resorts where the concierge hounds you about booking your day full of activities... they were actually pretty much completely out of the way, but somehow if we needed anything, they were always available and happy to help. The location was remote and the view of the mountains and stars was incredible. The other guests were friendly. Everyone was in a good mood so it was really easy to get along. We sat at the communal table for multiple meals and never had a bad experience there. This is our new spot. We will be back, over and over and over again. The room we stayed in (FORGE) was spacious, warm, clean... The bathroom floors are heated, the bed is soft but supportive, the sheets are thick and quality but breathable and silky. The art was unique and had a cohesive theme to it. The food is like if you had a 5 star chef staying the night at your house. They cooked high end meals but with an extremely authentic homey feel that made us excited every time we sat down to eat. Kyle makes incredible cocktails and he knows his stuff when it comes to beers and liquors."

"We did not spend the night at Dunton Hot Springs. Our rental Jeep died right in front of the resort. I cannot say enough about how kind and helpful the staff were in helping us get cell service and internet and a comfortable place to wait the hours it took to get a tow truck and taxi service from the rental company. They researched ways to fix our car and provided information to help us find a way to get to Durango. They went FAR, FAR out of their way to help two people who weren’t even staying with them. I can only imagine how they take care of their guests. The property is rich in natural beauty, and we hope to be able to actually stay here one day. We know we’ll be in the kindest and most considerate of hands when we do."

"The property is unmatched, unbelievable views and activities! The guides and bartender were lovely and friendly. The staff was hit or miss- some seemed put out to be bothered with questions or asking for help with tables, food or activities. The experience was OK, but there were a lot of problems with the overall handoffs and people making you feel like everything was seamless. Preordered breakfast for an activity had clearly fallen through the cracks, forms that needed filling out before activities but were never presented to us in the first place, etc. These thing are small, but we travel to Relais & Chateaux properties all over the world and its those little things that make it feel special- they are lacking here. The food was the biggest disappointment, I get that we are out in the middle of nowhere and there are only a few choices for breakfast and everything else is just what they are making, but on several occasions it was just inedible. Looking around the dining hall it was clear it wasn't just us, on those occasions almost everyone had left most of their meal uneaten. For what we paid it was just unacceptable- it's clear a lot of it is made the day before and put on baking sheets in the fridge and served the next day (and left out all over the counter in the kitchen so its not just my assumption). Stale/dried out pasta, sandwich bread and potatoes at breakfast with so much liquid smoke and salt on them no one ate more than a bite. On other occasions it was just not enough food and everyone was trying to find snacks to supplement the tiny portions. Dinner was the stand out - that was the only time there seemed to be an actual chef making the food real time and that was definitely very good."