General Palmer Hotel - Durango, CO Review

Durango is terrific and the General Palmer is a wonderful home base
I had always favored the historic Strater hotel in downtown Durango.  But my sister booked a room for us at the General Palmer, on a recent roadtrip to southwest Colorado.  The location is practically identical to the Strater, only one block south and closer to the town's famous train station.   Smaller and more intimate, the General Palmer - built in 1898 - makes a great first impression and then follows through.

The lobby was beautiful, filled with antiques and providing views of the snow-covered mountains that form the bowl in which the city sits.  The front desk gal was warm and helpful.   Our room was smallish but cozy and nicely decorated.  The bed was great.  

The only down side was the noise:  not a major factor, but typical of an older hotel.   You can hear what's happening in the hallways outside your door, and in the room next to you.  Request an end room if you're a light sleeper.  Many of the rooms also have working transoms over the door, so some late-night tv watchers let their room sound waft out and into the hallway when they open the transom to adjust hte heat.  

The breakfast buffet was pretty nice the next morning, and the hotel's in such a great spot, you can easily explore the entire downtown area by foot.   I really enjoyed getting up and going out for an early coffee with the locals in a coffee house down the street, then poking my way back up the main street, looking in store windows before anything opened.  The fact that it was twelve degrees when I did this made it all the more exciting for a Florida girl.

Skiers will have to do their own research - Purgatory is veyr nearby but I don't ski.  But I can vouch for the General Palmer and Durango.  Both are winners. 

The Bottom Line:  Libby Likes It!