Cedar Lodge

The best bit is the pool - so lovely and hot.

There is NO WiFi and NO phone reception making planning our visit to Yosemite challenging. And the worst bit is the PLASTIC, all food is served in plastic plates, with plastic cutlery wrapped in more plastic wrapping!!

The location really is stunning amazing. So close to Yosemite entrance it's very hard to beat without being actually in the park. Due to having a bit of a disaster with our luggage on our flight we didnt get to the hotel until 2am but they the staff were still around and we were able to check in. The pool was nicer than I had thought. I liked the balcony on our room overlooking the green mountains.

The rooms are very dated and they were building a lot of new ones too whilst we were there which affected us being able to park outside our room. It feels like the could do with investing some of that money into the existing rooms.

The location is hard to beat at the price- it's only about a 30 minute drive from Yosemite Valley, but isn't extremely expensive like some of the stays within the valley itself. The staff were very friendly and even accommodated an early check-in for my group. The room was clean and met our expectations. The bathroom itself seemed recently renovated and was quite nice, and clean towels were provided. Wifi access is an additional fee, but I understand that it is uniquely difficult to provide wifi in this location. The hotel has 3 pools, a game room, a restaurant on site, and a gift store on site that also has frozen and packaged foods.

Some negatives we noticed in regard to the room were that the AC is very loud and not very effective at cooling the room, and there was no microwave to reheat food.

This is the best priced hotel in the best location just outside of Yosemite's West Gate. The room was clean and comfortable enough. (only 2 pillows per queen bed and pretty firm mattress/ thin blankets) The AC worked pretty well for visiting in August, and there was plenty of hot water and good water pressure. We didn't have time to use them, but the pools looked nice and it's really convenient they have a large shop for supplies right at checkin. The surrounding area is very beautiful as well. Overall - fabulous location and ok hotel.

The parking lot is a maze and if you don't arrive early you might not get as spot anywhere close to your room. It does specify in the booking but note there isn't wifi provided and it is an additional $10 for 2 devices / 24 hours.

Clean and comfortable rooms. Staff friendly and helpful. Very smooth check-in process since stay was pre-paid (but be aware any deposits and payments become non- refundable 7 days prior). Nice gift shop with also pretty well-stocked food, snacks, sundries, drinks (soda, water, juices, beer/wine) lstore

Only that the "breakfast buffet" that was supposed to be available, which we were told at dinner the night before would be available starting at 7 AM the next morning did not in fact occur. There was egg/bacon/cheese bisquit sandwich ( pretty good) available to purchase in the small coffee area along with what looked like some pre made waffles but breakfast was pretty limited and there's really no other options in the El Portal area if you're headed into Yosemite for the day.

Great location to leave early to avoid queues at Yosemite . Friendly staff . Very clean . Liked that we didn’t have housekeeping in every day to the change sheets/ towels but left as an option- good for environment and unnecessary for the three nights we stayed . Delicious bar food . Didn’t buy into the breakfast as thought this was very expensive . Opted to buy from shop on site . Great access from our room to the car outside our door . Great pool .

Liked all except thought the breakfasts were very expensive so did not opt for it .

Location, just a 10 minute drive from the park entrance was worth paying extra, albeit being a tad pricey during long weekend. Facilities were basic but adequate. We got a double queen room and was roomier than we expected. Plenty of easy parking and quick gas station nearby, we made sure to fill up everyday before we headed to the park. Overall pleased with our stay.

Expensive mediocre breakfast. The next one isn't a major thing, but please give us a decent quality soap and lotion.

The location was very convenient to Yosemite and other close by scenery. The WiFi was adequate, although an extra charge, but it is a remote area, so infrastructure isn’t as easy as it is in a more populated area, so I get it. The location is quiet, and easy to find. With a small restaurant and bar, a gift shop, and friendly staff, the motel seemed to be more than just a place to sleep. It’s not a 5 star resort, but it’s also much more affordable than a larger, fancier property would be. This motel is everything it should be.

I can’t think of any dislikes. It was clean, quiet, and the staff was very friendly.

The layout was very convenient. It was nice to have a hot tub and pool after hiking around Yosemite. Having breakfast food at the store was a plus and the food at the restaurant was great. It was an added plus to have the well lit walk along the river and all of the staff were great!

That I didn't see any bears! 🤣 not in their control. A microwave in the room would have been nice but there were 2 in the lobby so it worked out fine. We'd recommend this place and stay again!

Location close to Yosemite. If you want to spend an extra day in the park without travelling very far away, it is the ideal place (for a lower price than other options in the area). Staff was nice.

No microwave in the room. The paid WiFi option is odd (they could easily increase rates and have free wifi...). Despite the lack of wifi (or maybe because of that), there was no easy information about the park available to read in flyers or such. Room was also old and outdated (the phones are literally from the 80s).