My wife and I spent three nights at the Omni Mount Washington Hotel in mid-March, 2026 to celebrate my birthday. It's a grand old hotel backed by an incredible view of Mount Washington and the Presidential Range. We had stayed there previously many years ago and wanted to re-visit. On the advice of a friend, we booked a room in the Presidential Wing. Rooms in the Presidential Wing provide access to the Presidential Lounge which offers an included continental breakfast and a late afternoon/early evening "social hour" serving appetizers, wine, beer, etc. Following are our impressions:
Pros:
Presidential wing room with balcony - outstanding view overlooking the golf course and the Presidential Range - quiet, comfortable mattress and pillows, spacious, clean, coffeemaker in room. Be aware that it's a very long walk to and from the main area of the hotel, especially if you're carrying luggage.
Presidential Lounge - nice variety of breakfast foods. Social hour excellent w/ included wine and beers. Social hour hostess particularly gracious and attentive. Tips are not required, but welcome and well earned.
All hotel staff were very friendly and helpful. A huge strength of this hotel is their staff.
Beautiful overall hotel. Very special property.
We used the gym on two occasions. It is of decent size and well equiped, although the weight machines are of cheaper quality than what we're used to working out on.
Cons:
We requested a turndown service at the front desk on check-in and we were told that all rooms in the Presidential Wing receive turndown. After the first night and no turndown, we requested it again. Despite asking twice, we never received the turndown service over the three nights of our stay.
There was only one stained, badly worn out bathrobe in the room. A bathrobe is necessary because it's a long walk through public areas to get to the pool. We asked that another be brought to the room and a second stained one was put in the room.
There was widespread construction going on at the hotel and we were never given prior notice either at the time of booking or at check-in. Almost all shops and restaurants were closed. Most of the special public rooms and sitting areas were also closed. Only the main dining room was open for lunch or dinners. Stickney's restaurant was closed, as was Morsel's. The Bretton Arms dining room was also closed. Cabot's was closed. There was drilling and other sounds in the Great Hall making it unpleasant to try to have a quiet read. Workmen were constantly walking about the public areas in the main hotel. Many of the most appealing rooms in the hotel such as the princess room, the conservatory, and others were either unfurnished or under construction. It was difficult to understand why they disrupted so many areas all at the same time rather than completing one project at a time and leaving other areas functional for their guests to enjoy.
The outdoor "heated" pool is a long, cold walk from the hotel door, and was not heated well enough to be used. We dressed in bathing suits to swim there, but feeling the water revealed it to be too cool to use on a cold day. We never saw anyone in it despite it being uncovered and the heat being wastefully allowed to escape all day (and possibly all night) long. There's a $45/day "resort fee." It should be reduced when not all of the resort amenities are functional.
The $20/day charge for self parking ($40/day for valet parking) is outrageous. They have tons of space. Many customers have complained about this in their reviews. The boilerplate response from the corporation is that it's in keeping with the "industry standard." That's absurd. The "industry standard" is nothing more than a general average throughout the industry. As such, it includes places with very limited parking such as South Beach, Manhattan and others. There are unlimited acres of potential parking at the Omni Mt. Washington. There's simply no excuse for this nickel and dime approach. It's also been noted that it's not the hotels "intention" to inconvenience customers. No one has alleged any intention other than making more money, but customers are inconvenienced regardless. In addition to charging for something that should be included in the price of the hotel room, it's a long, cold uphill walk to the hotel from the parking lot. If so many customers are unhappy about this unjustifiable charge, the hotel administration would do well to pay attention and show some respect to the people who keep them in business. They promote that they are a "family owned" business. If so, they would do well to behave more like a family and less like a huge, impersonal corporation.
Dining in the main dining room was not worth the high cost. Unpleasant or tasteless vegetables were included with our meals. My "medium" tenderloin was overcooked. It cost $59 for tenderloin w/augratin potato, $43 for a relatively small portion of cod, $17 for a lobster bisque appetizer, $15 for a standard "Farmstand" salad, $10 for a side of mashed potatoes, $10 more for a side of a vegetable. Wines are offered in 3, 6 and 9 oz servings ($28 for 9 oz. of "The Prisoner" cab, $17 for 9 oz. Kendall Jackson chard and $14 for 6 oz. Josh Merlot). Despite my wife being told that they would provide something for my birthday dinner, there was no acknowledgement. She asked again the next night, and they did provide a free dessert. The salmon ($39) was very good, as was the lobster bisque appetizer. It's worth noting that the sides are large enough for 2 people, but the waiter never informed us of that. In all, we spent about $450 for two meals (appetizer, main course, a single side of mashed potato at one of the meals and one glass of wine each.)
The entire hotel, rugs and wooden floors were badly in need of vacuuming. Dust balls and other debris, including some mud from customer's shoes were everywhere, even in the Presidential area where there was no construction going on.
The Cave is nothing special. We paid $35 for an espresso martini and a draft beer.
In summation, the physical structure is outstanding, as it the backdrop. However, we've traveled all over and stayed at many luxury hotels both in the US and abroad. In our opinion, the Omni Mount Washing Hotel does not represent good value for its cost. We will not return.
US
CA