Smiley Creek Lodge

The modern cabin was new, clean and decorated tastefully. We are in our 60s and I never saw anything saying the sleeping room was up a set of 8 steep stairs and you cannot stand in the sleeping area so we had to crawl to the stairs and at our age have to get up to use the bathroom several times per night. We hardly slept and then the lodge/store was not open when we left at 7:30 am to buy coffee and food. There was a coffee maker in the room but no coffee. For the price. we paid, in the future we will travel another hour but for younger guests this property would be good.

The property offers a rustic and visually charming setting, with an emphasis on delivering an upscale experience. While the natural surroundings are undeniably beautiful and the décor is stylish and rustic-chic, the overall accommodations in Unit 2—a two-bedroom tiny home—didn’t quite align with the price point. The unit was listed as suitable for four guests. While cozy, it’s important to note that it does not feature two separate bedrooms. Sleeping arrangements include a loft bed accessed by a ladder and a pull-out couch in the main living area. Positives include plush towels, adequate bedding, a lovely mountain view, and helpful staff. However, a few amenities fell short of expectations. The bathroom was minimally stocked, with just one 0.5 oz tube of bath gel for four people. The kitchen setup was sparse, with limited cookware, empty salt and pepper shakers, no microwave, no teapot or mugs, and an unusual mix of plastic and metal utensils, lacking basic items like standard-sized spoons. The mini fridge is very small—more suited for a hotel room than a family stay—so bringing a cooler is advisable. There was no in-room information about nearby restaurants, activities, or local attractions, which would have been a helpful touch. Outdoors, the area was pleasant in the evenings with a functional fire pit. In summary, the location and aesthetic have great potential, but some details and amenities could be enhanced to deliver the advertised upscale experience.

The unit was very comfortable and roomy for three people. There was no coffee pot but we made instant coffee and survived just fine. Check-in was slow so they gave us a free drink. The staff was unbelievably friendly and accommodating. We only ate at the restaurant once but it was fantastic. Local beers on tap were good too.

The staff here are amazing. No strangers here, just friends. I managed to dislocate my shoulder while making a diving catch for a frisbee and the staff took care of me like family. You won’t meet a nicer, hard working group of people anywhere.

The views were amazing. It is a tiny house not a cabin. We are both over 6’ and 65 years old we had to climb stairs to get to the bed the crawl to the mattress on the ground. Our reservation through ******* didn’t go through to the lodge and we had to wait 3 hours for them to clean the place.

Since the last reviews, the lodge has been sold. With that change in ownership has come changes in quality and service. The food is not good. The shakes are not great, and from my experience take 1.5 hours to make with not another single customer in the building. The service was horrible - the counter girl yelled at us for reminding her 4 times that I'd ordered a shake, telling us that they were busy when there was not another customer in sight. The table who left before us left without eating after they found an earbud in their salad. Yes, an Apple earbud that the cook claimed as his when they brought it to the counter. Being a local, I've heard stories about how customers have been turned away and yelled at regularly, how hours of operation are not consistent or reliable, how the quality of food has degraded drastically. We're all really sad because it's a community institution that we can no longer frequent. The new owners clearly don't have experience in this business, but we really hope they figure it out as it's a truly great business opportunity if they would learn some lessons from the previous owners about product quality, great service, and reliable availability. Everything about Smiley Creek Lodge is communicated word-of-mouth locally and in the surrounding communities of Stanley, Ketchum, Sun Valley, Hailey, etc. If it's bad, everyone knows really quickly, but if it's good, they'll know that too.

Location is amazing. Minutes from the Dark Sky area. Wish I could post the Milky Way.

Super clean property. Excellent ambience. The staffs were very helpful.

Clean and comfortable. Staff very responsive and kind