Although not every national park lodge is as spectacular as Yosemite's Awahnee Hotel, Yellowstone's Old Faithful Inn, or the Grand Canyon's El Tovar Hotel, plenty of others are still worth visiting. The Mammoth Cave Hotel in Kentucky's Mammoth Cave National Park offers families a wonderful combination of rustic charm and natural surroundings. (Prices are nightly rates for a family of four.)
MAMMOTH CAVE HOTEL
MAMMOTH CAVE NATIONAL PARK, KENTUCKY
OVERVIEW: A hotel with 38 rooms, a 20-room motor lodge, plus a dining room, coffee shop and 40 cottages.
WHAT'S COOL: The hotel is less than a 1/4-mile walk from the world's longest cave (for tours, call 800-967-2283).
ACTIVITIES: Boat tours, hiking, canoeing, camping, fishing, and campfire programs.
PRICES: Rates start at $52 for cottages that sleep four; call at least a week in advance, or three weeks from mid-July to mid-August.
SEASON: The park, hotel and motor lodge are open year-round. The cottages operate from June to October this year.
RESOURCES: Call 270-758-2225 or click here for more information. Park headquarters can be reached at 270-758-2251.
For more lodging ideas, see The Complete Guide to the National Park Lodges by David L. Scott and Kay W. Scott. For park brochures or more information on individual parks or lodges, write the National Park Service, Office of Public Inquiries, 1849 C Street NW, Washington, D.C., 20240, or call 202-208-6843. Click here for the National Park Service's Web site.
Please keep in mind that phone numbers, addresses, and prices are subject to change. Updated July 2005.
