Rosario Resort & Spa

Scenery and views are to die for. Definitely take a seaplane from Kenmore Air if you can work it out. The flight was flawless and 110% recommended! Spend the extra money to stay in the "Residences"!!!! Can't stress that enough! They are tastefully appointed, and very comfortable. INCREDIBLE beds, killer views from every room that counts. (The bathrooms don't have views, but I can live with that because they are spacious and again nicely appointed. Anyone who would stay here most likely has their own hair care & soap but there is a supply just in case. Would like to see hand soap in something other than 'grocery store packaging'....if the same soap were in a nice dispenser it would be a better fit - not a big deal, but I'm picky about silly things like that. The kitchen set up is awesome. The coffee maker is nice but coffee itself isn't so hot :( We bought our own and new filters to get a decent good cup of java during the day. LOVE the gas fireplace, romantic lighting, and extra 'designer' feel and touches. Beds are incredible, the linens are sumptuous, oh the one other thing they NEED is a source for bubble bath especially in the lower Residences which have a soaking tub! We looked all over town for grown up bubble bath and could not find any - Olga's store in Eastsound should have carried it - they have a nice selection of candles which I bought to add to the nice atmosphere here... The only real down side is that the upstairs guestswere EXTREMELY heavy footed and it sounded like they STOMPED back and forth throughout the time they were in the suite!!! VERY annoying when they were around. It made the lamps in the living room rattle when they walked back and forth - we couldn't figure out why you'd keep walking back and forth for HOURS on end! Definitely go to the Quilted Pig which is AMAZING and though the service isn't what we're used to, the food was fabulous!! Kudos to the chef! Check out is at noon and the car rental (which is necessary for the Residences) is early - hopefully they will let us check out late since the plane going home doesn't come until 4:30~ more

KEEP POSTED: These place will be up and running with new Owership and reliable Mangement. Notes will be taken on these Reveiws.Thanks more

We stayed at the resort on 8/27/08. A mess from the get go. Tried to check in at 11:30 and told not ready until after 3. Signed in, both of our parties one received a room the other told to wait until after 3. We tried to call at 4 and told still not ready. The front desk clerk forgot to return 3 different customers credit cards while we were waiting to check in. Once in the room the bed had not been changed and at 8 at night 2 boys came in and had to change them. There were no robes, bath mat, waste basket not emptied, screen door took 3 men and a boy to open, carpets shabby, in need of painting, inside and out. The view from our room was the only highlite of our stay. We learned upon leaving, that the hotel was up for auction next month and that was no doubt why nothing has been done in maintence. No doubt why the staff didn't care what they were doing, going to lose their jobs no doubt. All in all don't go and spend your money, check other reveiws for other places to stay. more

If you think the service is bad when staying at Rosario Resort, it gets exponentially worse when you try to plan a wedding there! It's a beautiful place and I fell in love with the view, but I had nothing but trouble with the management there. They were completely disorganized and didn't have a clue as to what they were doing. Two and a half months later I'm still having billing issues with them. It is not worth the stress no matter how wonderful the setting is. If you must get married there, hire a very good wedding planner to put up with their BS. Pros: Beautiful place Cons: Management staff unprofessional and disorganized more

My fiance and I visited Rosario Resort for a romantic weekend getaway and the fun was halted almost before it began. We arrived at Rosario and went to check in only to find out that the room we reserved was no longer available for that night. (we tried to book their best room eg fireplace, jacuzzi tub) Needless to say I was very dissapointed but felt better when they offered to put us in another room free of charge. We unlocked the door to our room and walked in to find hot yellow walls, cartoon comforters complete with unicorns on them, and two double beds. No table, no desk, no nothing to play card games on and drink the wine we had brought. I think it was literally the childrens ajoining room. It was a complete and utter moodkill as soon as we walked through the door. My fiance felt extremely insulted being that he made the reservations and had planned this great romantic weekend so he called the front desk and told her how terrible the room was. After about 20 minutes they miraculously found another room that was available which we immediatley switched to. The room was okay, much better than the last one but still no fireplace or jacuzzi. We had a good laugh about the whole situation and still had a good time. The next night we finally got our desired room and it really was awesome. The only thing is when we checked out for the two nights the woman wanted to charge us near double what our confirmation documented arguing that it wasn't the room we booked, it was nicer and worth more money. But to boot they forgot to take the hold off our credit card and we had to call the bank to have them take it off, near $400!!! In the end we had a great time in Orcas Island but will never ever stay at Rosario again. more

While, yes, the views from Rosario are beautiful, the actual experience of staying there is frustrating. I'd always heard Rosario was incredible. When we arrived, I was so excited. Quickly, though, I regretted making the trip there. Our room was far from the lodge, decorated in an unsophisticated 70's motif, and smelled musty. We wanted to get a couples massage, but the price was so high, it was ridiculous. My boyfriend wanted to pay for it, as part of my birthday gift, but I wouldn't consider it-- we weren't going to spend $275 on 45 minutes of massage. Any outdoors tours were a little expensive too, and quickly sold out. We were left with nothing to do for three days. Food at Rosario was OK, but was clearly aimed at the 50+ suburban WASPS that come there. If you're vegetarian, you'll only find green salad and bread to eat. My boyfriend liked his steak, but I sat there just eating bread and an iceberg lettuce salad. We found few things to do on the island--we were there in early September, but already, everything was closed (like kayaking). We swam in the tiny, antique pool (which was actually kind of fun), and hung out by the outdoor pool near more WASPy 50+ guys. The only upside to Rosario? Feeding the very friendly deer and looking at the view. A fun, romantic getaway? Not so much. FInally, I turned the TV on to get some entertainment--- what's the programmed in "home" channel? CBN. The only news? Fox News. Unless you're elderly, conservative, and love to spend money on low quality meals and expensive spac services, this place isn't much fun. Pros: View Cons: Overly landscaped, high prices, so-so quality, few activities more

I never saw such a rip off. We booked a "suite" for our 1st year wedding anniversary. We were so disappointed : The room was 1 mile away from the mansion, up the hill. Lucky we got our car. The decoration was totally from the 70's, the shower handle was broken, and once we activated the bathtub, brown bubbles were everywhere in the water ! We couldn't sleep because you could hear all the neighboors speaking, closing doors...etc... We were supposed to leave the room at 11am, and at 9am the cleaning lady woke us up to know at what time we would leave. Pros: view Cons: price, price, price more

I have never rec'd such poor service anywhere. I requested early checkin. Upon arriving they said we could not. They finally accomadated us. We then went to the outdoor restaurant for lunch. We requested a highchair and after 5 minutes the waitor came back w/ a booster. I explained our 10 month old did need a high chair not a booster. He said uh, well I guess we don't have any, and sent us upstairs to the indoor restaurant. We went up there only to be told they are not open for lunch and we needed to go back downstairs. After 10 minutes she got us a highchair and took us back downstairs to the outdoor restaurant. My husband rec'd the wrong meal, but after a 30 minute wait he ate it... The worst service I have ever rec'd! I have written them and have never heard back from them. Cons: Service more

Everthing was great until we saw our room. We had no idea we would be staying a demanding 5 minute hike from the main house. We opted for a "suite" because we were on our honeymoon. The "suite" was outdated and definitely not worth the money. This is a great place to stay as long as you expect typical san juan island accomodations and not a 5 star resort! If you come with those expectations, you will be pleasantly surprised! We had a good meal at the restraunt and found the staff to be very friendly. Pros: Views, Outdoor swimming pool, very relaxing place Cons: rooms, price more

Hyped as if you'll stay in lovely main building. We double checked prior to trip to confirm room service & spa services (got none). Our room was on side of hill so steep that walking to main house for dinner down rough gravel road was downright dangerous. Rooms outdated, way too rustic. No spa tub at all & soap smelled like sweat. Most spa services unavailable - esthetician quit, yoga teacher noshow, etc. Restaurant food so bad & overpriced we only tried twice (sent food back both times). Tough chewey $35 tenderloin and menu promise of lemon rice & fish came as a sloppy red fish soup mess. What made it ok: Bill the master concierge, the entire staff is fabulous & friendly, and the setting is magic. Rockresorts needs to spend huge money to make this an "any-star" entry in its collection. Pros: staff, setting, concert Cons: food, convenience, amenities available more

I researched online before going, then emailed the mgr for clarification on poor reviews, therefor we had realistic expectations. Resort Mansion = A+; Spa = C ; Rooms = B-; Grounds = A; Staff = A; local area = A. Historic Mansion, charming lounge, dining room. Spa is average. Room was nice but lacked AC and no courtesy bar/fridge. Bathroom was huge and very nice. View was great but varies by building. Rooms are in separate condo buildings which progress up a hill. So, the higher the building, the better the view. Local town "East sound" is cute with some gift, artisan shops, cafes and restaurants. Golf course is poor. Pros: Views, History, Charm Cons: limited shopping, winding roads, no room AC or fridge more

All the pictures on the web site lead you to believe that you'll be staying in this beautiful main house: WRONG. You get stuck in these awful 70's style apartments on the hill with the worst interior decorating I've seen in my life - loud colors and mismatched patterns (stripes and plaids and flowers, oh my!). I felt like I was staying inside a circus tent. We were also promised a 2 person jacuzzi tub on the phone, but it's only and oversized jetted bathtub, no way could 2 people fit comfortably. What a joke. Orcas island is gorgeous but this hotel is not. You're much better off finding a vacation rental home or a B&B. Pros: Orcas is beautiful. Cons: Overpriced., Misleading., Ugly. more

This place is beautiful. The spa is an added bonus too. Pros: beautiful, great service more