Harriman Springs Resort and Marina is an incredible place to stay if you are looking for accommodations around Crater Lake. Granted, it’s an hour away from the park, but the resort ended up being one of the highlights of our trip. Crater Lake only has two hotels: Crater Lake Lodge and Mazama Village Campground & Cabins. I’ve heard that these two places get booked out months in advance and it was true for us. Both were completely booked when I checked so we had no choice but to look further out. There were other small towns like Fort Klamath and Chiloquin that had your typical motels, but nothing looked too appealing. Eventually, we landed on the northern part of Upper Klamath Lake which had a few decent options and we got to be on a lake at least.
REASON WHY WE CHOSE HARRIMAN SPRINGS RESORT
There were three main hotels that we looked at Rocky Point Resort, Point Comfort Lodge, and Harriman Springs Resort & Marina. At first, we were looking to stay at Rocky Point Resort because the price was affordable around $105/night + taxes for a basic hotel room. To be honest, the rooms looked really outdated so I hesitated on booking. Then I saw Point Comfort Lodge which looked a tad bit nicer, but they were all sold out. Finally, I found Harriman Springs Resort just by accident while panning around on Google Maps. I went to their website and the first thing it says is that the resort was for sale. At this point, I didn’t even know if they were still operating or if they were trying to sell the property. I called a couple of times and no one picked up.
I spent another week or two searching for other accommodations and really couldn’t find anything. We needed to pick a place soon so I ended up back on Rocky Point’s website ready to book. Just like that, they were sold out. So, I thought I would try Harriman Springs one more time and I finally got someone on the phone! This must have been a blessing in disguise because we ended up having an amazing time there.
HOW TO BOOK
Harriman Springs Resort is definitely an old-school type of place. They are not listed on any 3rd party travel booking website and they don’t even take a deposit. All they do is take your name and phone number and write it down somewhere. If you think you’re going to get a confirmation email, you’re not. I called on three different occasions asking and the lady finally said that they don’t do those types of things. The Type-A planner in me literally cringed, but I thought we don’t really have a choice at this point so let’s go with it. We booked a small cabin and I have to say I was very surprised by the price we paid. It was only around $150/night + taxes. Even though she confirmed over the phone, I was fully expecting to show up and have no place to sleep.
THE PROPERTY
We arrived at the property sometime around 9:00 p.m. and were lost for probably about ten minutes. Of course, there’s no reception so we couldn’t really pinpoint where the entrance was. We drove up a little further on the road and saw some stadium lights in the distance and an entrance to an RV park. Finally, we saw the Harriman Springs Resort sign and were so relieved.
We made it towards the stadium lights and luckily it was Harriman Springs Resort’s main building. As you walk in, you have your check-in desk to the left, the restaurant dining area in front, and a lively bar to the right. Can’t even describe how happy we were that there was life and someone to check us in. They were even kind enough to let us order dinner even though they already closed the kitchen. We decided to take our dinner to go and eat it in our room since we were tired from hiking all day.
To say the room was huge is an understatement. The bathroom itself is the size of my entire bedroom at home. There’s a little kitchen with a fridge and microwave and a decent size private patio. The owners told us that they remodeled everything a couple of years ago. I really wish I could have taken pictures of the room during the day. The night pictures really don’t do it justice.
Most of the property is comprised of an RV park and camping areas. There are only three cabins on the whole property so I feel lucky that I was able to even book one. Behind the main building is a large sundeck patio facing the small marina for you to sit and relax. You can have your meals out there or just sit and have drinks. Definitely get the breakfast burrito if you can! It was probably one of the best ones I’ve had and it was only $6. We took two of them to go for our drive up to Crater Lake.
THE LAKE AND THE MARINA
The lake and the marina is the best part of Harriman Springs Resort in my opinion. Just steps from the main building, you can rent a pontoon boat or kayak and be on the lake in minutes. We weren’t planning on spending the day at the resort except we had a little mishap getting to Crater Lake which you can read more about it here.
We spent most of the early afternoon having drinks on the patio. Once dusk started approaching, we decided to rent a pontoon boat for an hour to cruise around. Apparently, the owner was about to shut down the boats for the season since the water was too low for the boats to make it out. So, if you plan to rent a pontoon boat, make sure you come before September to be safe. It was a little nerve-wracking to make sure we didn’t get stuck in the weeds, but once we got to a good spot, it was absolutely worth it. We had a great view of the marsh, saw all types of birds, and had a gorgeous mountain backdrop for sunset.
CONCLUSION
Overall, if you find yourself in the area or need a place to stay around Crater Lake and don’t mind the hour drive, I highly recommend this place. Everyone was so nice and inviting and the resort is absolutely gorgeous. Whether you feel like bringing your RV, camping outside, or renting a cabin, this place really has it all.
