Name: Wawona Hotel
Address: 8308 Wawona Road, Yosemite National Park, Yosemite National Park, Yosemite National Park, 95389, United States of America
Rating: 8

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No elevators

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Yosemite Cemetery

Wawona Hotel

Yosemite National Park

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Charming! Gorgeous grounds, historic lovely place! We had a room with a bathroom, it was comfortable, warm and cozy and we loved it:) The front porch of the main building is the best place to hang and check emails or sit on the lawn and watch the sunset behind the trees. Close to the Mariposa Grove. Wonderful place to stay if you want to explore Yosemite beyond the Valley:) 

Charming! 

We spent Thanksgiving week in November 2022 in Yosemite and, since we had not been to the park at all in 10 years and wanted to experience different parts, we decided to split the time.  We stayed for a couple days first at the Wawona Hotel in the southern end of the park before heading up to Yosemite Valley and staying at the Ahwahnee.  

The Wawona is the oldest hotel in the park, the main part built in the 1870s, and it was built before Yosemite was a national park.  Later buildings on the grounds were added in the later 19th and early 20th centuries, all in a similar style.

It retains much of its original character and Victorian elements, including the old doorknobs, old fixtures, antique furniture, and the lovely painted dining-room fixtures.   It has wrap-around covered porches with seating and it has a nice setting with an open meadow and grounds set among forest.

The retained character also means that it lacks some modern conveniences which some may expect.  There are no televisions and most of the rooms are not en suite, instead having shared toilet and shower facilities outside and down a hall.  In the main building, the toilets and sinks are separate from the showers and in the rooms labelled Water Closet.  In other buildings, the shared toilet and shower facilities are together.  

This, combined with the lovely porches for sitting, make the hotel probably better in warm weather, but the rustic old charm, especially the dining room and the big fire in the lobby fireplace, made a cozy experience even though it was freezing cold when we were there in late November. 

The dining room is lovely and charming, with nice fixtures and big windows.  Food is good.  We ate both breakfast and dinner here.  The bar is fairly limited but the bartender made excellent cocktails, the best we've so far had at any US National Park hotel.

It is conveniently located next to the less busy southern entrance to the park (with roads from Madera and Fresno area), as well as the Mariposa Grove of Redwoods.  The Pioneer History Park, Swinging Bridge trail, and general store are also there.  

Charming, Lovely, Historic Hotel With Good Location

This hotel is an absolute delight. In the middle of the National park sits this ancient building and it’s adjacent complexes. It is an historical hotel and so is everything in there. It’s filled with so much Charme and history that it transfers you back in time. It might not be the greatest  luxury hotel but it gives you the greatest and most important luxury - time for yourself and pure unwinding in this atmosphere. With no tv radio or speedy internet it is just perfect and complements the whole stay. The piano player in the lobby in the evening, it just fits it all. 
The staff is very friendly, food is ok, complimentary coffee each
Morning. 
Shared bathrooms are very clean. 
For someone to explore the nature and relax this is the hotel to stay. 

Going back in time 

This is an historic hotel, so you need to prepare yourself for that. Our room was pretty bare-bones with only two outlets, one next to the bed and one in the bathroom. There were other rooms that had a shared bath in the back hall, but we chose one with a private bath. The large deck out front with chairs was very nice. The floor in the room was slanted, I'm sure with age, so that took a little getting used to. There is no fridge nor coffee maker in the room, but the do offer coffee outside the dining room each morning. The pool was closed during our stay, so we didn't get to experience that. It was very warm while we visited and the rooms each had a fan that helped a lot. The restaurant in the hotel was good and the servers were very friendly. The front desk staff was friendly and helpful. It is about a 45 min drive into the Yosemite valley, but it is much more quite here. The Mariposa Grove is only about a 10 minute drive, so nice and close.

Nice option outside of the valley.

The good: location to river swimming and Mariposa. It’s in the park so you avoid the line to get in.
No a/c: Given two fans but the outlets aren’t close enough to put the fans in front of the windows and the windows face where everyone walks. Go to Pine Tree Market for extension cord (and floats for river). No ceiling fan in our room. It didn’t get cool(ish) at night until about 3am. Pool was broken so we couldn’t cool off there but thankfully a ranger told us about swimming in the river which we loved. We had a private bathroom. Weird part was we opened the door in our bathroom and it opened into someone’s room! The room smells a bit like an antique store. The restaurant is very limited choices that don’t change much and note it doesn’t have a/c either. We ate there 3 nights due to no other choices and food was often over seasoned. Service is kind but not on par with prices. Have to go to restaurant to grab coffee. Front desk is not forthcoming with any info, you have to ask explicitly about things like pool, coffee, etc. It was a fine stay but we wouldn’t stay here again. It has a lot of potential.

We made the best of it

If you want to stay relatively close to the center of the action (about 45 minutes to Yosemite Village) and not pay an absolute fortune, Wawona is a great option. Yes, the room was very hot at night, though there's a ceiling fan and an oscillating fan included to help you out somewhat.

The bed was comfortable, the towels were fresh and the bathrooms were clean. It's an old property so it's not pristine, but that's part of the charm in my opinion. The staff was friendly and everything was as described.

I only removed a star due to the restaurant. The service was very quick and the wait staff were exceptional, but the quality of the food was quite poor. Avocado toast was in fact avocado white bread - not toasted at all. Overcooked eggs and underwhelming french toast. For $55 all in, I'd expect better quality.

The pool was also closed, though it was full and didn't appear to be under construction (apparently it is though). I'm always confused when places take on these kinds of projects during the height of tourist season. Not a deal breaker for us but good to know if you're looking for pool time!

Charming and comfortable hotel in a good location - only downside is the restaurant quality

Stayed 18 Oct for 2 nights in Washburn Cottage Rm 7 and had a pleasant and comfortable stay. I decided to book Wawona as we were driving in late at night from Fresno airport and didn’t want to drive into the Valley. It was great to wake up and explore Glacier Point (40 mins drive). We also took the opportunity to hike Sentinel Dome and Taft whilst in the area. So location wise it was perfect. 

I requested a ground floor room. We hardly heard any other people but we’re so pleased we opted for ground floor as if you’re on 1st floor, you have to lug your heavy suitcases up the outside stairs! No lift. 
Our room was lovely and spacious, very clean and the bed was fabulous, so wide and so comfortable. Yes the bed was high but I loved it. Easy to get into and I’m just 5ft 1”.  We slept SO well and the whole cottage was silent. We opted to have an ensuite bathroom as it’s cold at night in October to walk to a communal one and am so glad we did! The bath tub was perfect to relax in after our day hiking. It’s amazing how often you’re in/out of your bathroom too. 
We missed having a fridge but we took a soft cooler bag and filled it with a bag of ice ( you help yourself to ice) so it wasn’t a big deal. We put our milk and wine in there. In the morning we ate our own cereals in our room (just take your own bowls and spoons). We wanted to hike early and not hang around waiting for breakfast. 
The first night we ate at the Wawona Hotel restaurant which was convenient. We both had the beef pot roast. It was nice and  tender just needed bit more seasoning in my opinion. It’s gluten free which I appreciated. 

The hotel was busy. You can’t book dinner until you get there and they’ll add you to the list. There’s a gentleman playing the piano early evening but he’s surrounded by plastic shielding? Still? Spoils the atmosphere. 
There’s tea and coffee but not left out throughout the day. For me this was not good as you’re not provided with a kettle, tea/coffee in the room! 

Overall, I recommend staying here. Just know that you don’t get full hotel facilities (no phone, no tea/coffee in room, no mini fridge..) and you’ll be fine. But you will get a comfortable bed and hopefully a very pleasant stay like we did.

A comfortable stay in lovely surroundings

After staying for 2 days in Yosemite valley, I spent two nights in this historic old hotel close to the southern entrance of Yosemite park (Less than 6 miles from park entrance and Mariposa Grove). My room was in Clark Cottage building which was built in 1877. The room as in many national parks was very basic with bed, dresser, and desk. No micro-fridge nor coffee machine or TV. It was on the small side, but was clean with comfortable bed and adequate bath. Heating is water based system hence with no noise of blowing air. No AC.
The restaurant menu is limited but food OK. Lunch menu is mainly cold sandwiches. The have internet only in lobby/porch, restaurant, and Sun-Room. The staff was friendly and professional.
I enjoyed sitting on the porch after busy hiking day evenings and surfing the internet.
There is a National Parks Visitor Center on same ground, and nearby gas station and shop. Prices of all are high as expected in isolate parks.
If you plan to stay in south of Yosemite it is a good basic hotel.

Historic, nice but basic.

Early unexpected snowfall this year in Yosemite. We've always stayed here in May or September for many years when it is warm and the windows are open. It's much quiet and calm than the Valley floor. Well, it was cold and the dining room and hotel rooms are very old and not insulated. Like everywhere else since Covid, there was a staff shortage. The staff that were there were great except the dinner staff. I love this hotel, but we've never been served barely heated food by a surely waitress who seemed unhappy. The breakfast crew & food were great.! As in all of my reviews I advise earplugs and your own pillow that makes any hotel good - this old hotel is noisy especially early in the morning when guests leave in the wee hours and roll their luggage on the the wooden walkways by your outside facing doors. Also, if you choose a room without a bathroom it's very cold in the winter to walk to the communal bathroom/showers - not so when it's warm.

Wawona Hotel

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