Mt Hood Vacation Rentals

We recently booked a cabin for a weekend stay with Mt Hood Vacation Rentals.
Note: My expectations are high when I spend more than 500 for a weekend stay somewhere. In the hospitality business, I expect a high level of service. This company delivered well, but not exceptional. Read on for details.
Cabin: 4 out of 5 stars. I had to move to a cabin other than the one I picked because the hot tub was broken.
Service 4 out 5 stars. I had to ask to be moved, it was not suggested or thought of by the staff. But, they did respond quickly once I asked and made another cabin available to us.
Cleanliness 5 out of 5 stars. The cabin was very nice and clean.
Amenities– 4 out of 5 stars. The first cabin had a stereo system that had an input for a digital music player such as Iphone or Mp3 player. The cabin we moved to was old school and did not have such a function. Kitchen was nicely furnished with utensils and BBQ was older, but worked well. There is a well stocked market store nearby for groceries and what not.
Atmosphere: 4 out 5 stars. The cabin we ended up in– river’s edge I believe, backed up to a cliff and you had the pleasant sounds of the river washing over you. In the front, where the bedrooms are, if you have the windows open, even at night, you have the not so pleasant sounds of HWY 26 washing over you. Bring ear plugs if you want to sleep with the windows open. Otherwise, it was very peaceful. Spent most the time in the back end of the cabin. Hot tub is nicely fenced in for privacy.

We booked the Moondance cabin with a hot tub. Upon arrival at the office, I received a note in the key drop box that the hot tub was not working. Not cool. This was a special romantic weekend, and with no functioning hot tub, meh. I expressed my displeasure on the phone with the on call staff member as the office was closed. She first seemed miffed that I was not happy, mentioning that it was a rental house and these things happen. From my perspective this is no different than renting a car and getting one where the AC doesn’t work, or a hotel room where there is something wrong with the room. You need to be proactive in moving your guest to other accommodations, not wait for them to ask. Once I asked, I got a call back within a few minutes and we were able to meet the manager back at the office, pick up the key to the other cabin and continue on our romantic weekend. I would recommend this location, but also encourage calling ahead to make sure all the I’s are dotted and T’s crossed.

We have used Mt. Hood vacation rentals since 2007. The experience was always positive. We especially liked their low nightly rates and MINIMUM fees.
What we didn’t like was their very high minimum night rental policy that seemed to be constantly changing. We have since decided not to use Mt. Hood Vacation Rentals any longer since the addition of a Guest Service Fee that is «a minimum of 10% of the rental rate».
This new fee includes:
Reservation processing,
Concierge services during office hours
Emergency after-​hours services
Assistance with home electronics,
Delivery of firewood, additional towels, etc.
Free wifi
Complimentary copy /​fax services
Accidental Vacation Rental Damage Protection
Housekeeping.
All things you would expect to be included in their management service.
The oddest «fee» was the charge for «free wifi». Hum, charging a fee for something that is «free».
In addition to this new fee, their nightly rates have gone up.
Mt. Hood Vacation Rentals used to be the best deal in town. Now they are just on par with all the others.
Shop around.

All in all, I would say 4.5.
A group of 9 of us went to Mt. Hood over Memorial Day to snowboard. We thought it would be affordable with 9 people, but the advertised price was conveniently different from the actual «holiday» price. Even with 9 people, it still amounted to about $ 200 per person for one weekend, which is realllly pricey in my view.
These cabins are all privately owned by 1%-ers who make even more money by renting them out to poor saps like us. And boy, are they beautiful. Everything matched– from the tea cups to the throw pillows. We got a 2 bath 3 bedroom cabin right on the edge of the Salmon River. It had a hot tub, fully stocked kitchen, and is only 20 min away from the Ski park.
The best part is it is PET FRIENDLY. For $ 75 (less than it would cost to board your furry family member) for the entire weekend, Fido can come along and jump into the river with you for a polar bear swim. And the even better part is there are NO BREED RESTRICTIONS, and no weight limits. Go ahead, bring your pit bull. We know he is less vicious than most school yard children out there.
Staff was friendly and helpful.