Our family of 10 went to Skytop to celebrate a special birthday for my wife. We were 8 adults and our 2 grandchildren. We had been at Mohonk, but we decided to try someplace else for this time, and heard good reports from friends.

When we got there, driving from the road across the small bridge to the lodge was impressive. A beautiful sight, a good start. The staff on checkin was less than helpful with directions and inormation on dining. They said that the Lakeview restaurant was Northern Italian, and that the menu was unchanging, which were not correct. There was minor confusion with the reservation and rooms. Most everyone else was good.

We had a cottage, consisting of 4 rooms, with a central hall which had a small washer/dryer. The room we had, J1, was about 350 sf, a good size, and the bathroom was about 60 sf. It felt roomy. The furniture was mostly very good. The bed was firm, which we like. There was an inside door from the hall, and an exit door to the outside which was handy. It was the farthest cottage, but we soon saw that from the back it was an easy walk to the main lodge. It was quiet and peaceful.

The food was very good, except the buffet steam tables for breakfast and lunch. A better tactic was having the cook make the custom omelets and other foods while you wait.

There was much to do. The website listed many of the activities, which were most inviting. However, nowhere on the website was a listing of the activities which were free, and for which there was a charge. One could easily get the impression that the activities, or at least most of them, were free. A holiday place with high rates like this gives the feeling of being all-inclusive.

So it was a surprise to read when we got there that there was a charge for many, if not most of the activities. Minor activities, such as ping pong, swimming, and other simple activities were free. But the charges for others were substantial, enough to keep people from doing anything casually. I can understand a charge for a massage, but for a rowboat or a bike? $20/pp for laser tag? With 10 people, it adds up.

I would say that we enjoyed our time there, but not being advised of the extras fees leaves a sour taste to this memory.