Reviews

Our family of 6 spent last week at Glacier Bear retreat and loved every minute of it! The house was perfect for our family with the bunk room and the two other bedrooms. Gail has thought of everything as far as amenities go! A s’more basket greeted us and there were plenty of staples in the pantry and fridge so return trips to the store were not necessary. We loved being in the park and able to jump in the car and be the first ones to the trailheads in the mornings. After long days of hiking, the cabin was the perfect place to grill out and unwind! Gail was also very helpful with planning of our day hikes. She is very knowledgable about the area and had good suggestions. The house also has a wealth of information in books and maps which helped us figure out the area. The location, house and hospitality could not have been better! When we return to Glacier, we will definitely stay in Glacier Bear Retreat. Thanks for an awesome week!

Last week was our second vacation trip to Glacier National Park and second time staying at Glacier Bear Retreat. Each time we come, we stay for a week, and – we can tell you from experience – this amazing place has everything you will need. We are a type-A family of six, and we rent homes for most of our vacations. Not only is this property very well apportioned, the owner’s are the kind that you hope to find – where the home is very clean, all the details and accommodations you are hoping for are included, and several that you wouldn’t have thought of or expected are, as well! From welcome basket, to fully functional kitchen, to late model updates and furniture, to all the toys and accessories you would need in the garage, to private setting around the home, to walking distance to Apgar Village, to fire pit, to hot tub, to fully stocked bar, to pool table and dart board, to… the list goes on and on.

For discerning renters who are looking for that especially classy location at Glacier National Park – this is it!!

I can’t imagine a more perfect location for a family reunion! A large, beautiful, fully equipped home right in the middle of Glacier National Park! If I had to choose…sitting around the fire pit each night was my favorite memory. Stars overhead shining brilliantly, a glass of wine in my hand, and dear family to my left and right…I miss it already! Thanks to the owners for the incredible hospitality and for making sure every possible need is met! We will be back!

From the moment we walked in the front door and met our fabulous hostess Gail and saw all that this property had to offer we knew we had found something special. This house has so many special touches as well as a great fire pit and brand new hot tub. It was the home base for our Glacier adventure where we enjoyed boating, white water rafting and lots of hiking. We viewed awesome mountain scenery, glacial lakes and even saw a grizzly bear (from a distance). So thrilling!

The rooms were spacious and very well appointed. Everything was clean and well organized. Gail and Darryl have paid attention to every detail to make us feel right at home.

We would highly recommend this property to family and friends and hope to visit Glacier Bear Retreat again.

I love to hike and I love nature but being from a busy city I want to escape from the crowds, and the hustle and bustle of big city life. So for me a great vacation is to go to a grand and beautiful destination and then find a great sanctuary to stay at while I am there. Well, if you want a truly great, peaceful, lovely home to stay at while visiting Glacier Park and Montana. This is it!!! Look no further.

I knew I had something special waiting for me the moment I first had contact with my gracious host Gail. Wow! From the very beginning she was there to help and was extremely enthusiastic to make sure that my trip would be special. Before my arrival she sent me all sorts of wonderful ideas and information about the whole area and a wealth of knowledge of everything imaginable I would need or want to consider on my trip. Like great recommended hikes, other cool activities, like white water rafting, as well as all the local resources, stores, restaurants etc. etc. Then she also informed me of things that you might not expect. Like, if I sent her a shopping list she would make sure it would all be in the house on my arrival and it was!! Like, she also had personal chef’s that could come in and cook a special meal for us. Not to mention, that after my long days of hiking, if needed she had a massage therapist who was available to come to the house. Seriously, I am not making any of this up.

So onto the home and beautiful “Glacier Bear Retreat”. Well, it is a like a private home with all the amenities of a 5 star resort. Spacious and ohh so cozy. Beautiful bedrooms, wonderful fire place with all the wood easily accessible, comfortable screened in porches, and an outside area complete with a fire pit to sit around during the cool Montana evenings. Not to mention the tranquility of Max’s Island with the babbling brook and interesting waterfall, complete with picnic table for a nice peaceful lunch. Of course “Jim’s Hot Tub” is just so wonderful to immerse yourself in after a day of exploring the beautiful nature of the park. Lastly, can sure not forget the wonderful recreation room complete with pool table, darts, music, and a fully stocked bar with tasty local spirits.

So, needless to say Gail set out to do something special when she built Glacier Bear Retreat and she certainly did it!!! So plan your trip early, because as the word starts getting out about this place it is going to become a tough reservation to get.

Our family of 9 had an amazing vacation at Glacier Bear Retreat! The home was beautiful and comfortable, just the right layout and size for the amount of people we had. The house was very clean, and Gail went above and beyond in providing all that we would need and in her communications with us. Being located in Glacier National Park was wonderful, because we had easy access to all this breathtaking park has to offer. The property itself was so peaceful. We enjoyed the sound of the creek and evenings around the fire pit. The wrap around screened in porch was wonderful for reading, relaxing, and having meals. This was easily one of our best vacations ever!!

Glacier Bear Retreat is a welcoming, comfortable lodge in a beautiful setting. I loved the comfortable seats, lots of fun family areas, and amazing views. Listening to the waterfall while snuggling under the covers was one of the highlights – best sleep ever! The easy access to biking trails and the lake – as well as all the amazing hikes inside the park – make this home a MUST for anyone who wants to savor every moment of Glacier National Park.

We have traveled near and far, from Maine to Spain, and we have never experienced anything as fantastic as Glacier Bear Retreat. Before we even arrived, Gail sent tons of useful info (hiking trails, etc) and when I asked questions (where can I bike?) she called with detailed explanations. During our stay she made herself 100% available and was like a 24/7 concierge.

The house itself was phenomenal with top-of-the-line everything….automated reclining sofas, heated beds (seriously!), thick down comforters. Everything we needed was there…wood for the fire pit; a well stocked pantry; citronella candles to detract bugs.

We had a fantastic vacation. Obviously the area is gorgeous and very worth visiting- but Gail and Glacier Bear Retreat made it out-of-this-world. My kids are already asking when we can return!

We had a wonderful time staying at Glacier Bear Retreat! It was all we could have wanted and more!! Beautiful home in a beautiful location! It was a wonderful home base while exploring Glacier National Park! The beds have heated mattresses and are the most comfortable beds I have ever slept in! We would definitely stay here again and would highly recommend this special retreat!

This house is arranged perfectly for families. There is a lower level that is ideal for a family with small children to stay where baby cries will not disturb the rest of the house; or for young adults who like to stay up later than the older family members. There is a multi-bed room upstairs which is perfect for children ready to sleep in bunk beds!

There is a creek by the house that you can hear running at all times.

Gail, the owner, is always available if you have any questions or needs.

Our family loved every minute of our time there.

The Best Place to Stay in Glacier National Park

We had an absolutely amazing time at Glacier Bear Retreat. Glacier National Park is incredibly beautiful, and this house is the perfect place to stay for visiting the park. How often can you have your own, private, luxurious house inside a national park?

The location is phenomenal – easily accessible inside the West Glacier gate and just a few minutes walk from Lake McDonald, but also hidden in the trees and away from any park traffic.

The house itself has everything you would want for a vacation in the woods – fireplace, hot tub, outdoor fire pit, fully equipped gourmet kitchen, screened-in porch, beds that feel better than a 5-star hotel, bikes for exploring the paved paths, trail guidebooks for hiking around the park, bear mace (very important!), and such helpful, accommodating hosts! They have truly thought of every detail and made this place extraordinary. We couldn’t have felt more lucky to have spent a week at Glacier Bear Retreat. This place is magical – I hope we’ll be back!

Nothing can compare to renting a house inside the park, and this house is a dream. A lovely gift basket was waiting for us upon our arrival, and Gail, the owner, greeted us with hugs, and patiently showed us around the house. She took the time to show us where the entrance to the secluded beach was located, which we visited often. The house had everything one could hope for and more, including comfortable beds, hiking books and maps, a very well stocked kitchen and pantry, bear spray, binoculars, and plenty of space to relax both inside and outside.

Amazing surprises awaited us inside the garage… two kayaks, six mountain bikes with helmets, and even two life jackets that Gail and her husband had purchased for our eight year old twins.

This house easily accommodated our family group, which included five adults and four children. The first floor bedroom with a walk in shower was perfect for my mother in law, who is disabled. We loved this house so much, we’ve booked it again for next June! Thank you, Gail, for everything.

From the first moment Gail reached out to me after putting in my VRBO request, I knew this was going to be a special place. I wanted to take my mom on a memorable mother and daughter trip and was hoping to find some luxury accommodations for us to stay in Glacier Park. Not only were we greeted with extreme warmth and hospitality, but to have the opportunity to stay in a 5 star accommodation inside of Glacier Park which never existed until this listing made me very grateful and excited!

This newly built sanctuary is truly incredible from the comfy beds to the chefs kitchen and beautiful decor that fills the home with beautiful energy. I was so ecstatic to have found this home on VRBO, as I probably would have decided not to visit Glacier Park and would have missed out on one of the world’s most incredible examples of raw natural beauty.

It was just as or even more picturesque than my visits to the Swiss Alps.

I am so happy that I got to experience the beauties and wonders of Glacier Park, which I will cherish and remember for a lifetime. I can’t wait to come back for another visit and share the this special place with more of my family!!!

My husband and I loved our stay here last year! It’s away from the hustle and bustle of Whitefish, but close enough to get there quickly whenever we needed a coffee from Red Caboose or a beer from Bonzai Brewing! We loved the beautiful views from all the windows and especially enjoyed using the hot tub late at night to look at the stars. The great room was perfect for curling up with a book when we wanted a technology sabbatical while the theatre made the “screen time” we chose to indulge in amazing. We would definitely recommend this rental to anyone coming to Montana!

It was love at first sight seeing this charming, almost whimsical, cottage nestled in the woods down a private lane. Don’t think rustic….at all, except for the wood floors and that fabulous wood-burning fireplace. Every room is so well thought out and flows comfortably with high ceilings, built-in book shelves, a great kitchen with island counter, nice bathrooms. Outside are two decks that we enjoyed listening to the Apgar creek running on the property. Kudos to the owners for having such a vision for this property. We can’t wait to come back again. This was a great time of year to have come as it was an easy walk to Lake McDonald, no snow on the ground, and the lake was crystal clear. An eagle soared nearby and we watched the Merganser ducks playing in the water. Thank you! Thank you! This was everything we hoped for and more! What a magical place!

Glacier Bear Retreat is the ideal place for vacation! It was our home for the week and it had ALL the comforts of home and then some! We were greeted with a welcome sign with our name on and a basket of goodies. We felt so comfortable and relaxed and being inside the park was an added BLESSING; we didn’t have traffic to deal with getting into the park each day. The views are just breathtaking!! It is just a short walk to Lake McDonald and it looks like a postcard view!! We loved the “camp fire” area; what an amazing place to relax after a long day. Loved looking up into the big Montana sky and seeing all the star. The house is very cozy with the fireplace and the bedrooms are very “roomy” with plenty of space to put your personal items. We didn’t have to live out of a suitcase! I would recommend Glacier Bear to anyone dreaming of a vacation in Glacier!!!

When we saw the photos of this property, they almost looked too good to be true, but this place is a real gem. We traveled to this property as a family plus grandparents in tow, and loved our time here. The home is spacious, has amazing natural light, great kitchen, tons of outside porch space and a hot tub. The dining room is big enough for a large group and there are areas to read and relax and even do puzzles. We loved the theater and waking up to the gorgeous views from every room.

We travel several months throughout the year, staying at luxury rentals and hotels. This is truly a 5 star property, with high end linens, kitchen tools, and the owners ensured this house was incredibly well appointed with a welcome basket which made us feel right at home. We felt like we were at a luxury resort but had the freedom and space of a luxury rental- the best of both worlds.

We loved the natural surroundings and the adorable town of Whitefish, too! Glacier National Park isn’t far away either. Looking forward to returning to this place.

It was very clean and had everything you could possibly need. The kitchen had wonderful appliances and anything you might need to prepare wonderful meals. We used the outside grill most nights, which was very convenient.

The owner was very kind and helpful, including mailing a forgotten iPad back to us. We took wonderful hikes each day, saw wildlife and did some whitewater rafting. It was a wonderful family vacation.