Homeowner References | Franciscan Lakeside Lodge

The only reason why I'm giving it two stars is because of the location and beautiful lake. Everything is close by (shops, restaurants) and walkable. They have the prettiest lake view right in front of the lodge. I assumed the lodge would be decent from their supposedly "4 star" lodge. I found out when checking in that their cabins are privately owned. Cabin 18 was not clean, it smelled old and stale, bathroom had mold in the shower, lights weren't' working and I felt so uncomfortable for my toddlers to be crawling around. It was so dirty that phone was sticky and it was just disgusting. The front desk never checked in on our stay and there was no cleaning services. The rooms definitely could use a upgrade, It was so outdated. I was so excited to stay from the reviews and photos I read and saw and it turned out to be such a disappointment. Not worth the price.

Pavan Koundinya Kaipa

05:23 04 Jan 23

Wow!! The location is amazing. Couldn't believe my eyes after seeing the sunrise. Best place for both sunrise and sunset. Rooms are decent, ample parking space and provides good privacy.

Jacora

04:54 12 Dec 22

Very pretty individual cabins.. great view of the lake! Very clean! Well stocked kitchen! Would recommend!!

Shaine Winter

01:04 14 Oct 22

I love this place, but the phone service needs serious work. I booked a reservation a week prior and due to staffing shortages they held a room for me, but didn't know which one at the time. Here I am a day from check-in and I've had no emails, calls, or texts. I have tried calling for 3 days and I am sent to a call center when they don't answer. The call center cannot check reservations. All they can do is leave a message for the hotel.. Further, the call center says there is no way to check an existing reservation. I love the amenities, the fully stocked kitchen with utensils, the cozy environment, but it is time to overhaul your reservation service.

Sardha Miller

13:17 08 Jul 22

We enjoyed our stay at this cottage. Love the rustic cabin atmosphere. Room kitchen and bathroom, adequate for us. Kitchen came with a dish washer too. We enjoyed the proximity to a almost private beach. Would recommend this property to anyone who wants to get away for relaxation.

Mrs. Sanchez

22:58 03 Jul 22

Stayed in room #15 and absolutely loved it! Super close to the water (wish we were on the beach but it was still very close) room was clean! We arrived late and they had no problem putting our key in a lockbox. We stayed two nights and it was overall a lovely experience!! Very quite and a nice relaxing getaway wish we could have stayed longer. Would stay here again and recommend it to anyone coming to Tahoe!

Radu Popovici

04:26 29 Jun 22

A rustic retreat in the small town of Tahoe Vista, with a small private beach and near many attractions (NV casinos, decent restaurants, boating, mini and regular golf). We've been coming here for years. The rooms could be more up to date, but it is rustic, not modern. Service is available by request only. Prices are mid range for the area. If not getting a lakefront cottage, go for the forest side, better value than 'lakeside'.

Yixuan Li

15:37 17 Jun 22

The room was nice and very cozy. But it was really noisy in the morning. I don’t understand why they woke up their residents at 8 am Friday using a huge vacuum cleaner. There is a worker carrying this cleaner walking around even on our front door stairs. You can imagine how much noise it could generate and how annoying it was.

Aaron AkZ

17:07 29 May 22

great staying experience. you have everything need in the kitchen if you planning cooking. It was great to see bears as well. great front desk lady

Nik

17:34 20 Feb 22

While the room and amenities were nice, the pull out sofa was an absolute tragedy. The mattress looked 30 years old, with obvious blood stains on there. Our friend slept on the floor instead. Without that one issue, would have definitely been a 4 star review due to the staff and the rest of the room. To be specific, it was the room. closest to the (closed) pool.

Shawn Hsu

05:29 15 Jan 22

As Owner said that the bed is very soft, it may not be suitable for everyone, especially light sleepers. It is sometimes necessary to consider that the office will do its best to continue serving during the Covid and lack of labor.

Laura Di Simone

00:06 28 Dec 21

Love this place. Has an amazing view for both winter and summer.

Ragni Chand

21:53 19 Dec 21

The coziest place to be in Tahoe. The staff were friendly and accommodating in every way. They do close so make sure you get everything you need before they close for the night. The cottage was well equipped with everything you may need for a comfortable stay. They have their own beach which was a huge bonus. We enjoyed the best sunrise from the pier than anywhere else we've been to. Due to the storm we had to cut our trip short but we'll definitely be back again. I highly recommend this lodge.

Scott Fay

05:44 14 Nov 21

Great location, but the rooms need a huge upgrade. I feel like the 70’s vibe should go a bit. The beds were super uncomfortable and I almost felt like it was more glamping than being in a nice room.

Benjamin Johnson

16:39 09 Nov 21

Always amazing, even when it's rainy all day! Never gets boring!

Christy Barham

15:55 02 Oct 21

We thoroughly enjoyed our recent stay! The beach was convenient and clean! We appreciated the well-appointed kitchen, beach towels, and other amenities!

Neli Vilchez

04:06 14 Aug 21

Always a great place for a family vacation, but the cleanliness is lacking.

Sam D

23:55 31 Jul 21

Love the site. We had a suite on the ground floor. Was able to use the second door to go out to the patio by the pool. Love the park also. Was able to exercise each day.

Elise Lagergren

15:49 11 Jul 21

I was moderately pleased with this place. It’s quite expensive but in line with the rest of the area. What they advertised on their website was not exactly what I got. I was expecting a queen and a pullout couch and was given just a double bed. The beach was nice and so was the dock and I believe they have kayaks you can use. It is not rocky like sand harbor or anything as one of the reviews below show. The staff was somewhat friendly but their website advertised 3 pm check in and it was actually 4. They gave you one coffee packet and the maids didn’t come in between so you ran out quickly. The location is decent on the edge of kings beach but not walking distance to almost any restaurants or shops. Honestly the main reason I would recommend this place is if it’s the least expensive option you can find with beach access

Chand Praveena

20:49 29 Jun 21

Awesome Getaway.... For Families or single family or even if couple.

Ed Nino

03:19 16 Jun 21

I love this place. Only down fall is..... Is that it's not always available when I want! LOL Other than that, I'm retiring in North shore and will be buying a rental/vacation property just to do this for ever.

Joshua Macy

00:59 07 Jun 21

The lake is incredible, the town adorable, the lodgings themselves...very basic, but how much time are you going to spend in them?

sean perez

19:23 06 Jun 21

4.5 if I could. Very nice place and easy access to the lake. Place can feel a bit cramped with more that a couple people, unless you get the larger places. Highly recommend it though.

Matt Wooden

02:13 06 Jun 21

It is in a great location and staff is friendly. However, the mattress in unit 51 was horrible. You could feel the spring/coils just by moving your hand across the mattress. We spent two nights there trying to make it work with the limited resources from the company, but we ended up leaving on the third day to stay somewhere else.

roni r

21:34 17 May 21

A quick getaway from Reno. The Lodge is cabin inspired decor throughout. A little outdated but the vibe and surroundings is great. The fireplace was the perfect end to a cold rainy day at the private pier. Great for small intimate outings to large family gatherings.

Charlotte Cantrell

13:29 11 May 21

Our room was clean and location was convenient for site seeing. The staff was helpful.

Shanku Banerjee

00:08 22 Apr 21

U should call them and book the lake view cottages. If u book via booking/expedia etc , you din't get lake view and the rooms cannot be upgraded. Rest of the things were top class. Highly recommend #shankstraveldiary

Amy Arnold

00:19 12 Apr 21

We absolutely loved it, perfect location with a private beach. Our unit was of the forest side so it was nice and quiet. Friendly staff and clean rooms. Only reason for no 5 star is because our bed was so uncomfortable you could feeling the springs poking you also the water was deadly hot and when I told the desk they didn't seem to care. I'm generally concerned for the guest especially kids. Anyway still a lovely place.

Jessenia Hurtado

17:52 01 Apr 21

Always come here best place private beach very close to stores

Sandy Schulte

23:39 31 Dec 20

I booked our reservation online. The desk was closed when we checked in at 6:30 pm. I had to use my cell phone flashlight and the lock box was difficult. Our room was not as requested. No fireplace. Ugly view. It smelled . Stains on the carpet. Medicine cabinet door was off / missing and inside was rusty. The toilet seat was worn out down to the brown layer. The tv turned on , i changed the channel and then the tv did not work. No directions in the room to operate the tv. At a room rate of $200/day , I expect better wayyyy better. The office staff did not care nor were they helpful. We left after 1 day of a 5 day stay and rebooked elsewhere

Levi

21:42 16 Nov 20

Very cozy lodge. We stayed across the street from the lake, so we didn't have the best view, but a quick walk down the pier and you see this!

Michelle Porter

21:17 20 Oct 20

Peaceful stay. Only thing was there isn't allot around it to do things for us but still great visit.

Lindsey Hartman

03:54 11 Oct 20

Great, hard to find location with close access to the beach! Unfortunately, our studio was #16 which is the closest you can get to HWY 28. We are sensitive to traffic noise and found it loud and noisy. We asked for a different studio but everything was booked. We made our reservation on the website and I should have immediately called to make sure we were not so close to the road. We also thought the studio would have a table & chairs, as the website described. But ours did not, so no place to play board games or eat our breakfast. The occupant in #17 had a dog, and we specifically were looking for lodging that did not allow pets. The dog did bark but not excessively. We did have a deck, but the occupant in #17 had to pass in front of our studio to access his, so not really a nice place to sit & chill as the occupant was on the move a lot. Also, the traffic noise didn't make it a pleasant space to use. And because of the occupant coming & going so frequently, we basically kept our blinds closed the whole time, making the studio feel very dark. If they could modify the deck so each occupant had their own deck and did not share the entrance for access, that would make it so much nicer. The lighting could have been better in the studio, it had one overhead LED cool/blue light and one small table lamp, but that would be a relatively easy fix. We would come again but only if we could be as far from the 28 as possible.

Edward Kim

19:02 09 Oct 20

Pricey but I guess largely in line with the area. Friendly service. Well designed rooms, like the little kitchenette in the 1 bedroom actually vents out. Our second time here, the previous was many years ago, so we can see how they've kept the place up and made upgrades over time.

özge öztan

19:25 04 Oct 20

If I could give zero-star rating, I would as this hotel does not even deserve a single star. We were not given the hotel room that we paid for. The room was supposed to be a comfort studio on the lakeside. It was barely on the lakeside, which is fine, but the room was far from being a COMFORT STUDIO. The room was extremely small and outdated. The shower was a joke as we couldn't fit in and we are not even big people. When we brought this up to the front office, we were offered to pay extra $200 to move to another room instead of providing us with a room that we actually paid for. We were given the smallest room on the property based on the map provided by the hotel, yet our room was priced the same as the other bigger (at least twice the size) studio rooms. Our friends also booked the same room (so called comfort studio, lakeside) for the same price via Orbitz. Their room was exactly as described on the Orbitz's website, twice the size of our room, fully renovated, full bathroom and kitchenette. The so-called hotel management is unprofessional and does not care about customer satisfaction as all they care about is making money by fooling their customers. IF YOU WANT TO GAMBLE YOUR HARD-EARNED MONEY BY BOOKING A ROOM AT THIS HOTEL, GO AHEAD! There is at least 50% chance that you won’t get what you pay for. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!!!!

Sean McNabb

05:10 04 Oct 20

Nice place but check which room you are actually staying at lakeside does not mean lake front.

Luis Cortez

19:29 24 Sep 20

We booked a forest side cabin.. 2 bedroom.. we were very satisfied with the cleanliness and the fact that cabin came fully equipped with dishes, pots and stuff. Plenty of towels ..very quiet setting. Just a very short walk to beach.. overall we give this place 5 stars 😁 we recommend going to sand harbor Beach .. better ⛱

North Lake Native

18:18 14 Sep 20

We grew up in North Lake Tahoe, but have lived in Sonoma for the past 10 years. Due to horrible fires in our area we had to leave our home. Unfortunately neither my wife nor myself have any family that are still alive, and living in the basin. We contacted the Franciscan Lakeside Lodge inquiring about a weekly rate because we have no idea when, or if we will be able to return to our home. The person who we spoke with on the phone treated us with distain, and was quite frankly rude. It blows me away that people can be so immature, and judgemental in a time like this. I hope whoever we spoke to on the phone enjoyed returning to their home after their shift that evening, not everyone is as lucky as you.

robert chisholm

17:16 11 Sep 20

It was a very nice accommodation, friendly people.

Bonnie T

04:29 20 Jul 20

I’m disappointed that I never got to stay here because I had a sudden death in the immediate family but I want to speak of the wonderful staff they were kind enough to refund most of the money I paid up front which was so nice and made the grieving process a bit easier by lifting a financial stress

Amanda White

16:56 18 Jun 20

Extremely convenient, clean, and reasonably priced. Well definitely be back!

Juan Lopez

23:52 12 Jun 20

4:40pm and my room was not ready. Franciscan please fix that. check in is at 3:00pm not Almost 5pm.

Ken Dall

10:25 18 May 20

Amy is amazing!! She works so hard and is always helpful whenever my guests visit Tahoe and request accommodation specifics or items. There is a single unit for sale that might be of interest to me in the future. Thanks!! Franciscan is a wonderful place to stay!

Sami Hinton

21:35 17 May 20

We checked out this morning and were so happy staying here I wanted to write a review right away. We got our own personal little cabin right by the water. Very nice rooms, comes with a little kitchen if you wanted to cook. When we checked in the man that helped us had great customer service. We will be back with our family and friends very soon.

Anne Koler

19:23 09 Mar 20

Gorgeous little rustic cabin with all the amenities needed & we got upgraded to a cabin so close to the lake.

Jen Peng

00:58 02 Mar 20

The 1 bedroom lakefront units are great. Fit 3 adults comfortably. The views are wonderful, the cabin was warm during the chilly winter season, and comes with everything you need. Stayed in unit 25 (queen bed in the bedroom with 2 twin daybeds in the living room) and would highly recommend. It was perfectly quiet at night, couldn't hear any noise from the road during a weekend stay.

Ju Pak

22:23 06 Jan 20

I did a reservation on HotelTonight to spend our New Year’s Eve and New Year here. We did our reservation 24 hours before and on our way to the lodge, I decided to give a call seeing if we can check-in early. Apparently they only reserved our stay for one night only and not the following. They weren’t able to do anything else but to give us our money back while we were almost arriving at the lodge. Our ending of the year/start of the year was not the best due to this happening. Definitely have bad taste in my mouth.

Ha Tran

01:12 02 Jan 20

Great location if you get unit on the lakeside. We got studio #14 though not lake front but next to lake front unit 13 so still very good lake view with chairs on the porch. Kichen is well stocked to make meals with gas stove and updated flatscreen TV. Sheets and duvet good quality. Bathroom sink counter updated and good shower pressure. Old fashioned wall furnace but still comfortable and warm.

Dave Herzstein

03:14 31 Dec 19

Not too expensive, great location. I've been coming here for 25 years. Now my sons come here with their families. Kithchens in all rooms.

Ning Xu

20:19 30 Nov 19

It’s our third time staying at Franciscan! There’s nothing fancy about this place. But the sense of belonging is irreplaceable. Beyond that there’s close access to everything including skiing resorts, cute restaurants and Safeway.

Gaurav Hardikar

21:11 24 Nov 19

Great location, price, and amenities within the room. Even good coffee in room. Highly recommend.

Tom Davies

15:54 18 Nov 19

In all honesty the room we ended up in was lovely, but getting in was a hugely painful process that ruined our whole experience. We arrived at 5pm and were greeted with a closed reception and a hand written note to call a number to get our key. There was no cell reception and so having driven 10 mins down the road, found the number was out of service. Having eventually found another number, I was placed on hold for c.20 minutes and was eventually told I'd get a call back. 10 minutes later I was told which room I was in. I'd paid a huge premium for a 'lake front' room (having previously had an email exchange with the venue specifically asking which to book to be close to the pier). We didn't get a lake front lodge, we got a 'lakeside'. Explaining this issue I was told to wait another 20 minutes for someone to come and change my room. This ended up being lakeside but no where near the pier. We got into that room over 45 minutes after arriving. The lady who eventually gave me the key was also massively rude, firstly lying to me insisting that someone was present until 5.30 (they weren't) and then suggesting it was my fault for a number of reasons, including arriving late (5pm!). The next morning the hairdryer broke at 7am and no one was due to be at reception until 9am... after we needed to leave. The venue has never replied to my email upon checkout and overall I'm staggered at this experience.

Laura Bye

00:37 13 Oct 19

This was such a great experience staying here! The staff was super sweet & the rooms were so clean. The breakfast was pretty yummy too! I would Love to come back to stay here!!!

Jett Warmuth

15:03 17 Sep 19

Cute cozy cabins. Very clean, but you definitely hear road noise all night long. Great private beach, pool and grass areas. Bbqs and sitting areas all around. Great for family vacations

Groebot

16:43 28 Aug 19

Great place to stay! Very peaceful and the staff is very friendly. They have a nice dock that extends out in to the water! Great for sunsets and sunrises. As well as star gazing! Will be back again, for sure.

Ashlee Geier

17:57 21 Aug 19

Nice spot on the lake. In a lakeside cabin, not lakefront, which left me feeling slightly strange to hang out on the beach area in front of the Lakeview cabins. I felt like we would be intruding if we did. It is quiet and close to kings beach but not much else around in a walkable distance. Overall clean and comfortable. Not sure it was worth the price we paid but it probably would be a better experience to have a Lakeview cabin.

Holly Edson

16:15 24 Jul 19

Location! If you can get a lakeside, perhaps it is worth it. However, we were placed in a studio very far back on the property. Most people have to cross a busy road to be lakeside... I'll try and post some photos from the room. Strong cleaning solution smell that never left even with a fan in the window and all windows open. No screens on the doors. Uncomfortable bed, decent pillows, Very clean! Front desk provides little by way of orientation or welcome. But perhaps they have so many regular customers, they don't need to...

Sreya Bagchi

23:15 19 Jun 18

The place was really nice...good for 2 people. But have to say that the walls are a bit thin. The location though is breathtakingly beautiful.

Rachel Sierer Wooden

02:00 18 Jun 18

This place was wonderful. We booked a lakeside cabin, but there was a gas leak so they moved us to the forest side. It was wonderful nonetheless. Great place for bringing the kids. Our unit had a full kitchen and there are several outdoor bbq's, a pool, ping pong table, 5 min drive from kings beach. Will definitely be coming back.

OCTAVIA SKOGLUND

04:44 13 Jun 18

Great friendly service, very nice rooms, nice decor, great amenities. Would recommend to anyone looking for a great place to stay..right on the shore of no. Lake Tahoe!!!..can't beat it anywhere!!!

Chris Strote

16:12 25 Apr 18

Beach front rooms were awesome. Spectacular views and very romantic. Only issue was proximity to the road and the constant noise. Inside wasn't bad but it took away from an otherwise peaceful outdoor setting.

Daniel Woodward

14:42 24 Apr 18

Love this little place. Super quaint and right on the beach. Highly recommend. They are small but have a cast iron stove/heater and a small kitchen.

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