Historic Lodges & Hotels in Glacier National Park

The neighborhoods

Where to stay, by area

Lake McDonald Valley

Lake McDonald, ten miles long and nearly 500 feet deep, is the largest lake in the park and the hub of its west side. Lake McDonald Lodge, 10.5 miles from the West Entrance on Going-to-the-Sun Road, opened in June 1914 as the Lewis Glacier Hotel; the concessioner counts 82 rooms across the three-story main lodge (guest rooms on the second and third floors), a row of cabins along a tree-lined path, Snyder Hall (1911, eight hostel-style rooms sharing a bathroom) and the Cobb House (1918, suites). The lakeside walk past the cabins ends at the boat dock, where the historic DeSmet runs narrated cruises, and the Sperry trailhead is just across the road. Trail of the Cedars is at Avalanche, about 16 miles from the West Entrance, and Logan Pass is 32 miles from it. NPS says the road from West Glacier to the lodge is usually plowed all year, though the lodge itself closes after September.

Many Glacier Valley

Many Glacier has its own entrance just west of Babb on the east side, where four major valleys meet, two of them holding glaciers. The Many Glacier Hotel, on the shore of Swiftcurrent Lake about 11 miles from the Highway 89 turnoff, is the largest hotel in the park, with 214 rooms by the concessioner’s count, the lakeside Ptarmigan Dining Room and the Swiss Lounge. A mile away, Swiftcurrent Motor Inn & Cabins began as an auto camp in 1933; the concessioner counts 95 rooms, but only the cabins in the historic circles date from the auto camp, so book a room type named Historic. Swiftcurrent is the stepping-off point for Iceberg Lake, Ptarmigan Lake and the 183-foot Ptarmigan Tunnel, the Grinnell Glacier Trailhead is in the valley, and boat tours, boat rentals and the Many Glacier Corral operate here too. NPS puts St. Mary 20 miles and 40 minutes away and West Glacier 70 miles and 2 1/2 hours, and says visitors should not expect any cell reception.

St. Mary / Rising Sun

The east end of Going-to-the-Sun Road is where, in NPS’s phrase, the mountains meet the prairies. Rising Sun Motor Inn & Cabins, about 6 miles from the St. Mary Entrance and a quarter mile from St. Mary Lake, is 12 miles from Logan Pass, the closest of our five stays to the pass. It opened in 1941 as a low-cost auto camp; the concessioner counts 72 units, and the historic ones are the Cabin Rooms along the road and the Store Motel Rooms in the general store building, while the hillside Motor Inn rooms are outside the historic district. Two Dog Flats Grill and a camp store are on site, boat tours and Red Bus tours leave from here, and NPS calls the parking abundant. St. Mary Visitor Center, just inside the entrance, has free public Wi-Fi, and cell coverage at St. Mary is limited.

West Glacier

The gateway village just outside the West Entrance, and the only one of our four areas outside the park boundary. The Belton Chalet stands on US-2 directly across from the historic West Glacier station, where Amtrak’s Empire Builder stops, so it is the easiest of the five to reach by train; Lewis and Clark, its two three-bedroom cottages, have fireplaces and kitchenettes. The Belton Grill Dining Room and Tap Room are on site, and the concessioner says everything in West Glacier Village is within walking distance, including Glacier Raft Co., which runs Class II–III trips on the Middle Fork of the Flathead River. Apgar Visitor Center is about two miles inside the entrance, and NPS puts St. Mary 50 miles and 2 hours away over Going-to-the-Sun Road, or 90 miles and 2 hours by US-2 and Highway 89.

Before you book

Planning your stay

Getting around

Going-to-the-Sun Road is the only road across the park, 50 miles from the West Entrance at West Glacier over Logan Pass (6,646 feet) to the St. Mary Entrance, and Many Glacier has its own entrance reached from the east side. NPS says Logan Pass typically opens between mid-June and early July but can’t predict a date; the road fully opened June 22 in 2026, June 16 in 2025, June 22 in 2024, June 13 in 2023 and July 13 in 2022, and the alpine section typically closes around the third Monday of October, or sooner in bad weather. Vehicle reservations, piloted from 2021 to 2025, weren’t required anywhere in the park in 2026, and 2027 road and vehicle-reservation rules hadn’t been announced when we checked. In 2026 NPS could divert vehicles when an area filled, but visitors with lodging reservations were let through, with possible delays. The ticketed Logan Pass Shuttle ran July 1 to September 7 in 2026 ($1 per rider age 2 and up on Recreation.gov, not sold in the park), boarding at Apgar Visitor Center, Lake McDonald Lodge, St. Mary Visitor Center and the Rising Sun Picnic Area; NPS hasn’t said what runs in 2027. The concessioner’s 33 Red Buses, built 1936–39, leave from Lake McDonald Lodge, Many Glacier Hotel, Swiftcurrent and Rising Sun, among other points. Glacier Park International Airport near Kalispell is about 30 miles from the West Entrance, and Amtrak’s Empire Builder stops at West Glacier year-round and at East Glacier Park seasonally. In 2026 entry cost $35 per private vehicle for seven days ($25 November 1 to April 30), plus $100 for each non-U.S. resident 16 or older without an annual or America the Beautiful pass, and the fee isn’t included in lodge rates. There is no fuel inside the park.

Parking

Neither NPS nor the two concessioners list a parking charge at any of the five stays. Lake McDonald Lodge guests in the main lodge use the main lot and cabin guests usually find parking nearby, the Swiftcurrent area has 339 spaces after its 2025 rebuild, NPS calls Rising Sun’s parking abundant, and no figure is published for the Many Glacier Hotel or the Belton Chalet. NPS warns that in summer lots often fill by early morning and that whole areas may be restricted during extreme congestion. Logan Pass has 235 spaces; from July 1 through September 7, 2026, private vehicles there were limited to three hours with a free kiosk permit, and 2027 rules haven’t been announced. Vehicles or combinations over 21 feet long including bumpers, or over 8 feet wide including mirrors, are prohibited on Going-to-the-Sun Road between Avalanche Creek and Rising Sun, so larger rigs reach Lake McDonald Lodge and Rising Sun each from its own side and cross the park on US-2 and Highway 89. EV chargers are at Lake McDonald Lodge, Apgar Visitor Center and St. Mary Visitor Center.

When to go

The 2027 seasons, all subject to change, are Belton Chalet May 7 to October 10, Lake McDonald Lodge May 14 to September 30, Many Glacier Hotel June 3 to September 20, Swiftcurrent Motor Inn & Cabins June 8 to September 17 and, as posted, Rising Sun Motor Inn & Cabins June 11 to September 13. Before Going-to-the-Sun Road opens, treat the east and west sides as separate trips. NPS says May through September is the busiest time and July and August the busiest of all, and it expects rainy, cool days through June, hot days and cool nights in July and August, higher trails that can stay snow-covered until late June and snow possible at lower elevations as early as mid-September. Weather and fire can change a trip: NPS says wildfires are common every summer, the concessioner closed Lake McDonald Lodge for the season on August 30, 2017 because of Sprague Fire smoke, and heavy rain on June 28–30, 2026 flooded the Many Glacier Valley, forcing the evacuation of Many Glacier Hotel and Swiftcurrent. Fall is less crowded, with trees turning by mid-September, but all five stays have closed by the time the western larch goes yellow in mid-October.

Accessibility

NPS says most park facilities predate the 1968 accessibility standards and are generally barrier-free, though not all meet current standards. All five stays offer accessible rooms but publish no counts. Lake McDonald Lodge has no elevators and its lodge rooms are upstairs, so its ADA units are cabin rooms and a Cobb House room. Many Glacier Hotel and Rising Sun have a limited number of ADA rooms; Swiftcurrent has one ADA cabin and ADA motel rooms, which are outside the historic cabins. The Belton Chalet has first-floor ADA rooms with a roll-in shower with a lip, and warns that some areas of the landmark may not meet modern standards. Accessible walks include the lakeside walk at Lake McDonald Lodge, the 0.7-mile Trail of the Cedars and the quarter-mile Swiftcurrent Nature Trail. Park shuttles are wheelchair accessible and a limited number of Red Buses are; ask when booking. The concessioner’s online system has an ADA filter, or call 855-733-4522.

Before you book

Reservations at the four stays inside the park open 13 months out, on the 1st of each month (midnight Mountain time online, 7 a.m. by phone), for that whole month a year ahead, and summer 2027 was already selling out when we checked on October 30, 2026: Lake McDonald Lodge, Rising Sun and Swiftcurrent had no rooms left for July 13, 2027, and Many Glacier Hotel had none for June 16, though it still had rooms on July 13, so try several dates. All four book through Glacier National Park Lodges (855-733-4522), which has no waiting list but says rooms can turn up even two weeks out; it takes the first night at each location as a deposit, refunds it in full with at least 14 days’ notice for stays May 1 to October 14 and keeps it after that, whatever the reason. The Belton Chalet books through Glacier Park Collection (844-868-7474), which takes the first night and tax, refunds in full for 30 days after booking, then charges $30 until 14 days before a June–September arrival, after which the deposit is lost. Choose room types carefully: at Rising Sun book a Cabin Room or Store Motel Room, not a Motor Inn Room, and at Swiftcurrent a room type named Historic, not Pinetop or Motor Inn. Expect no TV except in the Lake McDonald suites, no air conditioning, and in-park Wi-Fi limited to very slow satellite service at front desks and lobbies; the Belton Chalet has complimentary Wi-Fi but no TV or air conditioning. Pets aren’t allowed at any of the five, and check-in is 4 p.m. NPS says utility replacement at the Lake McDonald Lodge and Many Glacier Hotel developed areas is in design and, if approved, is anticipated to begin in 2027; no effect on 2027 rooms has been announced, so ask when booking.