We recently stayed at the Kandahar Lodge while attending a wedding in Whitefish, MT just ten minutes down the mountain. The staff, room, giant hot tub and fireplace in the lobby were are a great experience for all of us I would defiantly recommend this lodge to anyone. You could park your car on day 1 and have a bar, fine dining restaurant, and be at the bottom of the slopes to a ski-in resort and never get back in your car!

Kandahar Lodge is not exactly rustic but that was fine with us. Since we wanted lodgings that were clean and comfortable after a tiring day at Glacier National Park, Kandahar was just what we needed. Located on a ski mountain with other ski resorts, Kandahar is very pretty in an alpine kind of way.There was nothing nicer than sitting before the fire in the main room each evening and just relaxing and planning the next day's adventure. Though not luxurious, the rooms were nicely done and equipped with comfortable chairs, a mini-fridge, microwave and dishes. The bathroom was also updated and when we reported that the shower was not working properly, it was immediately repaired. For the the continental breakfast juice, yogurt, muffins, hardboiled eggs and fruit were available each morning and though not exiting, enough to get us going. Servicewise, I would have to say Kandahar could use a little tweaking when it came to straigtening the guest rooms and providing clean towels each day. But the staff was pleasant and helpful.

Kandahar is approximately a half hour drive from the West Entrance to Glacier NP and not an unpleasant drive. So we never minded driving there nearly every day of our stay. The park has many different entrances and it is definitely worthwhile to go to each, though these other entrances are much further from Kandahar than the west one. The unexpected bonus of the trip was the little town of Whitefish. What a cute not too touristy spot to catch a reasonably priced delicious meal. We highly recommend the Buffalo Cafe. It was so cool visiting the cafe made famous by singer Jack Gladstone and enjoying meals that were tasty and creative. Make sure to also check out the Farmer's Market each Tuesday. So with Glacier NP within a reasonable drive and Whitefish providing great food, Kandahar was just right for this traveling family.

Now I don't disagree with almost everything that's been said about Kandahar Lodge and we have no regrets about staying here at all - comfy rooms, great staff, relaxing fire, easy, easy, easy. But I want to be honest about the food choices. The same breakfast, day after day, gets more than a little dull! We were there for the skiing and never a hot breakfast in sight...the same cold, hard boiled egg, bagel and cream cheese greeted us every morning for more than a week. BORING. No variety. Not a great kickstart to a day on the slopes. While I'm at it the restaurant is real 'try hard'. While there is clearly some arrangement in place to supply 'bar food' to the Lodge, they really seem to want to feel superior and disassociated. So stuck up they wouldn't even let our kids eat with us in the restaurant if they wanted to order off the bar menu (all prepared in the same kitchen!) For long stay Lodge guests with kids this is harsh punishment when you want a hot dinner at the end of the day and don't feel like walking out into sub zero temperatures but your kids are not interested in a wanna-be-haute-cuisine menu. We have never encountered such conceited inflexibility in our travels anywhere in the world. The temperatures are low...chill a bit! (I'll confine my ratings to the Lodge only.)

Kandahar Lodge is absolulely lovely and luxurious but it is around 5 miles + from White Fish Lake at the foot of Big Mountain Ski Area. (We had thought it was at the Lake for some reason and was disappointed that we had to drive so far to get to the lodge but ultimately loved the comfort we experienced). The rooms were beautifully decorated & had 2 comfortable leather club chairs (typically you find only 1 chair in a hotel room, if that many) to recline in so you didn't have to sit on the bed to read or relax. They have no king beds, by the way. And the queen beds are resting on a high platform making it a bit difficult to access without a step stool if you are infirm. Overall, the room was great from a decor perspective, had great toiletries & very quiet. The main complaint is that the food is excellent but very pricey (and you are somewhat stuck with eating at the lodge if you don't want to drive back to White Fish for dinner). We opted for "bar" style food as the "5 Star" restaurant on the premise was just way over our budget, and it was still a fortune, relatively speaking. But we ate in the main lobby in a really cushy leather sofa with a roaring fire before us and it turned out to be delightful, all and all. The staff was very accomodating as well. Breakfast was adequate althought for the price of the room, we expected a bit more quality of food than the "Western Family" yogurt and plain white bread, plain bagels (no pastries or croissants), bananas and ho-hum boxed cereal that were offered.