Date of Stay: December 2011
Posted On: 10/10/12 by David S.

The first thing that should be noted is that the reason it took me nine months to write a review is due to my incompetence....... not dissatisfaction. This rental is truly outstanding! Our family stayed at Giant's View Lodge for several days about a week before Christmas in 2011. The standard cliche definitely fits here......the pictures don't do this place justice. The lodge is very clean and the interior has a very nice flow to it. We loved the living room for its rustic comfort and the kitchen has everything. For us, Giant's View was the perfect getaway.......on a secluded property with outstanding mountain views. We traveled to Lake Placid during the day for shopping and dining, and returned to the comfort of Giant's View by early evening. My whole family would highly recommend Giant's View Lodge to anyone looking for a great Adirondack vacation rental.

We stayed at Giant's View for our Honeymoon and could not have asked for a more romantic get-away! With Keene Valley being right in the center of everything we wanted to do Giant's View was a perfect location for us... we can't wait to come back with friends to enjoy this beautiful cabin!
Thank you Nardelli family for sharing your amazing cabin with us, we love the rustic decorating, game room, peacefulness, VIEWS, fire pit, and just about everything else about Giant's View! We will certainly recommend you to our friends and family.
Thank you - Melissa & Tom Hackett

We stayed at the Giant's View Lodge for a quiet birthday getaway for my wife. We had a great time....nice and quite. Looking forward to visiting again soon.

If you want to get away from it all, this is the place. This was our third stay. We've had a great time everytime we've been here. Plenty of hiking and great shops in Lake Placid. Be sure to check out the Maple Walnut pie at the Noon Mark Diner.

We stayed here for my wife's birthday and had a wonderful time. The views were amazing and the house is centrally located so it is great for hiking and day trips to Lake Placid. We did a quick hike up Roostercomb and spent part of a day kicking back in Lake Placid with the locals. The house was amazing and gave us a great spot to relax by the fire and read at night with great views of Giant and surrounding peaks! Unfortunately we had to return to reality after 2 short days but we will be back soon!

While searching for a place to go for our yearly weekend getaway, we happened to discover Giants View Lodge. We booked the weekend, drove 4 hours only to discover we made the absolute right decision. Giants View Lodge was everything we hoped it would be. The home was beautifully decorated, warm and welcoming. The view from the Lodge was spectacular, and we envision ourselves returning there next year to tackle a mountain or two. The weekend was rainy, but we managed stay dry during a hike at Ausable Chasm. It was a great weekend, spent with good friends at a beautiful gem nestled in the Adirondack Mountains.

This place is a dream and we had a perfect honeymoon here!
Thank you so much for sharing this beautiful lodge. The view is outstanding and the accommodations are both comfortable and thoughtfully planned. We were able to cook gourmet meals, take jaunts into town to shop & dine and we also hiked a few mountains.
Our dog, Crosbi thoroughly enjoyed the Lodge, chasing chipmunks and sniffing out the local wildlife neighbors :)
We will certainly be back...with others next time!

Reneé & Adam
Glens Falls, NY

Giant's View was the perfect place for us - close to all the great hiking and a beautiful deck to enjoy a glass of wine after tackling the mountains. Keene Valley is a delightful town with everything you need only minutes away. We loved the feeling of being on the mountain by ourselves - so quiet and peaceful.

The hiking is tremendous - we loved the Brothers, Giant Mt., and Hopkins Mt. especially. And we got a round of golf in at Lake Placid. We will highly recommend your gorgeous home to others who want to experience the Adirondacks.

Phil and Mary Agee
Fairfax, VA

Three couples have thoroughly enjoyed this wonderful lodge.

In spite of a week of rain, we had great views of Giant, the leaves were cloudy day “brighteners” on our drives to Lake Placid, Elizabethtown, High Peaks Center. Our Whiteface excursion was a “washout” with zero visibility, and we had a train excursion to Saranac Lake on the rainiest day – perfect.

Wonderful friends, great food, and a beautiful home in which to enjoy them. The rain bothered us not at all!

Indianapolis friends – Louie & Emily Chenette, Tom & Ursula Roberts, Jerry & Betty Schnur. Thanks so much -- we hope to return.

Great time again! We love staying here! We had a potluck & enjoyed cooking in the big, beautiful kitchen – the views were fantastic. We hiked Adirondack Loj to the Dam and one of us fell into the river ☺. We shopped in Lake Placid and had dinner at the Great Adirondack Steak & Seafood Company – once again great beer, food and company.

Thanks again for a memorable experience!

Sarah Hill – Newton, MA
Gillian Beckwith – Salem, MA
Shaila Gent – Salem, MA
Marissa Hunt-Pomeroy – Salem, MA
Shannon Murphy – Salem, MA
Beth Whipple – Nashua, NH
Kelly Blair – Brooklyn, NY

What a beautiful place! Thank you very much for sharing your lodge with us. What at wonderful view to have breakfast and dinner with!

We hiked Hurricane Mountain, Cascade, Mt. Jo and Gillbrook to Indian Head and then over to Rainbow Falls. The views from Cascade, Mt. Jo and Indian Head were wonderful.

Rather than hiking on Wednesday, we did a canoe trip down the Saranac River from St. Regis Canoe Outfitters on Dorsey Street in Saranac Lake. After paddling for only about 10 minutes, we encountered a bull moose! He crossed the river and then ended up swimming in front of us for ¼ mile. We have some great photos. We were told it was rare to encounter a moose in the Adirondacks. Thank you very much!

Ben & Theresa
Pittsburgh, PA

Perfect vacation! Perfect weather and beautiful home. Thank you Ray and Laura for sharing your home with others.

We had hummingbirds the 1st and 2nd days and then they disappeared. We were told that they headed south.

Took the ferry to Shelburne & had a wonderful day. Such an amazing museum! It was a busy week – seeing friends, preparing for our booth for the antiques shows in Princeton and Hartford, and Charlie working on a commissioned Te Deum at the piano.

Thank You!!
Lisa & Charlie Hammell
Moorestown, NJ
noonmarkantiques.com

4 families, 3 from Rochester NY and one from Boston. 6 kids and lots of chaos, but we all agree on one thing – Giant’s Lodge is a special place. We didn’t do a whole lot of outdoor things while here, but we really enjoyed cooking with friends, the fireplace, the great sunrises and views! We’ll definitely be back!

Paul, Luisa & Cecilia Brookes
Paul, Jen & Ettiene Tremblay
Enrique, Ellen, Sam & Anna Zuniga
Rick, Anna, Gerik & Alina Rynski

We LOVE it here. This is our 4th year – NEVER grow tired of it. So Beautiful!!!

It was -10 degrees today when we awoke. Charlie went skiing. I did water color of iris, practiced my viola and read.
It is very difficult to leave. Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful home!!

Lisa & Charlie Hammell
Moorestown, NJ

Our 5th year!

We absolutely love this place! Unlike last year the temps stayed above 0 degrees so outdoor activities were enjoyed. Had wonderful dinners at Ausable Inn and Wilderness Inn. Give them a try.

Good reading: “A Walk in the Woods” by Bill Bryson. This is a perfect house for a good book and it is funny as hell! Get it at the Mountaineer $14.95

The Nedbals

We just finished another relaxing stay at Giant’s View – our 3rd year. After spending a few days travelling through Vermont, staying in hotels, walking into Giant’s View felt like coming home.

Our favorite things about Giant’s View…
• The view (of course)
• The Adirondack décor and old furniture
• The Nardelli kid’s artwork
• The piano
• The basement playroom
• Stargazing at night

Most Enjoyable days…
• Watching loons and a bald eagle at middle Saranac Lake
• Catching frogs at Giant’s Washbowl
• Hiking to Giant’s Nubble
• Riding horses at the Barkeater where you can walk, trot, and canter!
• Daytrip to Shelburne Farms, where we milked a cow and held chickens!
• Hiking up Coon Mt. where we could see Lake Champlain and the Green Mountains
• Relaxing at Giant’s View with a Noonmark pie
• Listening to owls as we fall asleep

Bob, Shannon, Alex & Abigail Van Meter

Your home is even better than we remembered!

I thank you for giving me the opportunity to vacation with my four children in an absolutely perfect setting. We hiked 5 more high peaks, ate lots of Noonmark pies, played cards, took a boat tour, trout fished in West Ausable, jumped the cliff and slid in the chutes at Tenderfoot Pools but mostly just enjoyed the view from the deck of Giant’s View.

Pam Lowe
Rochester, NY

A wonderful family birthday weekend away! The house is spacious, yet warm and cozy and the detail you have put into it surely makes every visitor feel like they are at home. We had great weather for our skiing adventures on Whiteface…and it seems like we’re taking the snow with us as everything is melting! The family of deer that live in these parts of the woods were an added treat. We will definitely be back for more!

Eliz, Gabe, Randy, Paul, Kiki & Kat
Toronto, Ontario

We arrived close to 11pm on Sunday. Walking into the house and seeing th delight of our children as they explored was magical. We woke to an amazing view of Giant Mountain. We celebrated my birthday here with morning pancakes and slab bacon from the market. Yummm!

At the advice of the folks at the Mountaineer we climbed Mt. Jo and really enjoyed the experience of making it to the summit. We went canoeing at Lake Placid, horse back riding at the Wilson’s Farm and climbed Owl’s Head on our last day. The leaf colors transformed before us growing brighter and more brilliant by the day. It was magnificent. We enjoyed dinner out at Baxter Mountain Lodge and Ere’s on Main Street in Lake Placid. My favorite sight was the myriad of stars, the big dipper so close you could climb into it and the Milky Way. Wow!

The Capazzis

The Van Meter’s Favorites
1. Hikes: Mt. Joe & Giant’s Washbowl
2. Horseback rides at the Barkeater
3. Dinner at the Ausable Inn
4. Pies – Aunt Pat’s are the best, but Noonmark’s are close behind.
5. Playroom at Giant’s View (especially the horse and swing)
6. Having a piano to play!
7. The view at “Giant’s View”

Bob, Shannon, Alex & Abigail
Lamberton, NJ

Once again, thank you for a great weekend. The weather was perfect for our excursions – Saturday we went whitewater rafting down the Hudson River and Sunday we climbed Hurricane. The views from Hurricane are tremendous. Giant’s View really has become our home away from home for our Memorial Day vacations. We enjoyed every minute.

The Scotts & The Thompsons

A very comfortable place for our annual x-country ski trip to the Adirondacks. Comfortable surroundings, delightful view, and adequate sleeping accommodations for our group of twelve friends. We hope to return one day.

The Gebhard Party
John, Diana, Jane, Stanley, Gene, Elaine, Sally, Jon, Joe, Paul, Rayna, Terri

This is truly a dream house! To open one’s eyes at 6:30 AM and perceive (while the head is still on the pillow) that a sunrise is about to begin, is a wonderful dream come true. Only a sunrise can raise me from a bed and cause me to grab my watercolors and start sketching so that I may capture it. While my husband was out adventuring – skiing Whiteface and X-Country skiing in parts unknown, I discovered for the first time in 47 years, the meaning of “Peace”. I found it in your beautiful home. Both my husband and I lead incredibly hectic lives. This Christmas break was exactly what we needed. THANK YOU for opening your home to others and for sharing the warmth, beauty, and PEACE.

Lisa and Charlie Hammell
Moorestown, NJ
www.charleshammell.com

My husband and I celebrated our 2nd wedding anniversary here and what a romantic, quiet, secluded place it is! So nice to get away from our hectic lives for a bit – we’re already thinking of when we can come back and stay longer. The weather was perfect, above normal temps for November – in the upper 60’s – gorgeous. We climbed Rooster Comb Mountain and WOW! The view from the summit was amazing. Thanks for sharing your house with us – it was so much better than staying in a hotel.

Jaime & Jan
Seneca Falls, NY

What a wonderful place to finish our honeymoon week! We thoroughly enjoyed it – especially sitting out on the deck, wind or coffee in hand, and taking in the magnificent view! Giant Mountain is truly best viewed from your deck – thank you for the opportunity of taking in its splendor!! We even said goodbye to it as we feel like we’re already leaving a friend! Thanks again!

John & Lisa Frey
Rochester, NY