Two Glorious Nights at the General Palmer

"Could we be any closer to the trains?" the exclamation went out from Mitch. Yes, it was pretty exciting to drive up the the General Palmer Hotel in Durango and discover that the beautiful historic hotel was right next to the Durango and Silverton Railroad. There are experiences in your life that you will never forget, and riding the Durango and Silverton is definitely one of them. Staying at the General Palmer was the whipped cream and sprinkles on top of our sundae. The Victorian hotel, named after General Palmer who co-founded the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad, is beautifully appointed. And our stay there was made all the more pleasant by the friendly staff.

When we opened the door to our room, an adorable teddy bear greeted us on our lace covered bed, and our room filled with comfortable period furnishings, literally faced the open tracks next to the depot so we were able to lower the window sash and enjoy the sounds of the steam engine as we unpacked.

We found a wonderful restaurant called Ken and Sue’s within a block of our hotel, and stuffed ourselves on prime rib

I really felt at home in Durango, it has an authentic Disneyesque feel to it, that you don’t find too many other places. Two examples of this that come to mind are Macinac Island, Michigan, and Eureka Springs, Arkansas. After supper we picked up some tea and cookies in the lobby and headed to the veranda just outside our room and watched the sun go down and the train crew put the engines to bed. We were in heaven. -- Ruth Mitchell

(c) 2009 - Ruth Mitchell - all rights reserved