I've been going to Sycamore Springs with family since 2003. The property is definetely unique with the mineral hot springs. I like the nature surroundings and the out door tubs. I do have to say that they need to upgrade their rooms. The carpet is old and the furniture is out dated. Also the service is not consistent. The front desk staff varies. Sometime you get great service (mostly from the male staff) and sometimes, especially the females give you an attitude when you check in. That's just something I noticed everytime I go.

However the last time I went, was the last time I will go. I reserved the Fantasy Suite with the sulfur mineral jaccuzzi tub. The back of the suite faces a hill but there is an access to that area from the side for staff and maintenance. My husband and I left our room to use the redwood tubs for 1 hour and I came back to find that my purse had been emptyed. Some one broke into our room and took my wallet. I called the front desk and we called the police. The onsite manager at the time moved us to a room next door. But they didn't comp us for the stay or even question if any of their staff was around the premise at the time. Since the only people that have access to the suite or the back sideof the room would be the staff. I was shocked and felt unsecured to visit the property again. To this day my husband and I have made it a point to stay away from Sycamore Springs. If you visit I would highly reccomend locking your doors and keep everything in your safe. If you don't have a safe in your room, ask for one.

If you like hot pools and the like, this is the place for you! Not only can you get a jacuzi for your room (always mineral water but may or may not be sulfur) but the rentable redwood hot tubs are quite nice as well.

I booked the lowest priced room in the Harmony Building (this is where the rooms have sulfur tubs) with my finace for 2 nights. When I first arrived, I was told that they were 100% booked up and that we had been unexpectedly upgraded to a suite in the newer buildings across the street. While this was good news to my fiance, I was specifically there for the sulfur tubs and thus gently responded to the upgrade with my feelings about the lack of sulfur water in the upgraded suite. The hotel staff was super nice and they immediately gave us 4 passes for the redwood tubs (2 each) which were good for 2 hours of soaking to make up for the fact that the suite only has mineral water in the tubs! While this was not ideal in my mind, it turned out that this was more than adequate compensation for the lack of the sulfur tub in the room and gave us a chance to focus on the redwood tubs a bit more and get out.

The suite was nice & clean and came with a gas fireplace (just flip the switch), 2 shower headed shower, 2 TVs (of which one was a flat screen), a living room, and a deck with a mineral water jacuzi. Everything was super private and we had a great time hanging in the room as well as using the deck jacuzi. One thing to note is that we were there during a large storm and thus the power did go out for a few hours.

The restaurant (Gardens of Avila) is small (I would recommend reservations) but has quite a nice menu with a little bit of everything for everybody. While the prices may be listed as high in other reviews, we found them to be about in line with other simillar places to eat. I had the cioppino while my fiance had the mushroom raviolis. I really enjoyed her dish while mine was just so-so. We also tried Fatcats in the morning for breakfast (just past the power plant near the warf) which was super cheap and super comforty food-wise and I would recommend this place to anyone.

The main focus for anyone visiting should be the rentable redwood hot tubs that dot the hillside. They are all private (clothing optional) and are encased with latice work and wood walls to provide optimal privacy. They are all reachable by a series of walkways that meander up and around the hillside dotted with outdoor lights and oak trees that provide a very natural and peaceful setting in soft lighting. The staff was very accomodating in giving us a broad choice of tubs, and even though they were booked up, we were able to get in with only a 20 minute wait. I recommend the 2 person tub for couples since it seems to hold the hot water a bit better in the smaller space. All tubs have a cold faucet and a sulfur (hot) faucet. Each time we used the tub, we would just turn on the hot sulfur water until the desired temperature was reached. While the complementary passes that we got were for 1 hour each, the max we stayed in any tub was 45 minutes (we were pretty hot at that point) and thus the passes provided ample time to get warm and relax in the woodsy setting.

We arrived at Sycamore Springs ready for some relaxation after a particularly gruely fall and winter work schedule. The rooms were clean yet somewhat reminiscent of Howard Johnson. The service was young and unprofessional at times. The overall experience however was great. This place defines shabby chic.

Our first room was nice, but the hot tub didn't work. They put us into the room next door immediately and even offered to move our bags for us. It was painless and they did a pretty good job straightening everything out. We enjoyed the room so much that we asked to extend our trip by one night. The hotel was full, but they offered to put us up in a suite for only $50 more. The suite was really nice with a bigger hot tub and a fireplace. I would recommend this upgrade.

The restaurant is particularly good considering the resort is not a luxury property. We enjoyed it so much the first night that we continued to go again for just about every meal over our 4 day trip. What a surprise. The chef knows what he is doing and comes from Charlie Trotter's.

The hot tubs are fantastic. The sulfer takes a little getting used to, but the water really does rejuvenate the skin. What a fantastic thing to do. The massages are a little rough, but definitely do the trick. The changing room needs to be expanded.

One the best things about this palce is that they offer classes. We took a group hike and ended up being the only couple on the hike. It was Dec 30 and unbelievable that no one wanted to take the sunset hour hike. Our guide Ingrid was super sweet and did a good job in keeping us entertained with stories about the resort.

I spent Xmas Eve and Xmas day at Sycamore Mineral Springs, and overall my stay was excellent. I was in a fresh water luxery suite, specifically "Persistance." It is the handicap accessible suite and is slightly larger than the others for the same price. The hot tub is also enclosed with a fence so you have more privacy. There is a dining room table which was a huge plus. I found 2 dead bugs in the room, but I'm in the mountains, so I didn't think too much of it. A tip: the trashcans are stored away underneath the sink. The room was big with a king size bed in the bedroom and a pull-out queen size sofa in the living room. Reserve one of their hot tubs early because they fill up fast. It is $12.50 an hour a person Mon-Fri, and $15 for weekends and holidays. Hotel guests get 1/2 off from 7am-2pm (it's open untill midnight), EXCEPT holidays. I was there on Xmas, so I didn't get the discount. Check-in (as well as check-out) was a breeze and the staff was friendly. The room was guaranteed at 4pm, but was ready at 2pm. The only complaint I have is about the hot tub services staff. When you call (or go in person) to make reservations, the staff is curt. I asked if there were any cancellations or best times to book, and the answer I got was an immediate "no" and "it's busy all the time" in a tone that was bordering on rude. My party (of 4) and I reserved 2 hot tubs for the morning (8:30am) and when we got there, they informed us that they did not have enough towels, and only gave us 3. We asked if someone could bring us an extra towel when more came in, and she had the gall to say "there are NO more towels coming in." I know it's the holidays, but I was pretty sure a hotel would not open and then not make sure they had basic things such as towels. In fact, when I went down to the desk again in about 25 minutes to ask where the restroom was, there were 3 stacks of towels that must have been brought down after we checked in. I asked if I could have a towel, and one of the staff members said "we're running low on towels," as if that is a valid excuse! I was polite and asked again, and she did give me one, but the interaction was not pleasant. After paying over $400 (this is including the suite, taxes, the resort fee, the hot tub charges, and extra persons fee - they charge $20/person when you have over 2 people in a room), I expect a level of service, and that was not what I got. However, overall, my stay was pleasant (including the restaurant - try the mushroom ravioli; stay away from the clam/mussel/shrimp mix) and I found the room very nice. Do not expect luxery sheets or anything like that. It's in the mountains; it's rustic. I would stay here again.