Winter in Yosemite is a must for any outdoor enthusiast, whether you’re into photography, downhill skiing, cross-country skiing, snow-shoeing, or ice skating, or dining. That’s correct. Resort dwellers, indoor people and food aficionados can also find great pleasure in Yosemite Valley. Situated at the north end of Yosemite Valley in the white wonderland punctuated by sheer granite rock faces above, and giant Sequoia redwood trees in front of you, you’ll find the rustic but luxuriously grand surroundings of the historic 1927 Ahwahnee Hotel and restaurant.
In the Great Lounge you’ll find ceilings twenty-four foot ceilings with windows that stretch from the floor to the ceiling, and this gathering room - at fifty-one feet by seventy-seven feet, has plenty of room for guests to gather around the massive fireplaces at either end. The guestrooms are inundated with wood and woodworking pieces and windows that look out upon many of the iconic images of the Yosemite Valley such as Half Dome, Yosemite Falls, and El Capitan.
And if you and your guest never want to leave the comforts of the hotels, you will be quite pleased with the Ahwahnee restaurant which has been good enough to entice the likes of politicians, royalty, and celebrities over the years. It might well make your top restaurant dining room experiences list when you discover its grandeur. The ceilings are thirty-four feet high with opened beam logs, and massive rustic candelabras hanging from them.
The winter months of January and February are the best time to visit this Yosemite landmark as well given that this is the time when the Ahwahnee Hotel features some of the most cutting-edge chefs working today to help present wonderful dining experiences, special receptions, cooking demos, and tours of the massive kitchen which boasts more than six thousand square feet dedicated to making the food memorable. The chefs’ gala event at the closing of the winter chefs’ holiday is a five course evening that is not to be missed, with guest chefs creating memorable experiences and paring them with wonderful wines from northern California wineries.
