The Quality Inn Estes Park is classic, pleasant chain motel, with a bit of Rocky Mountain charm. The front entrance, for example, has a pitched wooden rooftop that resembles a cabin. Inside, the lobby is comfortable, with a stone fireplace, iron chandelier, leather furniture, and a flat-screen TV. Packaged snacks and chilled beverages are for sale in the lobby. Free coffee and tea are also available.

Outdoors, the two-story hotel has a picnic table and barbecue grill that are surrounded by a few trees, providing a bit of privacy. Families and couples also take advantage of the two pools -- one indoors, one outdoors, both accessible for those with disabilities.

The Quality Inn Estes Park is located in the town of Estes Park, north of Lake Estes. The hotel is set just off busy Big Thompson Avenue, down which guests can walk within five minutes to the Grumpy Gringo restaurant, a liquor store, and Hunters Chophouse. The road also leads to downtown, the most lively tourist area in Estes Park. Rocky Mountain National Park and its myriad hiking trails are 23 minutes away by car. Driving to the grand and historic Stanley Hotel takes six minutes. The Ride-A-Kart -- popular with families -- is seven minutes away. The airport is an hour and a half away.

Rooms are furnished with standard -- if a bit outdated -- mid-level chain hotel furnishings of wood headboards, neutral carpeting, and framed landscape paintings. Rooms include microwaves, mini-refrigerators, safes, coffee/tea machines, flat-screen TVs, free Wi-Fi, air-conditioning, ceiling fans, and, for some, balconies or ground-floor patios. Those detached from the main building have better mountain views, and higher-floor rooms are quieter. Some rooms are less recently updated than others, and some guests complain of a lack of detailed attention to cleanliness. Bathrooms are standard with shower/tub combinations. More spacious rooms and ones with lofts -- ideal for families -- are available. Some higher-tier rooms have fireplaces.

A free continental buffet breakfast is served in a large, bright dining room each morning. The indoor sitting area has a wall-mounted flat-screen TV. Outdoors, a terrace with iron patio furniture is surrounded by a few trees.  Nearby, a small, clean, lagoon-shaped pool has a disability lift chair and is surrounded by casual white plastic lounge chairs. Views of nearby homes and the distant mountains can be seen from the pool area. For the colder days, there is an indoor hot tub that also has a lift chair. Towels are provided on the deck, along with plastic white patio chairs.

The gym, which doesn’t allow unsupervised guests under the age of 16, has modern equipment, towels, a small window, black rubber flooring, water fountain, and mounted flat-screen TV. Business travelers can take advantage of the meeting room, which fits up to 20 people. There’s also a business corner, with two PCs, two Apple computers, and a printer.