Perfection in Lake Placid at the Mirror Lake Inn Resort (and a special offer for Mom Central readers!)

As we anticipate a new arrival to our family in about a month, we were looking for a family getaway for three – my husband, my toddler son and me. What better way to celebrate the holiday season then to spend time in a winter wonderland in Lake Placid?

Mirror Lake Inn

The Mirror Lake Inn is a historic location in Lake Placid – where the 1935 and 1980 Winter Olympics were held. There is also an Iron Man competition every year. In fact, outdoor activities abound – from skiing/snow boarding to ice fishing to bobsledding. Despite all the athletic-centered possibilities around us, we opted for family coziness, watching the snow fall on to a picturesque scene of evergreens, rolling hills and Mirror Lake. Oh, and our in-room Jacuzzi gave us entertainment for our toddler and back relief for me!

The Inn is up on a hill, so when you look up at the main entry it is impressive and immediately puts you in another era. The Mirror Lake Inn was built in the early 1900s and has survived economic turmoil from the Depression of the 1930s to the current downturn. They have a loyal staff that uses every interaction with the guests as an opportunity to delight. For example, we needed some entertainment for our son and a pizza after a long drive – we received a family-friendly DVD delivered to our room in minutes and a great pizza parlor recommendation that hit the pregnancy hunger spot!

A day at Whiteface Mountain

The next day, I was in a Ski Lodge mood. The Mirror Lake Inn was selected as one of the Top 50 Ski Hotels in North America by Conde Nast Traveler readers – the only New York State hotel to make the list. So, being that I’m eight months pregnant and our son isn’t ski-ready, our activity of choice for this trip was a gondola ride up Whiteface Mountain.

We paid for our roundtrip lift ticket ($36) and caught the next gondola up the mountain. I truly thought our son would think this was the coolest thing EVER. He didn’t love it (see photo), but he went along with it and we did our best to sell him on the idea that was really fun and that snow is beautiful. He wasn’t buying what we were selling.

Back at the lodge we warmed ourselves with hot chocolate and plotted our next move. It seems our toddler isn’t as excited about the snow as we are, so we considered our next visit for the warmer months.

Mirror Lake Inn Resort and Spa

The Mirror Lake Inn Resort and Spa is a four-season resort and they specialize in guiding you gently through each season. The rooms are beautifully decorated with Adirondack-style coziness – mixed fabrics and patterns, oversized furniture and natural woods. There are many room options for large and small families too. You can get a multi-room suite with plenty of space for the kids. The bathrooms are large and – depending on the room – offer spa-like experiences with multi-jet showers and Jacuzzis.

We ate three meals at The View restaurant – Lake Placid’s only Four Diamond restaurant. Again, with a toddler, we chose our food and timing carefully. The breakfast options were wonderful – and pancakes are not optional, in my opinion. I had the cinnamon sugar pancakes and my husband enjoyed the buckwheat ones. The service was spectacular and the food came out fast. Everyone accommodated our, um, situation with crayons for the little man and lots of coffee refills.

We also enjoyed a beautiful dinner at a table overlooking the lake as snow gently fell. Most of the items on the menu feature locally grown or raised food – which for many reasons makes me happy: it’s the right thing to do and local food just tastes better. We ordered the pork chops and salmon – both from local farmers and fisherman – ate half and switched plates. I couldn’t get enough of the pork chops and the salmon was cooked to the perfect temperature with a butternut squash puree and bits of bacon. My son actually ate the locally-grown carrots rapid-fire bugs bunny-style. And the maple ice cream on our apple tartine at dessert topped it all off perfectly.

The Mirror Lake Inn Resort and Spa is currently offering many different winter packages and the buildings are adorned with 300,000 twinkling lights providing a storybook setting that delights all your senses. I’m game for “The Adirondack Foodie” or the “Warm and Cozy” package.

Maybe next time we’ll opt for the “Warm and Cozy” package and leave the babies with a sitter.
You can read more from Michelle Fernandez at Mama Mimi @ Mom Central.

A special offer for Mom Central readers

The Mirror Lake Inn will offer their Three-Night Ski package with an extra bonus exclusive to Mom Central readers – a $50 credit to be used at one of their restaurants, the spa or towards additional ski tickets at Whiteface Mountain. 

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Disclosure: Michelle and her family received a two-night stay at the Mirror Lake Inn Resort and Spa to facilitate this review.

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