Diamond Mills Hotel

Diamond Mills is a good hotel with a few negatives holding it back from being great. The rooms are well furnished, reasonably sized, and have a great view of the creek and waterfall. We stayed in a Supreme King, which had a large patio, and was reasonably priced with the pre-​paid booking special, which requires planning a week in advance and is non-​refundable.
The location is great and within reasonable but uphill walking distance to downtown Saugerties, which is convenient because the Tavern and room-​service both shut down far too early at 9 PM. Perhaps this was because we came off-​season, but a hotel at this level should provide at least a reduced menu until midnight. The Pig Bar up the street has a full menu until 12:45 AM.
The service is attentive was attentive with evening turn down service and cheerful front-​desk attendants. They were perhaps too cheerful, and their position right by the door required an exchange of pleasantries on every entrance or exit. Still, they frequently got up to open the door.
The major downside was that the Internet was atrociously slow to the point of being unusable. It took minutes for even simple web pages like the news or weather to load, and the location in a valley by the creek meant (Verizon) cell phone coverage was also extremely poor (1-​bar of 1X) and would cause my phone’s battery to fully drain if not plugged in overnight.
Still, the walking distance proximity to downtown Saugerties, well appointed rooms, views, and affordable price made for a pleasant stay, and I’ll likely repeat in the warmer months to make better use of the patio.

Grounds lovely. Beds super comfortable. Front desk and customer service poor. It was my 25^th anniversary. Not only was it not recognized but when I attempted to address the issue of a late checkout, the issue got worse. The manager was rude — telling me I should have know checkout was 11am, the hotel was ‘not a Marriott’ and they couldn’t accommodate more than an hour late departure, and I had upset her staff person so much that she had to leave because I questioned the short time frame she gave me to get out of the room. As a customer — the feeling was I should have been thankful for the hour late departure and say no more. Mind you, this was my 5^th visit to the hotel. Repeat business should be valued not treated with disregard. And, the manager needs to take some lessons in customer service — the customer, me, left feeling rushed out (and no one told us of check out time though it is posted on every room door so yes, I should know), responsible for the front desk help, and unimportant. Yes, it is a small hotel. That’s all the more reason to be different — to be helpful and to be kind.

We were lucky enough to find the Diamond Mills Hotel on our way up 87. It was late and we were just hoping to find a decent room that had a restaurant in the area. What we found was a beautiful hotel, a romantic room with a view of a waterfall and a top notch restaurant right on campus!
When we arrived the staff greeted us at the door as if they were waiting for us. We were escorted to the room by front desk staff and showed around. They mentioned that when they got the reservation via expedia they got the room ready and made sure the bathrooms radiant heat floors were turned on. We asked about the restaurant and were so glad to hear it was right next door.
We hit it out of the park with this choice. Check out the video of our room and the waterfall.

I wrestled between a 4 and a 5, but I’ll explain why. My (now) husband and I live in Brooklyn. I’m originally from Los Angeles and he is originally from Brooklyn. Needless to say, while planning our wedding we had a lot of moving parts. We finally decided on Diamond Mills because it was far enough away from New York to make it a destination wedding without being overbearing.
Having said that, I searched and searched for a venue. Literally months online. Moving the wedding from Manhattan (we had a deposit at Buddakan) was difficult and everyone was expecting a lot. Let me start by saying the pictures of this place DO NOT DO IT JUSTICE. Every single one of my guests were astounded. The place doesn’t look like much on the outside, but oh when you come in and see that waterfall in the back… jaw dropping.
The rooms are spectacular. Beautiful without being stuffy. And again the view… Having so many people from out of town, we were able to book the entire hotel for a very reasonable price. AND EVERYONE GETS A VIEW FROM THERE ROOMS… seriously WOW! I DEFINITELY recommend it. It brought both of our families together in ways we could never have imagined. The Tavern has yummy food where we were able to do a welcome dinner for all of our guests the night before the wedding and a brunch the morning after. Absolutely SPECTACULAR. Everyone felt extremely special and we were all so close at the end. We even bonded with the staff because they were so warm and welcoming. Everyone felt like family at the end!
Now, my humble suggestions. Planning a wedding and dealing with family members and future family members can be extremely taxing. For this reason, if you decide to book at the Diamond Mills Hotel and are not a local like me (I was only able to come up twice and did everything via email) PLEASE ASK FOR GINA. In this business people come and go, but Gina is definitely here to stay. I originally worked with Gina on the hotel portion, which ran smoother than smooth (even after I had questions about price and had a crazy family member call the hotel ranting about a reservation she hadn’t even made). On the other hand, my food and beverage people were a royal mess and I would have cancelled the entire thing if it hadn’t been for Gina who came in and saved the day! She handled everything for the wedding including the wedding dinner, bridal suite, brunch, and personally made sure I had someone at the front desk to help me with all of my giveaways and favors. The little details that make the wedding a HUGE day. She deserves 10 STARS and that’s what brought the 0 the other ladies earned all the way up.
I had 50 guests and everyone had nothing but GREAT things to stay about the location, the venue, and the weekend… and this is after everyone traveled at least 2 hours, some people 24 hours to get there. That’s saying A LOT.
And did I say the food was AMAZING, even the people with dietary restrictions had nothing but compliments.
SO definitely definitely definitely choose Diamond Mills for the weekend of your dreams, but ask for Gina (but if she doesn’t have that weekend available, wait until she does!)
And keep in mind, I was a crazy bride, so honestly, everyone else was probably spot on, too, but my Bridezilla goggles just couldn’t see it!
Oh, and last thing, you will not break your bank coming here. It is VERY affordable, especially if you are looking at places in Manhattan. For what equals 4 hours in Manhattan, you get an entire weekend of bliss. Do it do it do it!

We were upstate leaf peeping when we found this place: a beautiful, new, well maintained hotel that was almost to chic for this guy. The room has a balcony and looks out onto the water (see picture). It was pricey but we deserved it. The town of Saugerties is also very quaint. The hotel is attached to a chic restaurant we didn’t try. Our dinner was less frou frou: pizza and beer on the balcony.

Came up from the city for a wedding in the restaurant… wow! Sometimes you get so jaded with city living that you forget what real service should be like. Bar was also fully stacked (yes, that was important). We stayed in the hotel as well — yeah, super classy which was expected but the rooms were over-​the-​top nice and the views of the falls were amazing, extra nice touch being able to look out from our private balcony. Had brunch at the restaurant before heading back to the city, great quality and monster selection to choose from. Not that we needed to be catered to but Melissa (I think she was the manager) was super helpful and extremely welcoming! Would definitely come back for a random escape from the concrete jungle.

This review is for a function in the ballroom, which is really not the hotel or the tavern and is located between them. We went to a large fundraising event here, There were many issues with the food. Simple things just didn’t make any sense. People were eating hamburgers with fries and also steak. They put one very small dish, not even half filled, with ketchup on each table to serve all 10 people at the table. Each time someone wanted more, they had to find the server and then it took about five minutes to get it and, again, the same tiny portion. Are they trying to save money on ketchup? The table also had the same issue with butter, which was to be used by 10 people on both rolls and baked potatoes. Why so stingy? The burgers looked like thin frozen patties and the steak was very small and barely edible. They really need to improve their food and serving practices.

Called to book a room for a couple of nights and told them we have an ESA dog, they said they don’t allow them. Unbelievable in this day and age with all the new research on PTSD and other mental illnesses!

Lovely hotel. Nice rooms and everything is new. Gorgeous views of the falls and mountains. Pleasant and helpful staff.
Great location on Main Street and close to highways and trails! You can easily hang in the tavern on the property or walk five minutes to the local bars and restaurants.

This hotel is beautiful! Every room has a gorgeous view of the waterfall. I could sit out there all day and be happy. The room was gorgeous and very clean. The beds were comfortable. The bathroom was awesome. Heated floors and amazing shower. I would definitely come back here.

If you are in Saugerties– stay here, you won’t be sorry! This hotel is very clean & comfortable but it’s also charming & in a beautiful setting. Ask for a room with a view of the Esopus Falls & enjoy the balcony view. The service is outstanding & we were made to feel welcome from the minute we walked in the door. There are nice ‘extras’ too like radiant heated bathroom floors, room service & a nicely stocked room refrigerator. Go next door to the Tavern & enjoy a meal. I highly recommend the Diamond Mills!

Stayed in the extended stay rooms at Diamond Mills to attend a wedding. The rooms themselves are ok, but nothing special for an extended stay property. In fact, for about half the price you can get a nicer room at a Residence Inn. However, there where problems. First, the heating/​cooling cannot be accurately regulated due to placement of the heating/​cooling units and the thermostats. Any good HVAC installer would not have installed a comfort system in the manner in which these rooms were set up. The temperature would frequently cycle from extremely hot to extremely cold because the air from the system would blow across the ceiling directly on the thermostats on the opposite wall. Very stupid setup. When complaining to the general manager (Gina Hornbeck) she treated me as if I was too stupid to set a thermostat and said that the system is working properly. Obviously she has no clue what properly means with heating and cooling. When attempting to further explain the issue she ignored me.
The rooms are also very noisy due to the building being right on the street. Even with the windows closed you hear poorly muffled trucks and cars very clearly.
Next issue with the extended stay apartments is the location. The view from the room is one of run down houses with trash or other assorted junk in the yards. The parking area is cinders that gets messy when it rains. The area is not at all what you would expect for a property connected with Diamond Mills and all their claims of luxury, yet they charge premium prices for these rooms as if it’s something special. Well, I guess it would be if they weren’t located in the middle of an obviously low income neighborhood.
The general manager tried to tell me that the location and condition of the extended stay apartments was explained in advanced. This is a total fabrication of the truth, as nothing was explained. The only explanation of anything is on the website saying this is a stand-​alone building. Nothing else is stated speaking of the true nature of the building and the dump it sits in.
We had pets with us and during the reservation process the question was asked as to whether or not there was an additional pet fee. The answer was no, yet when checking in a pet fee was charged. The general manager in an email told me the pet fee would be refunded, yet this has not yet been done and she will not respond to emails or phone calls asking about the status of the refund. My guess at this point is that she has reneged on this because they don’t like people complaining.
And then there was the event itself we were there to attend. They have a pretty large hallway outside the reception hall, yet there are only a few chairs. There is PLENTY of room for couches and/​or other chairs. Maybe some small tables would be good too. The problem if there are people waiting around to enter the hall there is no where for them to sit and relax if they have to wait a long time to enter the reception or cocktail hour area. Now we all know that most women wear shoes to weddings and such that aren’t exactly comfortable. Imagine having to stand around for up to an hour or more without anywhere to sit. It was ridiculous.
Another very annoying issue is that you cannot go from the reception hall (Tavern part of the building) to the hotel and say inside the building (s). You have to go outside, so if it’s raining or snowing you’re getting wet. VERY stupid design ‘feature’. Also, no bathrooms in the lobby of the hotel. If you don’t have a room there and you are waiting for something you will have to make the hike to the tavern. Another very stupid design ‘feature’. They claim this is because they are a ‘luxury’ hotel. I guess walking in the rain is a luxury you should seek out while in Saugerties, NY.
I could go on and on about how poorly Diamond Mills operates, but I don’t have the time or space to list all the issues. I really don’t see the attraction to this establishment. The prices are outrageous, the management and some staff are rude and good God the arrogance!!! They seem to have the belief they are running a Helmsley property when really all that is going on here is a simple case of putting a tuxedo on a turd!!! The general manager will ignore you if you disagree with her, which is unprofessional and childish.
I wish there were a way to post pictures here because I have some showing the area around the property, which is nothing like you are led to believe it would be. So, in short we got taken for over $ 700 for a two night stay in a ‘luxury’ extended stay unit sitting amongst dumpy houses and aging buildings, while dealing with poor service and childish arrogance. I would have expected better from a property owned by someone like Thomas Struzzieri (HITS Inc.).

If I could give this place a 0 star rating, I would. Avoid if possible. The staff is utterly rude. We stayed here two night for a friends wedding and the staff made us feel like we were kids in a museum the entire time. We got read a list of rules + regulations and finable offenses, when we booked, when we confirmed, when we checked in, etc. and this all before we had even had a chance to leave any sort of impression on the staff, good or bad. It definitely made us feel like we were staying at a prison, not a $ 250+ per night Inn.
The wedding/​event coordinators at the Diamond Mills were probably the worst out of all of staff. Just rude, uncaring, completely awful. They acted like it was not the couple’s special day, but rather another annoying weekend that they had to work. It was like we were all inconveniencing them. Luckily for my friend, she also hired a «day of coordinator» who actually took care of everyone. The bride and groom had empy drinks at dinner, the bar staff could not have cared less that thre were people to serve (with the exeception of 1 guy) and anytime you asked the staff anything, you could get a different answer from each staff member you asked, which seems clear to me that either no-​one is well trained and therefore does not know anything or they were trained to not divuldge the answers.
Additionally, not my room, but several of the other guests rooms had ants. ANTS. The hotel is $ 250 per night and they were told that there was nothing the staff could do, after all, it is «Ant Season.» Seriously. Also, the tavern is awful as well, I will be writing a seperate post about that.

I’ve been to the Tavern for both lunch and dinner and I can’t complain with the service or food. Service was great and the food superb. The chef is a CIA graduate and definitely knows what he’s doing. I’ve been here in big groups and as a date with my fiancé. Recommend definitely!

My husband and I stayed at this hotel for two nights while joining a wedding party celebrated on a Saturday.
When we arrived at the lovely hotel we were impressed with the way it looked and the way they decorated it by copying a Restoration Hardware catalog. However the enchantment didn’t last long, as we rapidly started to realize that the hotel staff isn’t accommodating at all. First they mistakingly gave us a double bed room, while me and my husband booked a single bed room, and then tried blaming it on us, the clients.
While we tried solving this issue– the reception personnel was very unhelpful and didn’t even know what day it was… Jeez.
Then we get to the room (lovely by the way. With a great view of the waterfalls. Great beds and just lovely overall.) — that didnt last. Long either as we asked for more water and they refused to bring it to us, unless we payed their mini bar rate… It’s water for gods sake,… It should be free and unlimited.
Next day– house keeping didn’t arrive all day, and even the loveliness (NOT) continued at their in house restaurant called Tavern. I wated 20 minutes for a server to come see me and over an hoe for my dried chicken to arrive which I though was completely overpriced.
Overall not impressed by any means. For 250 $ a night with nothing around to do but a horse seeing and a waterfall, the hotel needs to step up their game in order to live up to a luxury standard, nt just look it…

I’ve just joined Unilocal,just so that I can give praise and adoration to Diamond Mills Hotel. My bf and I stayed over just for a night this Memorial Day wknd., our first time in Saugerties. Everything was superb from our arrival until departure. Granted, the place is beautiful, situated in a equally beautiful setting along the river. The rooms are very comfortably appointed. But what really makes this place shine is the little details… like someone bringing you chocolates to your room before you retire for the night, fresh flowers in the rooms, and even the way the cleaning staff meticulously fashion the shape of a flower out of the toilet paper. I could live in this place.

We recently rented 10 of their rooms for our wedding guests. Upon initially arriving at the hotel, we were forced to wait an hour and a half (not exaggerating) before we were helped. The staff acted as if they were doing us a favor, instead of providing a good experience. It seems as though many of them are being «trained» on the job. Further, the father of the bride called and cancelled a room several months before the wedding (which was independently verified by several people). When he was charged for this room, I politely called to inquire. The general manager, instead of taking responsibility for a poorly trained and quite frankly inattentive staff, she began yelling at me and called my father-​in-​law a «liar». This would be appalling at any establishment, but especially at a $ 400/​night hotel. I’ve never written an online review, but I was so shocked by the treatment of myself and our guests that I felt the need to. We spent over $ 7000 at this hotel, so I can only imagine how they treat other guests. There are several cute inns in Saugerties and Hudson worth staying at that will give you a memorable experience. I’m honestly embarrassed that our out-​of-​town guests had to deal with this hotel.