Here's What It's Really Like to Stay at an All-Inclusive Dude Ranch in Montana

If you’ve ever wanted to stay at a dude ranch, are obsessed with recreating the summer camp fun you remember from childhood, or — like me — are curious what you missed by never attending a sleep-away summer camp as a kid, a resort like Flathead Lake Lodge could be an ideal place to spend your vacation time next year.

The family-owned-and-operated resort sits on the shore of Flathead Lake near Bigfork, Montana, in Big Sky Country. That even includes a 500-acre private elk reserve, home to roughly 37 elk. It’s been open since 1945 and is currently managed by Chase Averill, the third generation of the Averill Family, who seems to have had no problems filling his parents’ shoes — or in this case, cowboy boots.

The all-inclusive western resort is open from May through October. In summer, the focus is on families, with the family season running June through August, while fall focuses on adults-only getaways. The adults-only retreats are popular among solo travelers, couples, families with adult children, and multi-generational groups. The lodge is closed during spring and winter, but in 2024, the main lodge will open for seasonal weekend dinners between December and March.

Flathead Lake Lodge’s sheer size and scope of available activities means visitors can choose the type of vacation they prefer, whether that’s a relaxing mountain getaway or a more old-school western adventure, complete with all the trappings of a real dude ranch.

Here’s what to know if you’re thinking about booking a stay, plus tips I learned during my recent visit in August 2024.

Rooms and cabins at Flathead Lake Lodge

Flathead Lake Lodge has multiple lodging options. I visited during an adults-only retreat and was fortunate enough to stay at one of several rustic mountain cabins scattered throughout the property. These individual log cabins are small yet spacious, with plenty of room to spread out while still feeling cozy. Traditional log furnishings create a rustic mountain feel, and a country quilt sat on top of the luxurious bedding in my cabin — I slept peacefully every night.

Each cabin has outdoor seating perfect for watching the sunrise over a hot cup of coffee or late-night stargazing from your front porch. Cabin sizes range from one to three bedrooms, scattered under the property’s tall pine trees and surrounded by green spaces and brightly colored flowers.

The property’s front desk, saloon, and main dining hall are in the “Main Lodge,” which also houses guests. It was built in the 1930s and is highlighted by a stone fireplace, usually with a roaring fire. It holds three lodge rooms, and number 13 has a bunk bed room to accommodate families with kids. Rooms in the South Lodge can fit both large and small families, with flexible configurations that allow for connecting rooms, if needed. It also has a lobby with comfortable furniture and another roaring fireplace — and let’s be real: Who doesn’t love a fireplace in the middle of a dude ranch lodge?

There are also two suites: the Hillside Suites or the Cedar Suites. Each suite has two bedrooms or can be converted to a one-bed, one-bath. They’re similar to the cabins and priced the same, but may be better for larger groups who want to stay in the same building, rather than separate cabins. The last — and priciest — option is the Homestead, with three units that can be booked individually or combined into a 10-bedroom house. It’s a lovely option for wedding parties, allowing everyone to stay together while still having privacy when it comes to bedrooms.

All rooms are TV-free, but include a variety of vintage books and magazines. And you likely won’t find yourself wanting to watch TV when you see how much there is to do on property. However, if (like me) you need to get work done while you’re there, you’ll appreciate that there’s Wi-Fi throughout the property.

Dining at Flathead Lake Lodge

Dining at Flathead Lake Lodge is some of the best I’d tasted in the West, bar none. All meals are prepared from scratch by Chef Rob Clagett and his talented team. Clagett, who goes by “Chef Rob,” is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America and has been cooking professionally for 16 years, with a focus on French techniques and seasonal cuisine.

Chef Rob’s cooking includes an eclectic mix of hearty home-cooked staples and internationally inspired dishes made with local ingredients from surrounding farms and ranches. Menus change daily, so guests will always see a different meal at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Breakfast and lunch are both buffet-style meals so guests can pick and choose their bites, while dinners are set menus. Much of the meat is locally sourced, and many vegetables and herbs used in Flathead Lake Lodge’s meals are grown in the lodge garden.

Pastry chef Amelia is the culinary mastermind when it comes to all-things-dessert, baking fresh cookies, muffins, and so much more — homemade cinnamon rolls or freshly baked chocolate chip cookies, anyone? (Yes, please!) You’d think anyone could bake a good cinnamon roll, but I’d never tasted anything quite as good as these square-cut cinnamon goodies. They’re served warm with swirls of cinnamon and a delicious sugar glaze, and were a delicious way to start the day. And don’t get me started on the cookie selection, which changes daily. Options included fresh chocolate chip cookies, white chocolate chip cookies with cranberries, triple chocolate cookies, and what seemed to be the guest favorite — snickerdoodles. You won’t be able to have just one. During my stay, the cookies were a huge hit among all guests and we compared favorites throughout the retreat.

Retreats are all-inclusive, so all guests need to do is show up with a hearty appetite to enjoy a true taste of Montana. Chef Rob intentionally works with regional purveyors and farmers to source local ingredients, ensuring that guests have access to the freshest food possible while also supporting other local businesses. The menus change daily, starting with high-end variations of a classic rancher breakfast: fluffy pancakes bigger than your hand and thick-cut bacon crisped to perfection. It was so good that I asked where it came from to see if I could get it shipped to my home in Chicago.

However, dining isn’t limited to the resort’s dining areas. For the best breakfast you’ve ever had (or at least what seemed like it to me), you may want to sign up for the Breakfast Trail Ride. Riders will set out on horseback at sunrise, following the guide through the foothills to a scenic area designated as “Breakfast Camp.” There, you’ll find hot coffee and teas, fresh juice, and homemade breakfast items. The original waffles were my favorite, but blueberry also seemed popular. You’ll likely circle back for seconds, but there’s no rush, as you’ll have plenty of time to relax by the fire while sipping coffee and swapping stories with your guides. It’s about as old-school cowboy as you can get without traveling back in time.

(Fun fact: There are 140 horses on the property — enough for every guest to participate in the experience).

Lunches are themed, with alliterative options like “Mediterranean Mondays” and “Taco Tuesdays” — think falafels, pitas, shredded pork carnitas, and veggie tacos, among other offerings. While I loved the indulgent meals, I also appreciated having access to a fresh salad bar with each meal for days when I felt like I wanted something on the lighter side, rather than a full spread.

Dinner is the most leisurely meal of the day at Flathead Lake Lodge, and guests of the adults-only retreats are treated to different experiences each night. My first day at the lodge was capped by a lakeside welcome dinner of grilled chicken, rice, and vegetables, while night two was an indoor fine dining experience, complete with a wine pairing. The third night was what I’m told is a perennial guest favorite: a classic western steak fry. Guests are escorted to a mountain meadow in a brigade of vintage fire trucks — I advise holding on to your cowboy hat, as the fun vehicles are all open-air.

The steak fry felt like a multi-sensory feast. Guests can listen to live music from Gene, the resort’s resident guitarist, while enjoying the aroma and sizzle of steaks searing on an outdoor grill. I sipped on a local beer while watching the preparations, admiring the scale of the in-depth outdoor setup. But one of the most fun elements was unrelated to the food: the lodge sets up a branding station where guests can get their cowboy boots and hats branded with a Flathead Lake Lodge logo (or the ranch’s brand) to step up their cowgirl or cowboy style.

Though I loved the steak fry, the final dinner on the fourth night was also fun for one unique tradition: mouse races. The mice are cared for by Flathead Lake Lodge staff and seem to be considered part of the family. Guests can bet which mouse will win the race; the pot is split evenly, with half going to the winner and half supporting Week of Hope, the resort’s annual event that hosts critically ill children and their families at no cost.

Each night, dinner is prefaced with a happy hour at the ranch’s Saddlesore Saloon in the main lodge. All beverages, including alcohol, are included in the adult-only retreat package. The nightly happy hour includes a selection of appetizers and amuse bouche, and a daily handcrafted cocktail. I highly recommend ordering one (or two). I tried them all, but my personal favorite was the huckleberry vodka lemonade.

It’s important to stay hydrated when you’re being active, or when you’re trying the daily cocktails, so be sure to bring your own water bottle. The main lodge has a filtered water system and is open 24 hours a day, and fresh ice is always available, so you can fill up your reusable water bottles at any time.

How activities work at Flathead Lake Lodge

With 2,000 private acres to explore, Flathead Lake Lodge has both plenty of privacy for guests and plenty of space to offer dozens of activities. While the adults-only retreats take place in the fall, the all-inclusive activities will keep you feeling like a kid at sleepaway summer camp. When visiting with other guests, we all described it as a summer camp, but for adults.

Back in the late 1800s, cowboys referred to people who lived in cities as “dudes,” and the idea of a dude ranch was born: a place for city and urban-dwellers to spend a few days living the Western lifestyle on a ranch. In 1945, Les Averill purchased Flathead Lake Lodge after returning from World War II. Over the next decade, he worked the land, clearing overgrown plants, restoring vacant buildings, and adding new cabins. In the next decade, he purchased more property around the ranch, accumulating plenty of additional land by the mid-1950s. All of that is still the beautiful property of Flathead Lake Lodge. And in the 80 years since then, it’s continued to serve as a dude ranch and popular destination for visitors anxious to escape to the country for a few days.

However, it’s always testing new offerings and activities — for example, mountain biking was added to the activity list as it’s grown in popularity recently (and because the owner, Chase, loves the sport). The terrain is well-suited to biking, and Flathead Lake Lodge now has 14 miles of purpose-built trails for guests.

Mountain biking — as well as nearly all other activities, with the exception of spa services and sporting clays — are part of the all-inclusive offerings, and all visitors can choose what experience or level of activity they’d like to have. You can see that reflected in the ranch’s offerings, which range from adventurous and active to artsy and relaxed. While most activities are done in groups, there are also opportunities to break out into smaller groups for adventures like trail rides, based on your level of horseback riding experience.

Aside from the breakfast trail ride, other activities I’d highly recommend include testing your skill on the archery walking course, where guests can try their skill at shooting “real” targets — as in foam shapes of animals native to Montana. I also loved the chance to try sporting clays, using a shotgun to simulate hunting game animals like ducks, pheasants, and rabbits. No real animals are harmed — you’ll shoot at clay discs tossed into the air.

A highlight of the adults-only week was spending an afternoon on the resort speedboat, trying a variety of watersports on the pristine waters of Flathead Lake (the largest natural freshwater lake west of the Mississippi). I was even feeling good enough at the end of the day jump off the highest point on the pier when we parked back at the dock. Being from the Midwest, I grew up around a lot of lakes, but Flathead Lake is like no other lake I can remember. It’s absolutely gorgeous, with water so clear that in some parts, you can see straight to the bottom. It’s also one of the most picturesque, with a variety of brightly colored rocks just below the surface. It makes for great photos, and looks almost like a brightly colored bowl of cereal.

If you prefer to take a more active role in boating, sign up for sailing, especially as Flathead Lake has great conditions for the sport. Guests can set out on the Questa, the ranch’s 51-foot racing sailboat, guided by Captain Scott, who brings 37 years of experience sailing on Flathead Lake.

Activity sign-ups occur during happy hour on the night you arrive. You’ll be given the weekly schedule in advance so you can peruse the events calendar before signing up. You can fit in as many activities as you’d like, but be sure to pace yourself — while it’s tempting to cram your days as there are so many activities to choose from, it’s best to limit yourself to maybe two or three a day. That left me enough time to really enjoy each, but still have plenty of downtime to relax and enjoy the rooms or lodge amenities.

If you change your mind on an activity you signed up for, no problem — just head to the front desk and let the staff know so other guests can take your spot, as each activity has a limited number of participants. Conversely, if an activity you really want to try is full, head to the front desk and ask if any spots opened up — it never hurts to check.

Exploring around Bigfork, Montana

Flathead Lake Lodge is just a stone’s throw from Bigfork, Montana. Guests can arrange a complimentary ride at the front desk for an afternoon of dining and shopping in the small mountain town (Population: 5,067).

The property is also about a 45-minute drive from Glacier National Park and very close to several highly rated fly-fishing locations. While you can visit the park for a day from the lodge, after speaking with a few guests, I learned that many of the couples in my group spent a few days exploring Glacier National Park before or after their stays at Flathead Lake Lodge. I also highly recommend stopping in Kalispell or Whitefish for a bite to eat and some shopping after a day of hiking, since both are convenient.

Kalispell is the closest “big city” to Flathead Lake Lodge and an easy stop on the drive between the lodge and Glacier National Park. It has easy access to Montana’s outdoors as well as urban amenities like breweries, distilleries, restaurants, and shopping. Another good option is Whitefish, a picturesque town about 26 miles from Flathead Lake Lodge with a walkable downtown area. Visitors are usually drawn by the art galleries, breweries, and restaurants. It’s worth checking out either during your stay, or for a day or two afterward.

Getting there

All stays at Flathead Lake Lodge include pickup and drop off at Glacier Park International Airport in Kalispell (Airport code: FCA), about 35 minutes away. The lodge can also pick you up from the Amtrak station in Whitefish or any Kalispell area hotel.

You can fly direct to Kalispell from major US cities as far away as San Diego, Seattle, Dallas, Chicago, and Las Vegas, among others, though some flights are seasonal. If you live closer to the East Coast or near a smaller airport, you’ll likely need to make at least one connection.

I left Flathead Lake Lodge with plenty of first-time Montana memories

Whether you’ve always wanted to live like a cowboy, or like the idea of stepping into the Western lifestyle with the convenience of a five-star resort, Flathead Lake Lodge will likely fit the bill. It was a one-of-kind adventure for me, offering plenty of comfort along with great dining and the chance to try a variety of new-to-me activities.

While the price tag may feel expensive at first glance, starting at $3,419 per person for the four-night adults-only retreats, it’s all inclusive, which means you won’t find yourself overspending on extra tours or fancy cocktails. One aspect of my stay I loved the most was not having to deal with details like cooking, organizing travel plans, cleaning a rental house, or even driving. Instead, I spent my time enjoying the landscape, getting to know the experienced and skilled employees of Flathead Lake Lodge, and trying every cowboy-themed activity I wanted — and eating fluffy, homemade waffles every morning, of course.