Is Applegate River Lodge still open today?
Current Status: >> OPEN <<
(keep reading to learn what happened)
Season: 2 | View All Season 2 Episodes
Original Episode Air Date: August 4, 2014
Applegate River Lodge Address: 15100 Hwy 238 Applegate, OR 97530
Episode Recap
Applegate River Lodge was an Applegate, Oregon hotel featured on Season 2 of Hotel Hell.
Though the Applegate River Lodge Hotel Hell episode aired in August 2014, the actual filming and visit from Gordon Ramsay took place much earlier in mid 2013.
It was Season 2 Episode 3 of Hotel Hell.
The Applegate River Lodge is located in Applegate, Oregon.
It has an absolutely beautiful location right on the Applegate River – hence the name.
Applegate itself is a small unincorporated county in the very south of Oregon, not far from the California border.
The owners are Richard and Joanna Davis.
They and their family run the hotel.
Twenty-two years ago, the couple designed the hotel, but things began falling apart in the lodge and their family after their divorce.
When Gordon Ramsay arrives at the lodge, he notices a foul smell and ugly décor.
Although he likes the lobby, there is barely any furniture or guests.
Gordon rings the buzzer for an attendant, but the employee Richard is slow to get there.
Since there are no chairs in the lobby, Gordon finds a seat for himself on the floor in a classic bit of Gordon Ramsay reality showmanship.
Richard introduces himself as “Pa Butt” and shows him the office/party venue.
Gordon recognizes the smell of weed. The show was filmed a little before Oregon legalized it, so it wasn’t legal at the time.
However, Richard says it is for medical purposes.
Gordon stays in the Cattleman Room, which Gordon states smell like cattle.
The furniture is stained and ugly, distracting Gordon from the stunning view.
After seeing his room, Gordon meets with Joanna, who admits she runs things at the lodge.
The hotel is in severe debt and is losing money monthly, which is why the Applegate River Lodge Hotel Hell episode exists.
Dusty and Duke are the owner’s sons who run the restaurant and the music, but they do not share their profits with their mother.
First, Gordon meets with Duke, who collects a door fee of $15.00 but doesn’t share that with the hotel.
Duke is high because he smoked weed earlier that day.
Dusty says he makes a lot of money at the lodge, which shocks his mother, Joanna, as he shares nothing of that with her.
That’s really not cool, at least in my opinion
Locals have heard that Gordon Ramsay is in town, and the hotel is fully booked.
The restaurant is relatively busy, but many guests send back dishes, and Gordon notices a dog in the dining room.
The restaurant uses frozen seafood even though there is local and fresh salmon.
At 10:00 PM that night, a concert begins in the lobby as guests check in.
Since paying guests cannot rest due to the noise, Joanna compensates them.
At midnight the show finally wraps up. Gordon is finally able to go to sleep.
Before going to sleep, Gordon uses a black light on the hotel bed and sees fluid stains. Gross!
Gordon tries to sleep in his sleeping bag, but Richard starts another party in the lobby.
Gordon calls a family meeting right away.
Gordon is upset that both sons have made money from their parties inside the hotel, but Joanna has lost money due to those parties.
Gordon tries to get the family to understand the hotel is a business first, but they do not understand.
Everyone goes back to bed with no real progress made.
Joanna meets guests who had previously stayed in the lodge.
They have many complaints, including Richard offering them weed. Remember – this was before it was legal, so it’s a bit weird to have the proprietor of a hotel dealing there.
Joanna talks to Gordon about her dreams for the place.
Gordon gets inspired and meets Dusty and Duke, who apologize to their mother.
Joanna asks her sons to assist her in running the hotel.
While that’s happening, Gordon’s team begins renovating the hotel.
The lobby is given chairs, so guests can now sit as they arrive.
The hotel room has been clean intensely.
The family loves the new smaller menu that Gordon has introduced.
During the relaunch, both brothers are busy helping their mom.
The concerts are now far enough away that no one will be disturbed.
So was the Applegate River Lodge Hotel Hell episode a success?
Keep reading our update to learn what happened to Applegate River Lodge and how this Applegate, Oregon hotel is doing after Hotel Hell in 2024 and beyond.
Applegate River Lodge Update - What Happened Next?
Now that we’ve recapped the Applegate River Lodge Hotel Hell episode, let’s talk about what happened after Gordon Ramsay left Applegate, OR.
We don’t get revisit episodes on Hotel Hell, unfortunately, so let’s jump right into the most important question on your mind.
Is Applegate River Lodge from Hotel Hell still open?
As of 2023, the Applegate River Lodge is still open and serving customers in Applegate, OR.
The reviews aren’t especially great, though, as it has a 3.5 star rating on TripAdvisor and a 3 star rating on Yelp.
Everyone seems to agree that the location and views of the hotel are amazing.
However, there do seem to be some complaints about the service, especially when it comes to the hotel part of the business.
A lot of people also complain about smoking, as well.
The restaurant does a little better, which makes sense because the restaurant is where Gordon Ramsay really shines.
A lot of people also use Applegate River Lodge as a wedding venue.
There were a number of reviews from people who attended a wedding there.
If you’re in the Applegate, Oregon area and you want to book a stay, you can do so via the official Applegate River Lodge website or most popular third-party booking platforms.
As of July 2022, a rooms at Applegate River Lodge in Oregon range from $160-$200 per night when booked via the official website.
Overall, while the reviews are mixed, Applegate River Lodge is still open and successful, even managing to survive the Covid-19 pandemic.
If you want to see what Applegate River Lodge looks like today, popular YouTuber Brennen Taylor did a 2022 video where he stays at the lodge, which includes lots of interactions between him and the owners (including pot smoking, as you’d expect).
You can check it out below:
Applegate River Lodge for sale in 2021
However, Richard and Joanna Davis, the Applegate River Lodge owners, have listed the hotel for sale in 2021.
You can see an announcement of the sale in this article from the Applegator, a local Applegate, Oregon publication.
As of July 2022, I don’t think they had found a buyer yet. You can see the for sale listing on LandSearch here, which was recently updated in May 2022.
The current asking price is a whopping $2.9 million, which includes 3+ acres of landing along with the hotel, restaurant, and all other buildings.
As of October 2022, the Applegate River Lodge sale is listed as “Pending Sale”.
Here’s a screenshot of the sale page – I blurred the images because I don’t want to get in trouble with copyright:
As of December 1st 2022, Applegate River Lodge sold officially as the deal finally closed.
The new owners plan to keep the foundation at Applegate River Lodge, but improve the hotel and restaurant.
Here’s a quote about it from the new Applegate River Lodge owners page:
We plan to elevate what Joanna Davis and her family built. The lodge and restaurant will undergo minor renovations during the winter.
The lodge will continue to stay open, whereas the restaurant will be closed until February.
During the time the restaurant is closed, our new chef will be working dutifully on a completely new menu.
The bar will offer a wide selection of Applegate Valley wine, craft co*cktails and a bourbon selection.
The lodge renovations will start with a refresh of the rooms to include new bedding and décor.
The flooring in common areas will be refinished and the carpet will be replaced.
The renovations of the bathrooms and flooring in the rooms will come over time.
After the renovations, the new owners also plan to rebrand it from Applegate River Lodge to The Lindsay.
You’ll be able to access it at TheLindsayLodge.com (but the new website isn’t up yet as of December 2022).
Once the rebrand goes through, I’m not sure whether or not I should mark it as open or closed.
Since it will be new ownersand a new name, I lean towards marking the Applegate River Lodge closed.
Either way, I wish the new owners success with the purchase – it’s a beautiful location so I’m sure they’ll do great.
If you want to see some updates for other nearby hotels, you can check out these posts:
- Murphys Hotel in northern California
- Monticello Hotel in Longview, Washington
Thanks for reading!
More Information
https://www.yelp.com/biz/applegate-river-lodge-applegate-3
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g29994-d272054-Reviews-Applegate_River_Lodge-Applegate_Oregon.html
What did you think about the episode? I'd love it if you shared your thoughts on the episode in the comments below!
You can also click the buttons below to share this post!
And don't forget to check out the full Hotel Hell open and closed list.
Last updated: 2023-01-22 08:55
