Best Western Premier Helena Great Northern Hotel

Great service. Comfortable room with big space and great breakfast. Thanks for a wonderful stay. Will definitely come back when I am in Helena.

We enjoyed our three day stay at Premier Northern Best Western in Helena. This is the third time we’ve stayed here. The front desk was cheerful and helpful in honoring special requests. Rooms are clean and quiet. Breakfast offers a good variety of choices. We will return.

Great Northern Best Western Premier is a GEM!!! Truly a lovely, friendly, uniquely Montana experience. The rooms are big, clean, and welcoming- with all the amenities one could want. From the moment you walk into the classic western motif of the lobby, you know it’s going to be good. . . And, there is a wonderful restaurant right on the hotel: The Silver Star Steakhouse. Eat there if you have the time-so good! If you don’t have the time, at least take advantage of the free breakfast spread; there are many choices from which to choose. Many great choices for every taste. And lastly, the staff from start to finish were very friendly and yet professional to a T!

I’m sorry to stem the tide of positive reviews for Best Western Premier Helena, but this is a clear case of overrating. First, there is nothing “downtown” about its location. That’s false advertising. If you’re set on a Best Western, you might as well save 40-50% by staying at the newer hotel in town – either way, a car is required to drive to the prime walking area of Helena with the cute restaurants and shops. Even though we are a BW diamond member, the special upgraded room assigned to us had a fogged out window obstructing a view of the parking lot, an un-programable clock that insisted on showing the wrong time, and no balcony. Thankfully the bed was very comfortable. Cherry Wonderdog was especially disappointed by the staff. Those at the front desk were agonizingly slow, ineffective, and learning on the job. Clearly, there was a lot done by the hotel to reach the prestigious pinnacle of being a Premier hotel, but most of it was a facade, like extra idle staff wandering the halls or hanging out in the lobby, a limited supply of cookies at the front desk in the evening, and an unattractive though generously-sized indoor pool (no jacuzzi) rather than something sun-flashed and enclosed by glass like our BW in Dillon. The icing on the cake was breakfast. One would have expected it to be quite good. Instead, the coffee was weak, the prepared food items extremely salty, and fruit and bread items limited. There were a few supposedly local muffins triple-wrapped in plastic wrap, but nothing open aired and fresh. Croissants – not a chance! At least there was oatmeal. Which leads to the final experience on our last morning when we tried to get breakfast a few minutes early. We needed to be on the road at 7 AM, and Saturday's breakfast didn’t officially begin until that time. We called the night before to see if there could be any accommodations, but the front desk gal said we just had to wait. In the morning, Cherry Wonderdog entered the dining area at 6:50 AM and discretely served a bowl of oatmeal, only to be accosted by the restaurant manager. “You need to get out of here right now,” he said. Surprisingly, even after I explained the circumstances and that we didn’t mind that a few other food items hadn’t been prepared since we only wanted the oatmeal, there was still no lenience. The apparent issue was that if he made an exception for one, all hell would break loose. The front desk understood my “concern” and said it would talk to the restaurant manager later, but there was no apology or attempt to make things right. For over $300 a night, I expected more, a LOT more, and I certainly didn’t appreciate being treated like a criminal by someone with a postal complex wishing to exert his authority over out-of-town guests. Good hospitality means treating folks with respect, making exceptions AND accommodations, and going the extra mile to ensure satisfaction. This is especially true for an establishment charging top dollar. Cherry Wonderdog gives

It’s a great location and the staff was friendly. The restaurant was yummy. The breakfast was pretty good. The air conditioner worked great and the bathroom was updated. The hotel is older but everything worked and was close to things to do.

Excellent location close to the park so you can exercise and close to downtown eateries.