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Hi All. Anyone ever work, or know someone who has, at the Mohonk Mountain House in New Paltz? My boyfriend and I are considering a move out there from Arizona (we are both originally from New Rochelle/Long Island) for summer work. We are late 20s nature loving people and desperately need to get out of the Southern AZ summer heat. We would considering staying year round if the resort doesn't die down too much. I am a NYS licensed Massage Therapist and he is a chef. Any ideas on how busy the summer season is up there, how much wages generally are and what the employee housing is like? Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
These comments are from my daughter and soninlaw who worked there. They are in their 20's also. Housing: there is dorm housing, but not sure how it works for couples. My daughter/sil were there at separate times. The dorm rooms they each had were simple, small rooms, with a bureau, nightstand, chair, lamp, and a clothes rack with shelving above. You can put a mini-fridge in your room. The community bathrooms are down the hall. There are some "married" dorms, but are limited and not sure how they were set up. The dorms are right near the kitchens and entrance to the main house building. There is a laundry room, also a gift shop in the main building. Meals are in the employee cafeteria, and she remembers them as being free. The dorms were $60 a week, and included meals, free cable hookup, A/C, and the fee was taken out of her paycheck. There is some other housing, such as private apartments and/or mobile homes for management. After New Years, it does get quiet there as far as guests go. New Paltz is a NYS college town, complete with bars/restaurants/botiques/grocery store/movie theatre. However, to get to the Mountain House, which is outside of town, you have to drive up a mountain road, and then get to the entrance roadway into Mohonk, which is about 2 miles or so of one lane road, with cliff on the left side and drop-off on the right without guardrails. A 4 wheel drive vehicle will be handy during the winter! There will be lots of nature - deer and other critters. The summer season is VERY busy and overtime is a must. If you are here during the fall, it's absolutely gorgeous around here with the leaves. The whole area is beautiful and very scenic. The Hudson River is beautiful, and there is the Walkway Over The Hudson. There is a garlic festival in Saugerties each year, a sheep and wool show in Rhinebeck, rock climbing, skiing, apple picking, etc. There is Hudson Valley Magazine that you could subscribe so you can see the area. Mohonk itself provides activities for employees, along with a beautiful lake, and lots of hiking. Hope this answers some of your questions.
Thanks for all the helpful info! That drive sounds frightening in the winter. I've become quite acclimated to the warm winters in AZ so that will take some getting used to. The whole area sounds dreamy in the summer/fall though. If hired we'll play it by ear and see if staying the winter is the best option. Thanks again!
A lot of the winter driving depends on what kind of winter we are having. Last year, there was very little snow. Also, I imagine Mohonk tries to keep their inner roads fairly clear since they do depend on tourism. My daughter has a 4WD pickup truck, and went back and forth several times a week to pick up her fiancee, and most of the time it was ok, but that was a snowier winter, and sometimes the roads were downright scarey. But, if you are living there, possibly you can have a social life with co-workers who also live there, and then the traveling in bad weather isn't a problem. If you know there is bad weather expected, you could get everything you might "need" from New Paltz before hand. It would be good to bring some games, books, cards, hobby interests with you, and then if you are stuck for a few days, it won't be so boring. I'm not trying to tell you what to do, just offering suggestions. The gift shop carries a lot of items, too.
The resort itself is older, but gorgeous, and the main building is so huge that I couldn't even fit it in my camera frame. Sometimes celebrities stay there, and there are a lot of weddings. There is a crystal clear lake for swimming, lots of places to hike, animals and other critters are abundant. Mohonk offered some activities for their employees.
Since we are local, my daughter and I just stopped in one day during the winter, so she could inquire about doing an externship there. We lucked out and were given an extensive tour of the whole place, including the kitchens.
The Culinary Institute of America isn't far either, maybe a 30 minute drive from Mohonk
Thanks everyone. I was also wondering what sorts of fine dining establishments are around town besides Mohonk in case my boyfriend would rather find employment elsewhere. I know as a massage therapist its Mohonk or nothing but we are curious what other options he has. Also any idea of what the wages go for? We are trying to budget this out and don't want to move cross country and lose all our money!
There are lots of good restaurants all over the Hudson Valley and Catskill region. This is a weekend getaway area for NYC and many people have second homes here in addition to those that stay at Mohonk and smaller places around. Competition for chef jobs may be tough as many Culinary graduates stay here and work after they finish.
I know as a massage therapist its Mohonk or nothing but we are curious what other options he has!
The catskills a little further north has a few ski resorts. I would assume a massage therapist has some demand. The bigger resort is Hunter & Ski Windham there
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