The Blue Anchor at Houghton Lake

Property should provide either indoor or outdoor seating… we literally had to sit in the back of our work van or on the beds in the room.. other than that it’s a nice property. We travel for work a lot and will be staying at a different location due to this inconvenience…

I do not understand how this property got a high rating. It is an older property that is clean. The problem is there is no table or chairs in the room, only a foldout bed that sits very low to the ground. No Ice machine, breakfast, or personal to help or answer questions. It certainly was not what I expected, especially for the cost. Way over priced, stay somewhere else.

This place looks like a wonderful work in progress. Very clean room with a comfortable bed. Nicely decorated. We stayed in a king room that worked wonderful for us. There is no signage, but I’ve read that that’s soon to be put in place. The grounds and parking area are a bit rustic however, I’m guessing that will be changing soon. The bathroom is extremely small with a quite small older shower. Fortunately, my husband and myself are not large people so it worked out fine for us. Once the hot water finally made it to the shower. It lasted longer than my husband‘s long showers. I would absolutely stay here again in the future. What a wonderful price for all that you get. We have stayed in a lot of hotels this summer and I will say unless we paid pay $175 or more we were getting rooms that I would never return to, this however is a huge exception. Good job proprietors keep up the great work renovating this old building. I might add that finding a room arrangement that would allow you to see the television from the sofa would be a great improvement.

Paarking not paved shower not updated but very comfortable bed and quiet

If you like motels, this place is for you! There is no on site staff. Payment is taken over the phone and a door code is sent to you. I loved not having to carry around a key card. Seamless, never had an issue. My husband and I loved this place. We brought a truck and trailer and there was ample parking. The room was super clean, comfy bed with soft sheets. Bathroom was small but it got the job done. I would have liked a bath mat in the bathroom. The only other addition I think the room needs is a broom and dust pan. The floors are not carpeted, it would have been nice to sweep the sand up before getting into bed. Communication with the host was also very prompt and helpful. I would absolutely stay again.

Great stay my only complaints is there wasnt an ice machine and no hair dryer. Beds are really comfortable!

The room was big with a comfortable bed. Air conditioning system worked well. Bathrrom was cramped with a very tight toilet area. Shower did have low water pressure and it was difficult to get a good temperature. Sink tended to be very slow at draining, somthing that should be looked into. Nice fluffy towels but they did shed a lot. There was a microwave, mini fridge and coffee maker in the room. We didn't turn on the television so we have no idea the quality. Wasn't well marked from the road and we almost drove past it. Nice facility with contactless arrangements. Would stay again.

The room was clean and up to date. Great spot for the price!

Very clean

Very clean no hassle with check in

The accommodations were exceptionally clean and tastefully renovated. The bedding was not to our preference, we are not a fan of memory foam.

The rooms were very nice......the bathrooms a little small but workable. You can tell that it was an older property but all nicely remodeled. Very clean and well kept. I liked the proximity to everything. I would definitely stay here again. I really liked the no check in procedure they just texted me a code and we were done.

Entire building smells moldy. Could not stay 2nd night. Bugs & spider webs in room. Dirty water left in sink. No soap & no staff. Completely self service. Floor was also dirty, had to wear shoes. Shower extremely tiny. Felt like I was lucky to have one, although there was no soap. Constant texts asking me to turn off air & lights if I left, telling me WiFi was down, etc. Very disappointed.

It is a nice and modernized hotel. When we stayed check in was easy and the room was clean.

Pleasantly surprised with the cleanliness. The bed was very comfortable

Clean, convenient, great communication.

Newly renovated and very nice and clean rooms. Pleasantly surprised! Good size fridge in room and microwave! Very quiet! Great stay and great price!!

Room was nice bathroom was cramped,shower was too small

The hotel is very clean, recently refurbished, but was built in a different time when hotel guests expected less and in spite of great effort on the owner\'s part, it delivers exactly that: less. The room is tolerable but could be bigger and could use more electrical outlets and better lighting. The bedside lights are the touch type, so when you accidentally touch the lamp in the middle of the night, the light comes on (annoying.) The bathroom is just awful. Although everything but the shower is new this year, everything is tiny and cramped. the toilet sits three inches from the wall so if you tend to "spread out " you\'ll have a problem. The vanity has no room to put your bathroom stuff and if there are two of you you\'ll have to get really creative to make it work. There is a small shelf under the mirror but if you put anything taller than 2 inches on it you will block the view of the mirror. The shower is ancient, small, and discolored, and really should be replaced with something larger than what I\'m guessing is maybe a 30" square shower stall. Not a deal breaker, but unless you\'re paying attention you\'ll drive past the place the first time, even with google maps. There\'s no sign at all, just the frame from when one used to be there. Having said all this, I would stay here again, but never for more than one day. For anything longer, I\'d go elsewhere.

Great room with the exception of the very small bathroom. Toilet was too close to the wall, everything else was fantastic.

Great towels, actual decent toiletries and very clean rooms. Queen beds were way to stiff and the showers are a bit out of date but other then that it was a great stay and amazing service!

The location was great, and the room was a good size for a small hotel. We could tell the place was newly renovated, and it was nice all around. We had issues with our bathroom door not being able to close, and the air fresheners all over the place and in the room were overpowering, and we were left wondering why so many air fresheners were needed. Otherwise, it's a good place to stay for a couple nights.

It was clean and cozy. Just wish they got better shower heads for their shower though.

The floors were so slanted and uneven.

The rooms were very nice......the bathrooms a little small but workable. You can tell that it was an older property but all nicely remodeled. Very clean and well kept. I liked the proximity to everything. I would definitely stay here again. I really liked the no check in procedure they just texted me a code and we were done.

The room was big with a comfortable bed. Air conditioning system worked well. Bathrrom was cramped with a very tight toilet area. Shower did have low water pressure and it was difficult to get a good temperature. Sink tended to be very slow at draining, somthing that should be looked into. Nice fluffy towels but they did shed a lot. There was a microwave, mini fridge and coffee maker in the room. We didn't turn on the television so we have no idea the quality. Wasn't well marked from the road and we almost drove past it. Nice facility with contactless arrangements. Would stay again.

If you are a motel person, then this property is for you. One issue we had were that the photos of the rooms were a little bit deceiving. When we looked at the two queen bed rooms they appears to be very spacious and bright. But upon entry the total opposite. They were small and dark only one dim overhead light and a small lamp in between the queen beds. The natural light was lacking. You could open the curtains and let sunshine in but, being a motel that is difficult because then your privacy is absent because of other guests walking by and being able to see right into your room. It is a very clean and well decorated motel. Beds are pretty comfortable. The bathrooms are on the small side but clean. The faucet was wonderful. We really liked the lightning feature on it when you went to wash your hands. Overall for a motel its not too bad the property is well maintained. And we liked the self check in aspect, very convenient. Because of our personal preference we would not stay again. We prefer cabins to motels but thought we would try it.

The Blue Anchor was very clean, quiet, accommodating, and just what we needed for our visit to Houghton Lake. Instructions for accessing room upon arrival, etc. were simple. The entire experience ran smoothly. Would stay there again.

Great spot to stay in Houghton Lake! Quick responses from management if there are any issues and they are super friendly and helpful. Highly recommend!

If you like motels, this place is for you! There is no on site staff. Payment is taken over the phone and a door code is sent to you. I loved not having to carry around a key card. Seamless, never had an issue. My husband and I loved this place. We brought a truck and trailer and there was ample parking. The room was super clean, comfy bed with soft sheets. Bathroom was small but it got the job done. I would have liked a bath mat in the bathroom. The only other addition I think the room needs is a broom and dust pan. The floors are not carpeted, it would have been nice to sweep the sand up before getting into bed. Communication with the host was also very prompt and helpful. I would absolutely stay again.

I didn’t like the vinyl hardwood flooring as it’s not comfortable compared to carpeting. There was no comfortable place to sit and the chair to table heights didn’t work together…..table too high for the chairs. The coffee cups didn’t fit the lids provided. The privacy curtain would blow open when the ac/heat fan was blowing and they were not room darkening type. The water pressure was insufficient to take a proper shower. When I was given a door code to open my door I wasn’t told to use it to lock it so when I left to do things I was unaware anyone could open my door…..another guest informed me on my last nights stay. On the upside management seemed to be very attentive and reached out to me several times to see if I needed anything. I will not return.

My family and I enjoyed our overnight stay at The Blue Anchor at Houghton Lake. We weren’t familiar with this hotel prior to the renovations that were done but we were pleased with the nice updates. Our room was very clean. The mattress was extremely comfortable. We had booked through Expedia and the check-in process was easy. We had trouble closing the bathroom door and contacted management, they were quick to respond and accommodating.

This property has no staff or front desk. Inconvenient when you need something

The rooms were very nice......the bathrooms a little small but workable. You can tell that it was an older property but all nicely remodeled. Very clean and well kept. I liked the proximity to everything. I would definitely stay here again. I really liked the no check in procedure they just texted me a code and we were done.

The lack of seeing any employees at any time of our stay was very unusual. We needed toilet paper and had no way to have any supplied for us. It’s rather uncomfortable.

It is a nice and modernized hotel. When we stayed check in was easy and the room was clean.

Clean, convenient, great communication.

Very cute place and would stay again! Everything looks and smells new. Beds were comfortable. Loved the walkway to the rooms. Good location across the street from the water and next door is a gas station with all the things you may need. Would stay again!

Good location, clean

The hotel is very clean, recently refurbished, but was built in a different time when hotel guests expected less and in spite of great effort on the owner\'s part, it delivers exactly that: less. The room is tolerable but could be bigger and could use more electrical outlets and better lighting. The bedside lights are the touch type, so when you accidentally touch the lamp in the middle of the night, the light comes on (annoying.) The bathroom is just awful. Although everything but the shower is new this year, everything is tiny and cramped. the toilet sits three inches from the wall so if you tend to "spread out " you\'ll have a problem. The vanity has no room to put your bathroom stuff and if there are two of you you\'ll have to get really creative to make it work. There is a small shelf under the mirror but if you put anything taller than 2 inches on it you will block the view of the mirror. The shower is ancient, small, and discolored, and really should be replaced with something larger than what I\'m guessing is maybe a 30" square shower stall. Not a deal breaker, but unless you\'re paying attention you\'ll drive past the place the first time, even with google maps. There\'s no sign at all, just the frame from when one used to be there. Having said all this, I would stay here again, but never for more than one day. For anything longer, I\'d go elsewhere.

It was so cute,modern and clean and comfortable. The outside did not have a sign so I passed it often,lol. Only complaint is that the shower water smelled but it maybe well water so that makes sense. I would stay again.

I am the only person on the property. I thought this was a motel. Well it is, except no one works here- a door code was messaged to me. My car is the only one out front out on a main street. The main door does not lock. You open the main door and its like an exclosed shed that leads to all the rooms. Anyone can walk in at any time and enter this shed an go up to my window without being seen from the outside. I worry about my safety and as my car has out-of-state plates, I worry it could be broken into without my knowledge. I can't see my car from my room. Its a creepy set up. There's a trickle of water coming out of the shower. Im 6’2” and the water hits my chest. The room smells musty. The place has been updated but its old. There's an envelope to leave a tip for cleaning the room- a real Airbnb vibe. To my dismay, I thought the place has access to a beautiful lake- it does not have access. You can see it from across the road.

When we first arrived we were a little confused, there's no sign for the property. This was our first experience with no staff around, just go to your room & put your code in. That easy. Bathroom is a little small & definitely needs a vent in it! Bed was comfy! Overall great little place!

Close to ELKS Lodge and The Eagles lodge. close to shopping.

Very nice property, peaceful and quiet. Right across the street from Houghton Lake. Would stay again if visiting the area

The room was big with a comfortable bed. Air conditioning system worked well. Bathrrom was cramped with a very tight toilet area. Shower did have low water pressure and it was difficult to get a good temperature. Sink tended to be very slow at draining, somthing that should be looked into. Nice fluffy towels but they did shed a lot. There was a microwave, mini fridge and coffee maker in the room. We didn't turn on the television so we have no idea the quality. Wasn't well marked from the road and we almost drove past it. Nice facility with contactless arrangements. Would stay again.

The rooms are gorgeous!!!! A convenient location to get to the beach, mini golf, go carts and dining! Would definitely stay here again!

I do not understand how this property got a high rating. It is an older property that is clean. The problem is there is no table or chairs in the room, only a foldout bed that sits very low to the ground. No Ice machine, breakfast, or personal to help or answer questions. It certainly was not what I expected, especially for the cost. Way over priced, stay somewhere else.