Hotel El Capitan

If you have an opportunity to stay here, take it! This hotel checks all the boxes for outstanding ambience, excellent accommodations, dining, and with all the extra touches to insure a perfect stay. From the moment you step in, the appearance is nod to the grandeur of decades past. It is truly a great stop.

This place is amazing! We stayed here while visiting Guadalupe Mountains NP. The park is about an hour away, and drive to and from really pretty. We had a two bedroom suite, and it was really nice. The rooms was spacious, clean and very comfortable. Our room had a mini fridge. The bathroom is tiled in a style of the era of the hotel, and really clean and big. The courtyard is really nice to relax in before dinner and enjoy a drink. They also have a fireplace with reading chairs. You just couldn't dream up something more cozy or relaxing. The breakfast each morning was adequate and got you ready for your day. I cannot wait to go back!

What a find. After three days of chain motels staying here was a pleasure. Yes my Deluxe King with Terrace was “cozy” but it was just fine. It’s the small touches...Real furniture, not Ikea, a desk, real glasses (not plastic cups), a terrace with two chairs and a table. Real silverware and crockery at brekkie instead of plastic and paper (albeit paper plates at brekkie). A fully controllable air-conditioner, ceiling fan and small on the wall TV (maybe 25 inches but there wasn’t any room for anything larger). Ear plugs in the beside table (which you won’t need) with a Gideon bible. Squeaky clean and well maintained. The hotel location could be described as the middle of nowhere but not out of town. Pretty much a stand-alone as you can see on Google maps. Hotel restaurant does not take reservations and the ice machine was inoperative...ice from the bar. No coffee maker in room but microwave. And the final positive differential from chain motels….soap that lathers, not just a greasy pad. A great place to stay.

The hotel has a lot history and ambiance in the lobby. The town is a bit run down and tired. There is little ti do and see. Basically, Van Horn is the last "big town" east of El Paso on Interstate 10. The restaurant is the high point of the stop. The food is excellent and inexpensive. The service really friendly. Keep in mind that the trains blow it's horn at all hours when going through town.

Staying at the El Capitan is like staying in a Waldorf Astoria, but in West Texas. Instead of a spigot jar in the lobby with water and a few lemon or cucumber slices floating around, they had a big spigot jar full of margaritas. Our room was enormous and had two king beds ... have you ever even heard of that? The bathroom was all tile. The rooms had high ceilings, nice crown molding, tasteful wallpaper, and ceiling fans over both beds. The excellent restaurant was full of Blue Origin guys celebrating their successful launch. How does all of that exist in a little town with a population of 2000?