We loved our stay! Even though it's no frills, the owners clearly take a lot of pride in their work. The outside is cute, with flowers and little benches. The employees are nice, and the rooms are very clean and comfortable! We had a two bedroom with Jack and Jill bathroom setup, and it was perfect for us. I don't think we'll be going that way again but I'll definitely recommend this motel to any friends who are making a trip out that way! read more

Happily impressed with this Motel. We spent the night there and I highly recommend. Very clean inside and outside, great location and front desk people are very friendly. read more

We met Braden the owner who mentioned that he had taken over the hotel from his grandmother and was updating the hotel and running it now, keeping it in the family which we thought was cool. The location is awesome, walkable to everything. Old retro hotel with great retro vibe to it but hey when you're running down Route 66, it's a great place to stay. While you're there, absolutely run down to Anna's place for breakfast ( Anna the owner is super nice and grab some 66 gear from Deidre ( also incredibly nice) at addicted to Route 66 ...great place to stay over night the El Rancho, highly recommended read more

See all

Great place to stay. Reasonably priced. Walking distance to all the cute and quaint shops and restaurants. Staff was kind and accommodating. When I opened the door to my room it smelled so good. Everything was squeaky clean. The room was remodeled. Nice paint colors I might add. Will definitely be back in Williams and staying here at this establishment. Thanks again for a pleasant experience. See you at the end of the year. Hopefully. read more

Here for two days seeing the town and family. Maybe Grand Canyon after breakfast tomorrow early. The hotel has a high rating , low price and sold out every night. Very clean on the edge of town. Walking distance to dinner and a cowboy street gunfight at seven. A Very western town. Makes Tucson look Cosmopolitan. read more

Stayed 11/22. Room was very nice, I'd say beautifully decorated. Immaculately clean, warm and quiet. Grounds were very well maintained and beautifully decorated for the holidays. Staff was friendly and professional. Coaster park and nice restaurant just across the street. It was a perfect place to stay. read more

The place was extremely clean!!! Check In attendant was very nice and friendly, offered us coupons for places to eat at Our room was on. The small size , but we didn't have any problems. We were able to walk downtown from our hotel and enjoyed the old town! Had a great night sleep read more

Very clean and well maintained. Pleasant and helpful staff. Reasonable rates. Close walk to downtown for dining. No amenities but not needed. WiFi was very functional. read more

Clean however not that friendly. Water pressure good hot water is great It's was pricey you can get closer in town for a lot cheaper No breakfast for $120 a night read more

This is the best place to stay! Our third time here. Rooms are comfy and cozy and all newly renovated within last few years. Front desk person, Justin, is a wonderful, polite young man and he was here the last time (last year or year before) which should tell you something. Beds are super comfortable. Rooms are clean as a whistle and everything works! No slow drains! Small BBQ area with grill. It's the best!! read more

I will be honest I never expected a motel to be this good. This place was so clean, the staff changed the towels every day, made the bed, and did everything the same as in good hotels. The location of the motel was great. You can walk and enjoy the restaurants and stores nearby. It has across the street a cool "Canyon Coaster Adventure Park", it is a lot of fun you must try. If you do not want to go anywhere far for breakfast there is a breakfast place across the street too. Moreover, the location of El Rancho Motel is not that far from the Grand Canyon. I highly recommend this place. read more

I recently stayed the night at the newly renovated El Rancho Motel and it was awesome!!! Its weird to say but the very second my foot hit the carpet floor into my room I knew it was gonna be great! Reason I say that is because the flooring had the thickest and softest padding ever! I knew that if my bed was as great as the floor, I was in for a good night of sleep. And YES, it was a great night of sleep! Upon my arrival, I was met with easy check in and they gave me a few discount coupons for local restaurants and Bearizona. Everyone was so nice and accommodating! The rates for El Rancho can't be beat! I give the El Rancho 10 very enthusiastic stars and I will absolutely return again! read more

See all

Nice place. On Route 66. Very close to shopping, restaurants and bars. Rooms were clean and recently updated. Would return. read more

El Rancho Motel - Neon sign - Hotels Near Me - Williams, Arizona

Clean, beautiful and well maintained. Affordable. Nice people too. Nice location, easy access. Would highly recommend.

The rooms are exceedingly clean with a contemporary, updated feel in the decor and finishes. It's a nice change from the usual vintage motel chic. (I'm not entirely certain why I didn't take some pics during my stay for this review. Sorry.) The owner was very friendly and funny and made me feel right at home. I had dinner and a couple of good local beers at one of the many walking-distance restaurants nearby. And in the morning, the location is perfect if you're heading out of town towards the Grand Canyon. read more

Super clean! Excellent attention & service. This pleasant accommodation has been totally & completely renovated. Our room was sparkling clean. It passed my "White Sox" test.I walked throughout the room during my 2 night stay in white socks, they were " out of the package clean when I checked out. The clean & properly working gas grill allowed us to enjoy tasty burgers at the picnic table. State of the art ice machine & fluffy linens added to a very restful sleep. Above all , but not limited to,was the concierge oriented service from Justin, he was extremely knowledgeable about the area and of a " Customer Service Oriented " mentality. Would Highly recommend this wonderful accommodation and look forward to staying again . Thank you Justin. read more

El Rancho Motel - What a great sleep !! - Hotels Near Me - Williams, Arizona

See all

If you want the perfect Route 66 experience, stay at the El Rancho Motel on the east end of town. Perfect location for downtown shopping and dining. Great old school vibe with easy parking, good pricing, and very clean rooms. This is a great mid century experience with comfy beds, great showers and excellent customer service. Really enjoyed our room and location to easily walk for a nice meal. The owners are GREAT! Prices are GREAT! Go and enjoy a motel room your parents would have loved in the day. read more

El Rancho Motel - very cool old school neon! - Hotels Near Me - Williams, Arizona

See all

I was debating between 3 and 4 stars. It would have been 4 but....unfortunately there was a distinct smell of urine on my side of the bed. I don't think it was from the bed, it may have been from a pet that slept on the carpet beside the bed. That really soured my experience here. Otherwise, the room was very clean with plush carpet, a microwave and refrigerator and table/chairs to eat meals. It is located quite close to the historic downtown Williams area but was rather quiet except for the train horns that blow occasionally throughout the night due to the close proximity to the tracks. We did find a dead brown recluse spider on the floor but after careful inspection of the bedding, did not find any other live ones thankfully. For some reason, we had a very hard time figuring out how to operate the TV remote, but the two times we called the office for help, the owner came right away. The owner's mom was the one who checked me in. She was very friendly, telling me all the places to go in town to eat and pointing me in the right direction to look for hiking boots. I will say the amenities (shampoo and soap only) were on the cheap side. And this is the first motel that charges a separate cleaning fee. Overall, if it weren't for the urine smell, I would definitely stay here again. read more

Stayed here over Memorial Day weekend. Called at 22:25 to let them know I'd be arriving later than expected and they had already gone in for the night, so I got the answering machine! Who goes in before 22:00 on a Saturday night, especially when it's a holiday weekend?! However, they left a key out for me when I arrived. I had requested a room with two beds but got a queen instead. Thankfully, since my partner was traveling with me instead of my dad, it wasn't awkward. Room is a little dated, but the price is just fine. There is wifi, however, there is no breakfast. However, I can say that the service was superfriendly the next day when I went to check out. Owner did not harass me for my ID, like the last time I got harassed at a Motel 6 in Phoenix. And the price was good for a holiday weekend. read more

Wonderful people running the motel. Very clean and very prompt taking care of any issues. Easy access from either direction on Route 66. I will definitely stay there in the future if I am in the area. read more

Just awesome! Wish we'd arrived earlier! The family suite was the coolest! Nice man running it. Super clean! We were so impressed! And the price...Wow!!!! read more

My husband & I had a great stay at the El Rancho Motel. I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for an affordable place to stay while vacationing near the Grand Canyon. This motel is family owned and operated, and their pride in the property shows. The room was larger than expected and you could tell it was freshly cleaned. The location is great as well - they're right across the street from the Welcome to Williams, AZ sign and other photo opportunities like the bull statue on the motel's property. The owners offered a warm welcome and gave us recommendations to local restaurants and shops. Would absolutely stay here again. read more

We went to see the sunrise at Grand Canyon when we returned to the motel. Housekeeping had already cleaned our room we usually put the do not disturb but didn't this time thinking we would be back before they started cleaning. I noticed my pain medication bottle was light. Only because I just opened the bottle before we left for the canyon and took one pill the cleaning people took 16 pills and 1/4 bud of my weed that was in a drawer so whoever it was went through all our stuff When telling management , they said that there cleaning lady had been there for 14 years and they have never had a complaint and they apologized and offered a gift card for dinner which we declined because we can't eat the food they had due to allergies they should of offered our room for free or given my medication back Very disappointed read more

The El Rancho is a wonderful version of the original Route 66 motels. Our room was recently renovated. The motel is in easy walking distance to the entire downtown area, shops and restaurants. The staff is very friendly and helpful, we received discount coupons to a number of local food places and excursions. The trains to the Grand Canyon are just a 10 minute walk, making this an ideal place to stay if visiting the Grand Canyon or doing the Polar Express with the kids... Overall, we had a wonderful long weekend stay... We look forward to staying there again the next time we visit Williams... read more

Very disappointing experience. We got there late in the evening after whole day travel, with young kids and received a 1 bed room instead of a double room with 2 beds as booked and confirmed. The one that would fit a family of 4. No one there anymore in the evening so we left the keys in a box with a note and left the property to search for a different (proper) place to stay. Charged as no show by the hotel. We filed a complaint and refund request via booking.com already. Not a kind of experience you want to have with little kids. Standard of the room was poor but didn't expect much more. We just wanted to get what we booked. read more

El Rancho Motel - Hotels Near Me - Williams, Arizona

See all

A full day of peeping around the Grand Canyon lead us here to this ADORABLE 50'S motel. In Williams (which is about 4 blocks long on good ole route 66) you have your choice between chain motels and a couple non-chain motels. The chain motels don't look too inviting, but El Rancho has this vibe to it that just drew us in. The desk was open pretty late and lucky for us! It's family run and the woman behind the counter who booked us was just a living doll. We got a room quickly and were able to catch some Zzz's for the night. The room was pretty inexpensive and well maintained. You get a real KEY to the room! Which was kind of nice. The rooms are pretty basic and are exactly what you need after a day of tooling around the Canyon. If I find myself in Williams again it will be the place I stay at. read more

My boyfriend and I were driving across country (from California to Florida) and the Grand Canyon was a definite spot to stop!! The places in Grand Canyon Village were a little more than we wanted to spend, so we looked at Williams, AZ. The reviews sounded like this place would be a great first road-trip motel and the price was great!! We arrived at about 1:15am and I think the lady in the office was just waiting for us to arrive before turning in for the night herself. Our room had a queen bed, clean towels, a microwave and fridge (which was ideal for the food we were taking with us). The bed was a little shady, but I think the bedding was just a little old. If you have your own blanket, you can trust the bottom sheet, but probably don't sleep with the top blanket. The shower head was so low, even I was bending backwards to wash my hair (i'm 5'7", and the head was at about 5'2"). In any case, the place was a perfect spot for one night. If you are arriving late, just call ahead of time to let them know you are coming - the lady was so sweet and didn't seem like we were a problem at all, but you could also tell she was glad her last guests arrived : ) read more

El Rancho Motel - Hotels Near Me - Williams, Arizona

Newly remodeled, super clean, and comfortable! The perfect spot to stay if your planning a trip to Bearizona or Grand Canyon Railway. It is walking distance to all restaurants, bars, and fun! Manager offered us coupons to some local restaurants and was super helpful with suggestions on what to do! Will return on our next adventure down Route 66! read more

See all

Our group of 5 stayed here....after a week of backpacking in the Grand Canyon. We had planned to camp our final night near the South Rim, but it was a *long* day of hiking out of the canyon. And I think we were all ready to hit up a motel for a clean shower and not get all our tents out again. The hotels near the Canyon are all expensive ($120+ for a basic room), so we decided to take the extra hour or so to head back to Williams. I remembered from Expedia that the rooms at the big chain hotels/motels were a bit pricey, so basically we just all decided to crash at the first 'mom and pop' looking motel we came to in town. And that landed us at the El Rancho Motel! From the outside, you really aren't sure what you are going to get. The sign is totally old school....and the red lights on the building are hilarious! Probably hasn't been upgraded for decades. The only thing missing from our arrival was the soundtrack for 'Psycho' to play in the background....j/k! :D After a 12-mile hiking day, I think we were all pretty exhausted. Originally I planned to get two rooms, but the attending lady in her 1950's nightcap and gown said we could all 'cozy up' and stay in the 'suite' for 15 bucks less. I figured 'what the hay, I'll save 15 bucks." That still brought the total to $95, which was more than I wanted to hear....but at that point, we just wanted to shower/crash....so we took it. The room was very quiet in a corner spot -- a queen in the main room, and 2 doubles in the back. The main thing we wanted was a nice, hot shower. You never know about these motels....but I'm happy to report that we still had hot water by the end of the 5th shower. Actually, if you've stayed in a lot of 'cheap' motels, it's often the bathroom that's the nastiest part of the room....but in our case, I think the bathroom was probably the *nicest* part of the suite!! Everything was clean and we had plenty of water pressure too! About the only thing I could complain about were the towels -- not very big and a bit rough....but they worked! We probably aren't the best to comment on the beds, after coming out of the Grand Canyon backcountry. I think we were all so ready to sleep that we didn't even notice whether the beds were comfy or not. We all showered...and then crashed faster than Lindsey Lohan in a drug rehab! Weather was not scorching hot for an early September, but it was a little muggy and warm outside....but the two A/C's in both our rooms were more than ample at keeping us cool for the night. After one 108 degree day in the Canyon, we were happy to have some blasting A/C! Check in and out were fast. Our attending lady was willing to extend our check out to noon since we got in a little late....but we were ready to get on the road and hit up a casino buffet in Nevada on the way home! If I were traveling with the wife and kids, I'd probably be more apt to hit up a slightly-nicer name-brand motel (like Motel6 or Days Inn) if I wanted something budget-minded. But sometimes you just gotta stay in one of these no-name, non-chain places....just for the adventure of it. Yeah, yeah....the pool is outta commission still. But how many people stay at a hotel like this and actually *use* the pool? My point exactly! So I won't ding them a star for that. My only real gripe is that the room was probably not worth 95 bucks, especially on a Thursday night. I figured probably worth more like $70-75. Travelers to and from the Grand Canyon would probably be better off stopping in Kingman, AZ (2 hrs West) or Flagstaff (45 min. East). Your dollars will stretch farther in those cities. We stayed in Kingman on the way in, and got two rooms at a Days Inn for $38/each. Very good deal plus free cont. breakfast! Nothing like that here at the El Rancho. I was almost tempted to drive the extra 2 hours to get to Kingman again....but that would have put us in at about 2am. No good! As long as you aren't expecting something super nice, I'd say "it is what it is" -- a budget lodge for passers through. Maybe a bit more expensive than I would have liked to pay....but no big complaints otherwise. Probably more like 3 1/2 stars is my book....but I'll bump 'em up to 4 because (a) we had no problems and (b) that awesome retro sign! read more

The price and location are a plus. The front desk clerk was friendly. Now that being said the room although roomy there were problems. The tub had cracks that had been somewhat fixed but it still pinched my foot. The bottom of the cloth shower curtain had mold. The temperature in the shower was not consistent and my travel companion got frozen and scalded within a matter of seconds. The desk in the room was also broken and while I was sitting at it the drawer fell out on my shin. Towels are scratching and the pillows were like an inch thick. read more

El Rancho Motel - This is the bottom of the shower that pinched into my foot - Hotels Near Me - Williams, Arizona

See all

Terrible hotel. Many review glow about how quaint and nostalgic this motel is... well, truth is... simply a lack of desire (or funds) to upgrade. It is overpriced and provides minimal necessities- 2 pillows per queen (hard as a rock) bed with no one around, after taking your money, to ask for more from; towels were at the end of their usable life a few years ago; floors and bathrooms dirty - not just not clean, but rust and other stains throughout; one bar of hotel soap for 2 sinks and a shower (again, no one around who could have been asked for more), plus no typical travel shampoo. Overall, just find a better location or accept that you are overpaying for a $25 hotel room (2018 pricing standard). read more

Affordable, clean and quiet motel in a very small authentic town called Williams. It's a 10-minute scenic walk to the train/shuttle stop that takes you to Grant Canyon. Enjoyed every minute of our stay. read more

This isn't a 5-star hotel but we had a 5-star experience. Affordable, very clean, comfy, free wifi, friendly service. Easy to get a room, even during high season. I wanted to write a review since the rustic sign and motel status gives people like me who have experienced bedbugs a cautious feeling. However, there is no need to fear. I also chose this place because there is a 24-hr laundromat nextdoor and after a week on the road I was hoping to do laundry, lol. Walk to nearby cafes/restaurants, enjoy the sounds of nature away from the Disneyland atmosphere of the Grand Canyon. We'd return! read more

PROS: The location was good, the room was clean, the beds were comfortable, and the price was right. CONS: The television didn't work, and the heater was terrible. It was a cold night and it was almost impossible to set the temperature, so we ended up alternating between freezing and sweating and had to get up and adjust it every hour or so all night long. Also, as others have noted, the office was closed the whole time were were there. They left our keys in a mailbox and that's where left them. read more

Okay first of all this little town looks like something straight out of a Hallmark movie. Super cute, small, Christmas lights and snow everywhere. The basic white girl in my immediately fell In love. The front desk was more than accommodating when we told them we had a late check in (we were coming from CA so almost a 12 hour drive). They made sure we got our keys and the heat was already on when we got into the room so we were nice and toasty. Sheets and floors were all clean even down the the details of folding the toilet paper into a little corner. It's such a hidden gem we would 200% stay again and plan to on our way home! read more

Anyone who loves vintage 1950s motels will appreciate the cute, clean and well-maintained El Rancho Motel in Williams, AZ. It is very inexpensive and the owner provides excellent and friendly service. Help keep this country interesting: please support small independent family-owned businesses like this one whenever you travel!!! read more

Is it possible to give negative stars?? This was the last straw for me. We got there at 4:00. Check in starts at 3. there was nobody there and a sign on the door saying be back at 4:30, at the doc. We waited until 5:15, no show of anyone willing to check us in and make us feel at home. I just can't stand bad service like this. Could they have not put someone, anyone with a pulse at the front desk?? Went to the Days INN, and will be vigourously fighting the credit card charges. AAARRRRGGGGHHHHHHH!!! read more

My wife and I traveled from SoCal to stay at the El Rancho simply for its nostalgic appeal and were not disappointed at all. Of course, this isn't a 5-Star hotel by any means but the decor, the ambiance, and the ability to stay at such a historical place made this a perfect experience, just what we had hoped. read more

Stopped here for the night becuase I liked the retro look at night : ) Stayed here for 4 nights and went out during the day to hike around the Canyon. After the first morning the lady at the front remebered how i took my coffee (tons of sugar) and had the supplies waiting for me! Very nice, felt like home away from home read more

My little one and I were driving Route 66 to Chicago and had to hit the grand canyon for a rim hike. The hotels around the rim were pretty pricey as it was the summer high season so we opted for a local family owned motel in Williams, about an hour from the park. The price was great @ 50 a night. The room was dated but very clean, and the bathroom was immaculate. The was good, nothing to complain about and there was a microwave, fridge, and good AC. There was also Directv, and a video library by the front desk. An empty pool but wasn't a biggie. The older lady who checked us in was great, we actually got a real metal key and parking was right up front and convenient. The Rancho motel sign and red neon at night was very cool too. Would certainly come back here again. read more