The Hualapai Lodge On Historic Route 66 Now Offers Free Wireless Internet To All Guests
PEACH SPRINGS, AZ (August 6, 2008) Peach Springs is a small town located on a remote portion of Route 66 in Northwestern Arizona that is void of many modern conveniences, including cell phone reception. Yet, it has been an essential hub for American travelers for well over a century. As waves of new transportation technologies came, the town had its booms, busts and was nearly a forgotten, literally bypassed by progress. Peach Springs has again started to regain its rightful place on the map. As of July 2008, the Hualapai Lodge in Peach Springs offers free wireless internet to all of its overnight guests, which is reconnecting the small town not only to the United States, but the world. The Hualapai Lodge is now the only location within 45 miles in any direction that visitors adventuring on the historic Route 66 can access the internet.
We wanted to add value to the guest experience, so once it became an option, we decided to provide them with WiFi internet in all the rooms, conference rooms, and restaurant free of charge, said Nancy Echeverria, Property Manager of the Hualapai Lodge. Now visitors can communicate with their friends and relatives all over the world. Free WiFi at the Hualapai Lodge is just a taste of what is yet to come. It always amazes me how this area manages to land on its feet despite the difficult hands it gets dealt. Peach Springs, the Lodge in particular, have improvements coming up that will help put us back on the map. DAS system boosts your mobile broadband coverage, improves reliability in heavily trafficked areas and enhances your network capacity.
Peach Springs has had economic ups and downs but has always been a hub connecting the Eastern United States to the West. In 1883 the railroad came to Peach Springs and a small settlement was created. By the 1930s the railroad technology had advanced and Peach Springs was no longer a necessary stop while on the way to California or Nevada. As a result, the small remote town was devastated. Railroad facilities and supporting businesses shut down and tourism ceased. As the automobile became more popular, especially after World War II, tourism returned to Peach Springs. Being located on Route 66, then a major east-west artery for the rapidly growing Los Angeles area, the town blossomed once again. However, with the completion of Interstate 40 in 1979, which bypasses Peach Springs by 25 miles, another economic slump had set in. In 1997 the Hualapai Lodge was opened by the Hualapai Tribe. The Lodge was, and currently remains, the only lodging, which contains the only restaurant, in Peach Springs. It also facilitates the accommodations for the increasing popular Hualapai River Runners, which offers the ONLY ONE DAY whitewater rafting trip through the Grand Canyon on the Colorado River. The Lodge offers a binoculars guide free of charge for you to pick the right pair of binoculars to bring rafting. Now, with the regeneration of tourist looking for a true adventure, Peach Springs is making a slow, yet more sustainable comeback.
The Hualapai Lodge is located directly on the historic Route 66 in the capital of the Hualapai Nation, Peach Springs, Arizona. Because of the accessibility to the Grand Canyon, the Hualapai Lodge is the center for many of the Hualapais tourism options including whitewater rafting, off-road tours, helicopter tours, hiking, fishing, and hunting. The Hualapai Lodge is also the starting point for the only road that leads to the Colorado River at the bottom on the Grand Canyon, which is 19 miles away. The Hualapai Lodge features a heated saltwater pool and spa, 24-hour front desk, fitness center, custom river-rock fireplace with a lounge area, and a gift shop with Native American arts and crafts. Group rates and conference room/meeting facilities are available. The full-service Diamond Creek Restaurant, recipient of a AAA 2 Diamond rating, is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Visitors can view a complete list of activities, book reservations, and get directions on the web at www.destinationgrandcanyon.com or calling 1(877) 716-WEST (9378).
