Great award availability at RiverView Ranch Retreat in Montana (all-inclusive SLH bookable through Hilton)

The all-inclusive RiverView Ranch Retreat & Western Adventures in Montana – a Small Luxury Hotels of the World property that’s bookable through Hilton – currently has some great award availability, including for five night stays which would allow you to take advantage of Hilton’s fifth night free benefit on award stays for those with elite status.

The Deal

• Book standard room award nights at RiverView Ranch Retreat & Western Adventures via Hilton.
• Direct link to offer.

Key Terms

• Minimum two night stay.
• Strict cancellation terms (see below).

Quick Thoughts

RiverView Ranch Retreat & Western Adventures is an amazing-looking property in Montana. Award nights there don’t come cheap as standard room awards cost 220,000 Hilton Honors points per night (standard Hilton award nights max out – for now at least – at 250,000 points per night). This property is therefore a great use of Hilton free night certificates.

It looks like a minimum two night stay is required, although if you book five consecutive nights you’ll get the fifth night free (i.e. total 880K points for five nights) if you have Silver status or higher in the Hilton Honors program. I imagine most people who have 880K+ points to drop on a stay will also have Silver status at a minimum, but it’s worth highlighting just in case. In addition to Hilton’s credit cards that all come with elite status of some kind, the American Express Platinum Card® and Business American Express Platinum Card® both offer Hilton Gold status after enrollment, so those are all options if you don’t have Hilton stays earned organically through stays or via a status match.

At super-expensive properties like this, it can often be hard to find five consecutive nights of award availability. However, RiverView Ranch Retreat & Western Adventures currently has five night stays bookable with points with check-in every day starting from September 27 all the way through to November 17. That means October’s availability looks like this:

I wouldn’t expect this situation to last, so if this property has been on your radar, you might want to book ASAP. However, be aware that it has a very stringent cancellation policy:

Cancellations fees: 20% of total stay if cancelled between booking date and 2PM (local) – 61 days prior to arrival; after 60 days prior to arrival – 100% of total stay.

At check in, the front desk will verify your check-out date. Rates quoted are based on check-in date and length of stay. Should you choose to depart early, price is subject to change.

We reserve the right to cancel or modify reservations where it appears that a customer has engaged in fraudulent or inappropriate activity or under other circumstances where it appears that the reservations contain or resulted from a mistake or error.

Totals listed here are estimated based on current taxes and exchange rates (if applicable) and do not include additional fees/charges that may be incurred during your stay.

Points will be deducted from your balance and a Reward Confirmation document will be issued via email at the time of booking confirmation.

Reward value rates quoted apply and are only valid for arrival date and length of stay shown. A printed copy of this confirmation will include the Reward Confirmation ID required for check-in.

No-shows or cancellations of Reward Stay Reservations outside of the time frame set by the hotel’s individual cancellation policy will be charged one night’s room and tax at the hotel’s Best Available Rate for that date.

Rates including tax can cost $4,000+, so that final paragraph of the cancellation policy stating that no-shows or cancellations outside of the hotel’s cancellation policy will be charged one night at the Best Available Rate could be insanely costly. Even more so because it’d presumably be based on the Best Available Rate at that time which could be even higher last minute.

Review of RiverView Ranch Retreat

Reader Brendan stayed at this property last year and kindly sent through the following review:

To quote the staff at Riverview Ranch (RVR), I can summarize my stay in two words, “Absolutely Sssweet!!!” Both words are rarely uttered by staff at other points hotels, but seemingly rolled off the tongue at RVR. On our first night as the staff was closing the kitchen, I made the last-minute request to roast S’mores. I was expecting an indifferent response, but I was greeted with “Absolutely! Allow me a few minutes to start a (private) bonfire for you and prepare a S’mores kit. I’ll bring cold waters and a Bluetooth speaker, as well. Would you like a glass of wine? Is there anything else that I may get for you?”

This was the first example of the level of the other worldly service at RVR. While posh British aristocrats like Stephen Pepper are used to this, the service never felt stuffy. There was a passion and playfulness in the staff. They joyfully said “Sssweet” in the way that only someone who truly loves what they are doing can. Our guides encouragingly yelled “Sssweet” as I finally grazed the stationary foam mountain lion with an arrow. They described me gunning the side-by-side through the river as “Sssweet.” And when my six-year-old recounted to the staff each of the numerous animal encounters, she was always greeted with a “Sssweet.” The lodge sits in the largest concentration of big horn sheep on the planet. Other wildlife was plentiful, including a bald eagle that had a habit of swooping over the lake when I was swimming. Additionally, there were baby turtles and bull frogs that the staff were only too happy to jump in the water to grab so my six-year-old could pet them. Sssweet.

I’m crazy about the outdoors, but I want to experience it in world class luxury while using points to exceptional value. So, when RVR became bookable with Hilton Honors points via the SLH partnership in September of 2024, I immediately booked two rooms for six nights using 1,040,000 Hilton Honors points (8 X 130K with the 5th night free) and two free night certificates for August of 2025. Since booking, the points price has gone up twice, and it is now an eye watering 200K per night. Cash rates for next summer are north of $6K per night with taxes and fees included. Even at 200k points per night, you’re still getting more than 3 cents per point, which is excellent for Hilton Honors points.

You might ask why rates are so high. Although the RVR has eight rooms, the general manager, Kayla, told me that to allow for personalized service at the hotel, they are currently only booking four rooms at a time. Additionally, Kayla told me that next year the property will be closed on Wednesdays to tend to the animals and the property. While I was there, in total there was a maximum of 7 guests. There were times when there were more staff in the kitchen than guests on property. All food was included as were private, guided activities. The private suburban shuttle service to/from the airport and to/from our white water rafting trip was also free. RVR’s website indicates that offsite activities are an additional charge, but that policy has recently changed for white water rafting. RVR typically has a hefty upcharge for more than two guests in a room, but they graciously waved the fee for me as I booked two rooms. YMMV.

The food, while not Michelin star caliber, was excellent; in my view the fare was comparable with the best restaurants in any mid-sized US city. Although it’s a small kitchen, they handled my party’s unique dietary needs with aplomb. In my party of five, they commonly had to make four meals, as I had one gluten free vegan, one picky six-year-old, and one last minute request for no red meat. Having all the complexity of meal planning taken care of, freed up more time for us to enjoy the activities and the property.

Bottom line: We absolutely loved Riverview Ranch. It doesn’t feel like a points hotel; it feels like what it is, a $6k / night luxury ranch for the private jet set. Everything about the service was beyond what I have ever experienced at a hotel. The closest points hotel that I can compare RVR to is Ventana. Though generously if Ventana is the Qsuites of hotels, then RVR isn’t just the Etihad Apartment of hotels, it’s the private G6 of hotels.

As an example of the level of service, one of the staff, Tatum, mistakenly forgot to put out napkins for a few meals. It was instantly resolved each time. We jokingly speculated with her if she would remember napkins for our last dinner. For our final night she made the most exceptional napkin folds and handpicked flowers to go with the napkins. (Photo below). We have all had trips that we didn’t want to end, but RVR was my first trip that ended with my family giving good-bye hugs to one of the staff and offering to host them if they were ever in our town. In my opinion, RVR is hands down the best use of Hilton free night certificates (FNCs). If you have Hilton FNCs, I can’t recommend RVR enough. Even if it comes down to splurging 200k Hilton Honors points / night, go for it. This place is Absolutely Sssweet.

Activities – Two daily activities are included in your room rate with the exception of your departure and arrival days. Depending upon your arrival day a carriage ride may be included. All but two of our activities on property were private. We all had our favorite activities. For me it was horse-riding. My daughter’s pick was jet skiing. My mother’s favorite was archery. My mother’s husband loved white water rafting. My wife’s was the side-by-side excursion. In retrospect, I would not have included hiking as an activity, as we could have done this on our own. The shooting range is a must; the staff built a wooden western town that you can shoot at with a 22. Sssweet. I recommend skipping the larger, noisier rifles. Even with ear protection, one of the rifles was so massive that it gave me a headache.

Parking: N/A. A private shuttle to/from airport and to/from off property activities is free.

Turndown service: This is an example of where the service really shined. They left a new gift each night for each of us. The first night we all received personalized named yeti water bottles. After my daughter met the highland cows, the staff noticed that she was smitten with the black-haired highland cow, named Georgie. The next night my daughter received a stuffed black-haired highland cow as her turndown gift. Other gifts included a comb to play with the cow’s hair and a chocolate highland cow. Earlier in the trip, she received a stuffed elk, which was briefly her favorite and then totally ignored once she got Georgie. Grown up gifts included: leather key chains, leather luggage name tags, carry-on sized portion of Montana huckleberry jam, and a toiletry bag.

Dining (all-inclusive)

Breakfast: Every day there was fresh fruit and granola/yogurt as well as a new daily fresh pastry. Eggs / bacon / sausage / potatoes are made to order, as was the daily special entrée and the daily smoothie. They accommodated us ordering off menu several times, e.g. tofu scrambles.
Lunch: There were three courses: typically, an appetizer, a salad, and a sandwich served with house made potato chips.
Dinner: There were four courses: an appetizer, a salad, a main entrée and a desert.

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