We recently connected with Rocky & Gianni Donati and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Rocky & Gianni thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?
Gianni and I (Rocky) lived in San Francisco when Airbnb first launched in 2008. We, against the advise of friends, decided that we wanted to experiment with it! After some rocky couch surfing, we finally found our stride with locating amazing and unique places. We continued to use Airbnb to explore the world and have stayed in some incredible spots, such as a glass house in the Yucatan jungle and a 300 year old stone wine cellar converted into a seaside apartment. The memories from these places and the wonderful hosts we met led us to want to share our beautiful home with others. It allowed us to become locals more than tourists. After our move into to 8,000 feet within a rural community, we wanted to share that experience with others and opted to join Airbnb’s platform to do so.
Our overall mission is to provide an unforgettable stay that connects guests with nature and with one another. We always say “This is your chance to runaway from the city and find solace in the mountains… but without sacrificing luxury!”
Rocky & Gianni, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
Originally from San Diego, California, my husband, Gianni, and I (Rocky) slowly migrated up the coast through San Luis Obispo and San Francisco before making the leap to Salt Lake City, Utah. After a few years in the heart of downtown, we moved our family of critters into a remote haven among the aspens. We now live in and work from our chalet with The Treehouse Utah nestled next door and The Hideaway Utah just up the lane. We cherish our solitude and love being surrounded by Mother Nature.
Our beautiful, one-of-a-kind tiny havens are situated at 8,000 feet in a private rural canyon community outside Park City, Utah, and are only accessible by 4×4/AWD for 3 miles of dirt or snow-packed roads. Designed to embrace nature and escape the city, guests should be prepared for a magical adventure in the mountains with breathtaking views of the Uintas that are nothing short of spectacular!
Our little small business started from nothing more than a shared childhood dream of sleeping in a tree fort. We are honored to host hundreds of guests every year and can’t wait to have you experience the same quietness and beauty when you visit our home. We believe in the magic of our mountain to create beautiful memories for you and your loved ones. Whether you visit during our gorgeous green summers to escape the heat of the valley or runaway to a winter wonderland that feels like the inside of a snow globe, this oasis will be an unforgettable once-in-a-lifetime adventure.
The Treehouse Utah was built in 2013 using mostly raw materials found on the property itself, such as the wood used from the Aspens, along with sustainable up-cycled options from our local Restore, part of Habitat for Humanity. This beautiful, one-of-a-kind oasis really is embraced by an evergreen! The tree is 100% living; it is estimated to be a 200-year old fir and it has happily resided inside The Treehouse build since it was originally built. Our gorgeous lofted bedroom with skylight, 180-degree windows with views of the Uinta mountains, and cozy hidden location make us one of Park City’s most unique and comfortable accommodations. The Treehouse Utah is meant to be an homage to childhood dreams of adventure.
The Hideaway Utah was hand built in 1976 by Roger and Barbara as a summer cabin for their growing family. For nearly 50 years, they escaped to the mountains and enjoyed time with friends and family. In 2021, we became stewards of this beautiful two-acre property to share the same unforgettable experience with our guests. Prior to renting, we took on a lengthy renovation project to upgrade the space for year-round use. Despite the changes, we made it a top priority to preserve the original structure and materials so that you could see The Hideaway’s gorgeous history both on the interior and exterior. Our renovations focused on modernizing the structure top to bottom. This included new framing, electrical, winterized plumbing, drywall, paint, stairs, flooring, windows, roof, decks, fireplace, insulation, all-season road access, and the fun additions in the fully redesigned loft (like a fully suspended hammock floor and the floor-to-ceiling glass wall), downstairs bathroom, and full wrap around kitchen. We also added an upstairs powder room… because why not. The Hideaway Utah was designed as a cozy and organic space to provide a secluded experience WITH Mother Nature.
We can’t wait to share our home with you.
How’d you meet your business partner?
This one is a fun question because my cofounder/business partner is my husband…
Gianni and I (Rocky) met in Dr. White’s calculus class at Cal Poly, SLO in September of 2005. Gianni was transitioning from an Industrial Engineering major to an Industrial Technology major. I was studying Mathematics.
A few days into the class, as homework was being collected, the boy seated behind me handed his paper to me. I noticed the name: Gianpaolo Pio Donati.
“Bad ass name.” I said.
“Thank you.” He said.
The next day he noticed my Carlsbad High School Lancer t-shirt.
“Carlsbad, huh?” He said. I nodded.
“I went to La Costa Canyon.” He said. I scoffed.
A few days later he asked if I knew anyone that might be able to tutor him. I told him I’d be happy to help. We studied once together. Unfortunately, our significant others at the time failed to see the benefit of my tutoring. So did Gianni’s grades.
After three years of a casual friendship, failed attempts to go on a first date, bits of flirtation and moments of laughter during random encounters, Gianni and I spent less and less time together until he visited me at the place I worked – Peet’s Coffee & Tea – in June 2008 wearing a pink shirt.
“Large coffee with a shot of espresso. So what’s new? You want to go shooting? When I get back from Italy, we should hang out.”
His signature tag line (“We should go shooting”) and that pink shirt (the one I told him I liked years ago) warmed my heart.
I followed some photos of his European tour on Facebook and told him to call me when he returned.
We hung out with a group of friends during Trivia Night at Woodstock’s Pizza. The next day, we went for a hike to The Tower with a bottle of red wine. The following day, we went on a hike to Madonna Mountain and mixed mimosas on site. And the adventure never stopped. He finished his last year of his undergraduate degree while I completed my MBA. We moved together to Pacifica in the summer of 2009 and began working at the same startup company for about a decade before transitioning to a slower paced lifestyle in Utah and wanted to share the beauty of our mountain with others.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
We take hosting really seriously, so of course we cover all the basic amenities, ensure a clean and sanitary space, comfortable beds, cozy linens, etc. But we don’t want to just create a space for people to sleep, we want to curate an experience. Our magical mountain does the heavy lifting, but the design of our spaces and the details within those spaces are key to ensuring that our guests can connect 100% with nature while they stay with us, such as a hammock floor and a glass wall in the lofted bedroom to ensure a visible sunrise, or a living tree within the space and a deck that provides 270-degree views of the Uintas mountains. That approach, coupled with personalizing each stay, truly sets us apart from the rest. We always aim to help our guests celebrate in style by providing movie night snacks, bathrobes, a custom welcome letter board, and handwritten cards to ensure they know we appreciate their business!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.theforgottencabins.com
- Instagram: @theforgottencabins
- Facebook: @theforgottencabins
- Other: www.airbnb.com/p/theforgottencabins
Image Credits
The Forgotten Cabins owns all the images so please just reference us. We also wanted to provide you with links to a couple of our tour videos, which do a great job of showcasing our spaces: https://vimeo.com/user165395851