I remember telling my wife the last time we were here that if I could build my dream cabin-it would…read morebe the Balsam here at the lovely and cozy Swag. Two bathrooms, two steam showers, sauna, living room with fireplace, outdoor balcony with fireplace and shower, and it's right across the fence from our nations most popular park-Great Smokey Mountains National Park. We walked right out our door to hike. Nearby trials take you to waterfalls, waterwheels, and the spectacular panoramics from atop Gooseberry Knob or Hemphill Bald. We returned from one of our hikes just in time for the Swag's stellar bbq picnic. That leads nicely to the food and service which is as good as it comes-and frankly what you can expect from a Relais and Chateau. Tables with your names for breakfast and dinner, nightly bites during happy hour, and even lunches to go for your adventures. Which, for us even included horseback riding at the nearby stables. Naturally, they were waiting for us when our ride ended in one of their electric fleet of Volvos to whisk us back up the windy road into a vacation of our dreams!

We have just enjoyed a wonderful fifth annual July visit to The Swag to celebrate our 56th wedding…read moreanniversary. The Swag is a premier lodge nestled on a mountainside in the Smoky Mountains high over Waynesville NC. It offers spectacular views, immediate access to the Great Smoky Mountain National Park by simply walking through a gap in the fence outside the main lodge, fine dining, pickleball courts, a spa, and a small gym and pool. An expert naturalist is often in residence and conducts a variety of activities, including organized hikes, talks about wildlife (bears, coyotes, bioluminescence and other interesting aspects of the natural world).  Other activities include a presentation on coffee making by their barista and wine tasting sessions. But if all you want to do is just have a wonderful place to  relax and enjoy being in the great outdoors, The Swag is one of the best places you can go. The Swag is a Relais and Chateaux resort so accommodations are excellent and range from a comfortable, well furnished bedroom for two to a cabin suitable for an entire family. À la carte breakfasts, packaged lunches (including backpacks and water bottles if needed), and four-course dinners are included in the daily rates. The lunch and dinner menus change daily, but dinner entree choices typically include beef, seafood, poultry and vegetarian options. On Wednesdays and Saturdays there is a mountain top lunch picnic with abundant food. Thursday evening is barbecue night. Food at The Swag is locally sourced and quality standards are exceptionally high.  Service at The Swag is truly exceptional. Every employee is focused on making sure all of your needs are met. The kitchen tries to accommodate any special requests. Much of the resort's clientele return year after year, and guests are automatically offered a return reservation for the same time and accommodation next year at the time of checkout. This is great for established clients and has allowed The Swag to build a large band of loyal followers, including us, but this does make it harder for first-timers to get a reservation for a time and accommodation they would like. My advice is just keep trying!  We got our first reservation after many tries when someone cancelled while we were on the phone with the lodge trying to get one. Tradition means a lot at The Swag, and that is a good thing. My only suggestion to them is to consider adding an à la carte section to the dinner menu as many other fine dining establishments do. It would give the kitchen more opportunity to try out dishes before adding them to the prix fixe choices and allow guests who may not want a full four course dinner every night an alternative. I realize that this would complicate the traditional pricing scheme, but that should be manageable.

What a rare gem! From the time you drive up until the time you get up from the breakfast table you…read morefeel...at home. The room we stayed in was clean and comfortable, I love the pink retro tile in bathroom. There are little welcoming niches all around the property that invite you to sit a spell. The owner was very present and personable! Loved sitting in the porch rockers before daylight with a cup of coffee, then I moved to outside dining room as the sun was rising over the mountains. The breakfast was delicious too!

Not for the elderly who are not in top physical shape. The grounds and walkways are horrendous…read more Totally uneven and what is supposed to be a walkway is so dangerous we could not stay there. We were told that being that we could not stay there would be a charge card fee of $12 which I had no choice but to agree to. But, they charged $40. I feel like I was totally ripped off.

I've read all of these reviews, and it seems like the inn does, too. Most of the problems have…read morebeen addressed, and some just can't be. It's important to keep in mind that this is an old, historic building that is retrofitted to a modern world. So, rooms are a little bit different. Yeah, they don't have microwave ovens, or refrigerators, but are those really needed? They have coffee makers, irons, ironing boards, and comfortable, spacious rooms. Our bed was tops, and we slept great. I also liked how the shower "got hot" very quickly; almost instantly, and the water pressure was great. The bathroom is a little small, but that's mostly because of the retrofit. I don't think the original hotel even had bathing facilities in each room. The bathroom is big enough for anything you really need to do in there. The closet is small, too, but again, it's big enough. We were there when a golf tournament was going on, and yet, the rooms and hallways were still very quiet. On top of that, the service is incredible. Several people came by our table to ask if everything was ok, and how we liked it. It is the epitome of Southern Hospitality, and charm. There is a big, outdoor pool for the kids, a lot of beautiful, green space for enjoying the lovely mountain view, and, of course, golf. We don't play, but it was kind of fun watching tournament attendees tee off. When you stay at this place, expect to be treated very well, and made to feel like a guest. As for the problems with checking in, it's not that hard. There's plenty of parking, even when a tournament is on. Golfing, or not, it's a nice, quiet, peaceful retreat.

What a beautiful setting, and a wonderful lodge. The Waynesville Inn and Golf Course is a…read moredestination unlike any other. The hotel is clean with large rooms, gorgeous views, and a restaurant inside. Play golf or just practice at the ample facilities. I had a wonderful stay on a large suite at a reasonable rate.

First, the NEGATIVES: . We paid for a lakeside room but our…read moreview was obstructed by a half-height wall jutting up from the 3rd floor And the windows weren't clean so when the sun hits them the view is dramatically reduced. The pictures they show online are not what we got, and we paid an average of $240 a night. . The TV is new and nice but the staff couldn't get the Bluetooth feature working for us. We spent far too much time trying. The remotes are just plain weird. We couldn't figure out how to operated the thing, had to call the front desk. . The sink is in the bedroom. The bathroom is claustrophobic. Also no exhaust fan. . There was no housekeeping our entire stay (Thurs-Sunday). We ran out of toilet paper and couldn't even find a housekeeping cart anywhere on our floor. Our garbage was overflowing. We ate in our room a couple of meals and there was no place to get rid of the containers. . No microwave . The bed is comfortable but it holds heat. We both woke up in the middle of the night feeling hot. BREAKFAST . For heaven's sake, people, figure out how to keep a steady supply of coffee. There was always a line of people rushing the urn when they brought it out. Also, if you would move it a couple of feet away from the cream and sugar, we wouldn't have to wait for the person in front of us to put it in their coffee before they could move away and let the next person pour a cup. . The only choice for eggs is scrambled eggs held on a steam table. Therefore, cold rubbery eggs. . Anything that could be over sweetened was. I'm looking at you, Baked goods and yogurt. ON THE POSITIVE SIDE, it appears the rooms have been updated since all the earlier complaints. Ours was very clean and reasonably modern. The staff were very nice. The public spaces were spacious and we enjoyed having our breakfast on a table on the balcony. BREAKFAST: The bacon and the biscuits were excellent, and there was always fresh fruit. I didn't try the waffles or pancakes, but they looked like you would expect when piled up in a pan. Apparently people come here and pay $15 for the breakfast. I wouldn't.

So this has to do with dining. I came in for dining and paid 28 dollars. This was supposed to be…read morefor a full 4 course meal. First and foremost they were out of dessert by time I came. They were offering boxed mixed greens and salad fixing when the news is telling us to stay away from that because of a bad parasite. their main course was pork. I am allergic to gluten which was on their shrimp and I don't eat pork for religious reasons. I told them this and they made me a small plate of chicken definitely not 28 dollars worth. If you're going to charge that much money and offer a buffet, then you need to have a variety of foods catering to a variety of peoples different dietary needs. Along with supply enough food so that you don't run out. I don't eat pork but it looked dried out and not very good anyway. I would not recommend coming to their restaurant. Also they could have offered me a refund when they couldn't suit my needs.

A few bumps when we first got there, but they immediately attended and fixed everything. The…read morepersonal service was great meals were fantastic and Cara de Somalia is a wonderful addition to their staff. We enjoyed horseback riding a wine tour ut ride.

Loved our stay here. Recently underwent renovations and joined the luxury chain Relais and Chateau…read more We stayed in the Haywood cabin which was perfect for our group of 5. Two king bedrooms with en suite bathrooms, porches, living area with pull out couch, and fireplace. Modern decor and comfy touches throughout like the heated floors in the bathroom. We also had an amazing view of the mountains. We had the pleasure of trying all the menus at Switchback Restaurant - breakfast, brunch, and dinner. Food was local and tasty. Vibe was lodge chic. Took advantage of the hiking trails as well. Did the Salamander Falls and Meadow trails. Great scenery and went right past the pasture with horses, which were so sweet. Most importantly, the staff were all incredible. Everyone was pleasant and accommodating. They made it so easy to communicate requests both before and during our stay. Thanks for a great time!

Unfortunately we got caught in a thunderstorm after 11 holes and of course I was shooting the game…read moreof my life ( just kidding) so we had to tried to sit and wait it out. The never ending rain finally convinced us we weren't going to get the round in, the staff in the club house offered us a rain check for an additional nine holes the next day but we were traveling out of the area early the next morning so we had to pass. I definitely was Impressed with the holes we played and plan to play a full round in the future. The holes we did manage to get in were great, the course was in great shape before the rain and the greens provided true putts but they were challenging. I wish there was less development and it was a bit more isolated but this is a premium home site and I can see why one would love to have a home around this track. I don't think you will be disappointed of you choose to play here. The rates were very reasonable also.

if I could rate this a 0 I would. Went to the Asian Buffet. it all was disgusting heated frozen…read morefood! AND they automatically added 20% gratuity without letting the client know. Thank goodness I checked. Food was horrific!!!

My MIL owns a week here, and my wife or her friends typically come up. This year there were 13 of…read moreus, including kids. I've heard so much, even seen pics, but it truly didn't capture what a quaint spot this is nestled in. Our units were in buildings 2 and 3, near one of the greens of the golf course, and across the little parking lot from Jonathan Creek. I started each morning reading a book and drinking coffee out on the porch, watching the sun come up. I was surprised at how early the maintenance guys started working on the golf course (6:45am one morning!). They should rethink that -- have them do the lawn care at the end of the day instead, since people come here to sleep in and relax. I was also surprised at how fast cars come through the "parking lot", which I discovered is also the access road to the houses up on the hills behind the condos. People were constantly having to be told to slow down with all of the kids (not just ours) in that area of the resort. There should be speed bumps along the creek drive, or warning signs of some sort. All if us REALLY enjoyed the creek, with both fishing and tubing down it (we got some sturdy ones for just $7 each at Walmart). Of our 7 days here, 2 of them were spent all day in the creek. Oh, and you can "borrow" fishing poles at the Valley Welcome Center about 1/2 mile toward town, and keep them for 3 days! We didn't catch anything, but I did see a local catch four fish one afternoon. The units are very homey, and I like how they supply all the dishes etc you need, as well as extra bedding for the pull out sleeper couch (two of our kids used it). The decor is a bit dated, but kept clean and it works. We also used the fireplace two nights for a s'more party with the kids, which they loved! Would def recommend staying here with your spouse alone or whole family! Centrally located where you can head to Franklin, Pigeon Forge, or any place else you'd like to go.

Peppertree recently dropped membership to the Maggie Valley Country Club as part of their rental…read more Th units are located right on the course. Now they have replaced that with membership at another far less attractive course a few miles away. Not interested in returning would have little else to do.

Staff very friendly and accommodating. Cruxton, jonna, Caitlyn food and beverage associates were /…read moreare wonderful. Treehouses quiet and clean. A must return designation.

From the owner: Springdale Resort is a public golf course situated in the rolling hills of Cruso North Carolina…read more Our 18-hole championship-level course is perfect for individuals, group golfers, and families looking for a course to call home. Our lush grounds, top-tier dining, cozy lodging, and welcoming staff create an unforgettable NC mountain golf experience.

This place is amazing and the bathrooms are amazing, the beds are great, the screened porches are…read morefantastic! This is a hidden gem and I hate to admit that I didn't want to post this. I highly recommend staying there, the back is spectacular, and there's a creek and lights, and swings. Stay there. You are well.

The rooms are big, very clean, beds and pillows are so comfortable. It has a log cabin feel, the…read moreproperty is well cared for, and staff is helpful and kind. Laundry facilities are only $2 a load, and they gave us extra towels and coffee with no trouble. At the office is a cozy sitting area with books and puzzles and tea and coffee . Out back there's a hammock, charcoal BBQ, fire pit, and you're a few steps to the creek, which is spectacular. It's lovely to hear the sound at night. They're rocking chairs out front of the door and the creek out back with more chairs. In the 30 years we've been coming to Maggie, this is our new favorite place. We will be back!

What a beautiful place to be.. the rusticness of this lovely location allows for beautiful views of…read morethe lake as well as a convenient hop skip and jump away from things like mini golf, pickleball and a park. Walking around the lake is a Joe's my little event where you can see beautiful swans and lovely ducks. Certain times of the day you can hear the bells chime from the church as well as there tours of the lake and many things to do during the warmer months. The couple that owns the inn are amazing and don't forget to ask Mr Ted about his world famous grits! Whether it's a quiet get away for two, a large family gathering or just a family reunion you cannot go wrong here.

The best place to stay in the Smokies! Right on beautiful Lake Junaluska, the views are amazing and…read morethe innkeepers Ruth and Ted are so kind and helpful! Their Fourth of July celebrations are legendary and they are currently the reigning winner of the annual porch decorating contest for the Fourth of July! The Lagoalinda Inn is so very charming, artfully decorated with antiques collected over the years and each room is expertly decorated with a delightful theme. We love the adjoining "Charleston" Room and the "Music" Room which is perfect for a family of 5-7. There are rooms for families of all sizes and you can even rent the entire three story inn for a large group or family reunion. The front porch gets a wonderful breeze where you will want to sip coffee while you sit and rock the afternoon away on one of the plentiful comfy chairs. Don't miss out on this hidden gem! We will be back soon!