Do you like waking up, heading down to the hotel breakfast area, and then being bombarded with the day's news and commentary on the big flat sceen positioned at the end of the room so it is inescapable? Do you prefer to walk on the hotel's treadmill rather than risk the outdoors? Are you the type that expects to grab all the little boxes of (children's size) Frosted Flakes on your way out for road snacks? If these are your expectations then this isn't your kind of hotel place to stay.
Here's why: #1. Spruce Pine is not Blowing Rock, Boone, or Asheville. It's not a "destination" spot for 84.7% of the traveling public. #2. If you're going, then you're probably going for the reasons we did, to find a nice place to stay during the night while we hiked around during the daylight hours. At the end of the day, we wanted some pretty Okay places to eat and when morning came we wanted some relaxing places to slurp coffee. #3. If you stay at this hotel as we did, then you are prepared to stroll over the foot bridge that takes you into their little downtown.
For those of you who are taxing-paying North Carolinians, you will enjoy knowing that the area's community college has a big hand revitalizing the former school and hockey rink and turning them into the hotel and community sports/activity center. The overall (good, win-win) effect should be to help bring in outside tourist dollars while providing community members and their families with a nice indoor complex. We found our room clean and pleasant. The price was fair and met our budget. The staff people were helpful. The patio decks and landscaping are incomplete but enough work has been done to suggest how pretty it will be when it all comes together.
Finally, although we're not into trout fishing, it seems pretty obvious that enthusiasts coming from outside the area will appreciate the super easy access to the Toe and the proximity to the hotel. read more