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.

Absolute class, great food surrounded by people who care. We had the steak, it was cooked to…read moreperfection. Magical place and cannot wait to go back.

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!

The service was horrible, course was decent and food was good. Starters and pro shop workers made…read moreyou feel like you shouldn't have come.

Very well maintained Golf Course, good food, the views of the mountains and the sounds of the…read morecreeks and river just can't beat that.

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.

Internet was out. TV channels wouldn't change. No housekeeping on Wednesday, so no trash was…read moreemptied. Hot not available due to water temperature issue. We left a day early due to numerous black big ants In the bathroom and kitchen. We paid $560 for what was suppose to be 3 nights. We left a day early so only one night. We complained and reluctantly, we were given $100 credit. Will never go back.

Hidden gem! Inn keeper was fantastic. The grounds are lush and being on the river made it even…read morebetter. Will definitely be going back!

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!

Coming to Maggie Valley and don't know where to stay? Why, you stay HERE, of course! Clean,…read morecharming cabins, some right on Campbell Creek (make sure you specify you want a creek-side cabin) at incredibly reasonable rates. My family has been staying here when we come up on vacation for over 30 years. It's within walking distance of the ultra-yummy Joey's Pancake House, so that is a bonus, in and of itself. Kids and some adults (like yours truly) love to play in the creek or hang out by the volleyball net behind the cabins and just enjoy being outside. The cabins are fully stocked; just bring your groceries and you're all set. Near everything, from Ghost Town to Waynesville and a quick drive over to Asheville. This is my own personal little slice of paradise and you won't regret making it yours as well.

We haven't stayed here in years but always loved it but not sure we'll be back. The very young man…read morethat checked us in had absolutely no idea how to do it. Ended up call the manager and he walked him through the process over the phone. We requested a first floor room due to having medical equipment to bring on. We were assured we had a first floor room. Our room number was in the 100's but ended up being up a flight of stairs on the second floor. Then the room is a lot smaller than I remember it is clean but has a musty smell. The bathroom is clean but very small. There is a walk-in closet that is bigger than the bathroom.

It's awful. Tear it down and start over? Rooms are a weird set up. You can hear every peep…read more Neighbors are fighting and slamming doors. Vastly overpriced for what you receive. We're so disappointed and we have stayed at some dumps on motorcycle trips. This takes the cake. If I could give it zero stars, I would. We paid for two nights, but we are leaving after one.

I was in the Asheville area on vacation and someone recommended this golf course. I was super happy…read morewith it! And I'm pretty picky with my golf clubs so I think that says something?! The front nine is relatively flat and is in the "valley" but then the back line goes up and down the mountain a bit. The holes are a little wonky sometimes but are usually very fair. The greens on the back nine can get a little crazy , it helps to play with someone that has played the course before. When I played the course, it was in pretty good condition. Comparatively speaking it's in much better condition than the other public tracks in the area that I have played. There were a few brown spots on the fairway, but nothing major. The greens rolled very true. My only real complaint was that the expectation of how fast you should play is pretty unrealistic... I think they have teetimes every 10 minutes and there's a lot of older golfers. There's also a lot of groups that have both males and females in them... None of this is a bad thing, but it slows the round down because people are teeing off and different places. There's also a couple holes that are cartpath only that really Can slow down your round. The price felt a little high, but it was in much better condition than courses that were only a little bit cheaper and so I'll take the higher price and the better conditions any day There wasn't a lot of water on the course... And buy that what I mean is jugs of water to drink... So it's not a bad idea to grab a water bottle in the clubhouse for you come out. The only other thing of node is that the driving range is nowhere near the clubhouse. I got lost taking my golf cart there! Twice! And longer hitters won't be able to use driver on the range. Beautiful course. Wonderful round. Worth the drive. Beautiful views!

We stayed at the Maggie Valley Resort & Clubhouse for two nights on recommendation from our family…read more We arrived after spending a week in a cabin sharing with 4 other people, so we were really pleased with this place. We didn't use the amenities, but at check-in, it was made clear that we could use the pool, schedule golfing, and that the restaurant at the club was fantastic. Our favorite parts were the views, how homey the condo was, and the proximity to places we wanted to go. It isn't far from Biltmore Estate, Waynesville, downtown Asheville, or the Blue Ridge Parkway. There are local restaurants around, some shops, and grocery stores nearby. The complex was also very quiet. I would highly recommend staying here for any trip.