Update on Maggie Valley Inn and surrounding areas.

[Todd]

Wanted to give you all a little more information that I have been able to gather.

First on the host Hotel. I have had a few folks contact me wondering about the hotel since it has gotten some questionable reviews on a couple of travel sites. I had seen the outside and common areas but made arrangements to travel to that part of the State and meet with the hotel manager and look at the rooms. Not sure what some of the folks that wrote these reviews were expecting from a hotel in a small tourist area that has a total population of around 700 and motorcycle riders are their main summer tourism crowd...but........................... :-/

This is an older hotel built in the early 70s and is the only hotel of any size in Maggie Valley. It was first a Holiday Inn, then a Quality Inn, and then purchased by an individual family that currently owns it. It is a 70s style hotel with large rooms. It does not have the newest fixures in the bathroom, newest carpet, newest wallpaper, etc. but I went into 3 separate rooms and they were all clean..very clean. The check in area has been updated most recently and the restaurant and bar areas are right off of that and are in great shape. There were a few locals there last night enjoying a beer and dinner. The outside area has the tikibar and area with high bar seating to hangout near the pool (knda like Hooters Tables) . It is going to be a very popular place in the evenings I think. There is a large parking lot in the back and a lot of parking in the front also.

Some pics I took yesterday

Here is the front entrance:




The parking lot:

Front


Back


The front desk


The sleeping rooms are in a separate building connected to the offices/resataurant by a breezeway. The hallways show a little wear on the carpet and walls but all was clean. The rooms were similar showing some age, but everything was very clean. Keep in mind that this is probably one of the newest hotels in Maggie Valley...most are 50's roadside type hotels. The few chains there (Ramada, MicroTel, Best Western, Comfort Inn) are very small and appear to be built around the same time as the MV Inn. For those that were at Custer, this is very similar to the Bavarian Inn as far as quality of hotel goes. I am even more convinced that it will suit us great after taking the extended tour. If you are expecting/requiring the Ritz or a Crowne Plaza, you are going to have to stay about an hour away in either Cherokee or Asheville.

Front the building with the sleeping rooms


Interior Hallway


Standard Room and Bathroom






A few of the rooms have been recently updated and renovated








Shopping - Several have asked about shopping and other attractions. There are many small shops in Maggie Valley along the main road. Most are built for tourist to pick up souvenirs, etc. The manager of the host hotel is also the President of the Chamber of Commerce so she is going to have lots of brochures for all activities available when you check in for the Rally. In the meantime you can check out the Maggie Valley Chamber of Commerce Site http://www.maggievalley.org/, Haywood County Tourism Development http://www.smokeymountains.net/, or Haywood County Chamber of Commerce http://www.haywood-nc.com/.

About 7 miles from The Maggie Valley Inn and Conference Center is the Town of Waynesville NC. Waynesville is just an average small mountain town whereas Maggie is really centered around tourism. Waynesville has the normal Pharmacies, Auto Parts stores, Fast Food, A Small Movie Theater, Walmart...you get the picture. Waynesville has a nice little downtown area that kind of reminds you of Mayberry http://www.downtownwaynesville.com/ with specialty shops, antique shops, and really cool general store called Mast General Store that kind of takes you back in time http://www.mastgeneralstore.com/

Attractions (other than motorcycle roads). Wheels Through Time Motorcycle Museum is right in Maggie Valley http://wheelsthroughtime.com/

Ghost Town in the Sky still seemed deserted..It does not appear that it will open this summer unless some things change.

About an hour to the west is the Cherokee Indian Reservation. Cherokee is a tourist town and an Indian Reservation with a big casino. Harrah's is the big one. You can check out other info on Cherokee here http://www.cherokee-nc.com/ and here http://www.harrahscherokee.com/casin...rty-home.shtml

About an hour east of Maggie Valley is Asheville. Asheville is a small city with a nice downtown, very artsy, center. They have the Biltmore Estate and Winery http://www.biltmore.com/ which is probably the main major attraction. You can find some other Asheville attractions here http://www.exploreasheville.com/what-to-do/index.aspx

If anyone has any other questions, fire away and I or some of the other members familiar with the area will find you an answer.