First and foremost. Buy a map and use it. Your GPS will lead you in circles. The Sapphire Area is nestled among never ending breath taking views. The roads in and out of the area are truly long and winding county mountain roads. If you own a roadster automobile take it with you. There is no short way to Sapphire and nothing outside of the immediate resort area is close. It is 90+ minutes of awesome fun-filled driving to everything outside the immediate area. The resort is a compilation of several older resort properties with only a small section of units is owned and maintained by Wyndham hence the mixed reviews by other travelers. We had a two bedroom unit in the Laurels. The units in this section are older circa 1985. Our unit was well mainteined and was very spacious. it was nicely decorated and the decks were of a good size with excellent views. The units was equipped with all the standard household items a time share trader should expect. All in all a very nice unit. The resort is older and several of the facilities in need of updating. Nothing that should ruin a vacation.

The staff was marginally helpful with the exception of the fellows at the resort's boathouse. They were awesome and quite a pleasure. Spend a day at the lake it is very relaxing and enjoyable.

The county is a dry county. Pack you own adult beverages unless you have a large check book or don't mind driving 45 minutes to an ABC store.

The golfing was excellent. Priced right and an excellent value with some georgeous, well maintained courses. Several within a 20 minute drive.

We traveled with our 11 and 13 year old daughters. They had a great time. They never ran out of things to do.

Recommend: (1) the NOC (NOC.com) for white water rafting. They were excellent and reasonably priced. A great family time. (2) EarthShine near lake Toxaway for zip-lining. The staffs of both those companies could not have been more friendly, helpful, or courteous.

The waterfalls are magnificent. Take your camera, I suggest a waterproof one. Use the map and directions from the boathouse. They are dead on target. Be prepared to walk/hike but they views are worth it. Pack lunch and go for a walk.

We will not hestitate to go back.

We had a bad experience with staff member Phillip. He didn't seem like he wanted to talk to guests let alone answer general inquiries regarding the town. The condos are clean but extremely outdated. The floors sqeek as you walk and the sheets have those hard balls on them- the ones that appear from washing sheets too many times.

The place is ok. I will never be back.

I was very disappointed with the condo unit at this resort. The floorplan was very odd - we were in the 1 bdrm unit. You walk in and the living area is very small. You then walk down a flight of stairs to the kitchen and bedroom. It was not designed for a family to stay together. The furniture is very dated (80's decor) and shabby. The bed, pillows and sheets were very tired. I think the stove was the original from when the condo was built and smoked heavily when used. The unit did have a stackable washer/dryer that came in handy.

This is a good resort for the kids to learn to ski/snowboard. There is only 1 lift so it is okay for beginners. I would not come to this resort if you are an advanced skiier looking for challenging blue or black diamond runs.

The rec center was good for the kids. They have a pool table (.75 cents/game) and a couple ping pong tables that entertained the kids for hours. The put put golf and ping pong tables are free. They have a nice size tot lot and basketball courts across the street from the rec center. They do have a couple computers in the rec center to use and it is WIFI if you bring your own laptop.

There is an Ingles grocery store a few miles away if you plan to cook or store up on food.
Bucks in Cashiers is a nice coffee house. We did visit Highlands and enjoyed the Main street as well as Dillsboro to see the Old Square. The highlight of the trip was the Biltmore esteate in Asheville. It took almost 2 hours to get to Asheville driving through all the winding roads and mountain towns. Next time we will stay in Asheville as there is a lot to see and do there.

We would not consider staying at this resort again until it is completely updated.

I too didn't know what to expect, but once I got there. I was completely satisfied. The rooms are nice and clean an spacious. The sites are wonderful. Waterfalls everywhere. No traffic, Not a lot of people. I Truly enjoyed my week in the mountains. Will definitely be returning. I loved every aspect of it. Thanks Wyndham.