I love the history of this hotel. Have stayed in the older section and the newer section. I like the older section better. Very nice during the holidays, beautifully decorated, gingerbread houses everywhere! The spa is to die for! The food was average.

Beautiful property and comfortable rooms. Be sure to make dinner reservations early as the restaurants do get filled quickly. The Gingerbread House contestants are displayed throughout so it's fun for kids, too.

"O my!" is a common statement when I take friends and guests, and I always do, to the Grove Park Inn and Spa. As locals, we view this as the #2 (or #1 if folks are on a budget and can't afford the Biltmore Estate ticket, which is extremely reasonable) don't miss attraction in all Asheville! The architecture, the mother of all fireplaces (ditto that for the outside chimney in the front to the right of the entrance), the top rated spa in North America, and as a history major my favorite - you simply will have trouble naming a famous individual in any category after 1895 who hasn't stayed at the Grove Park Inn (FDR-yep; Thomas Edison-yep; Michael Jordan-Yep; Bill Clinton-yep; George Bush-yep; President Eisenhower-yep; Henry Ford-yep; Harvey Firestone-yep; Houdini-yep; Theodore Rosevelt-yep; Helen Keller-yep; Professor Einstein-yep, this author-yep, etc). Well, you get the picture. Having traveled in 55 countries and every state we have seen much, but have never seen a stacked rock building quite like this one. The boulders are huge! And even if you don't go to the spa as a participant, don't miss going behind the spa desk and getting a peek at the underground waterfalls and pools from a small window they provide. My wife loves the gingerbread house contest where hundreds of them are displayed every year just before Christmas, or if you miss it you can catch the winner on national television on Good Morning America. Before we moved to Asheville, we stayed in the Grove Park Inn several occasions, and the rooms are excellent and very clean as you would expect. Now that we live here and are local, we still put many up in this hotel when they come to visit from time to time. If there is a downside to this resort, it might be the food. The prices are beyond reasonable, although not the most expensive in town, and the food itself seems never to be special. I have been disappointed more than several times after a meal at multiple Grove Park Inn restaurants. I know the Grove Park has some of the best chefs in town, so we cannot explain why we would recommend several places over this one, at half the price. But that is where we land on food. Well, not to dwell on this too much, as the food is adequate, just not what one would expect, and you simply must see the Grove Park Inn and Spa (do not let any critique from me or anyone else stop you from seeing this Inn)! There is perhaps nothing like it in the world. For a Christmas gift this year, I gave my wife and my mother-in-law a gift of a day at the Spa, along with a pedicure and manicure, and I'll just say if you need some brownie points with your mother-in-law, or wife, or whomever, you can't go wrong with this! They loved it! If you are giving this to someone as a gift and you can only afford one, go with the pedicure as it last longer and is the extra cost is negligible. Also, for a month or so when that someone looks down at their toes and smiles, they will think of you every time :) Do plan to stay the entire day! Its worth it and cost the same as staying a half day. DO NOT VISIT ASHEVILLE, WITHOUT TOURING THE GROVE PARK INN. If you have it in your budget to do so, STAY THERE! You will not regret it!

Recently stayed here for a weekend special group event and booked reservations at the Spa, too. First of all, the rooms are nothing to write home about. I was in a wing that was apparently renovated. Well, their definition of newer is rather dingy. It's on par with a Holiday Inn/economy level motel. The bathroom was outdated and the room was dark and un-inviting. For the amount paid, I would expect duvet covers and cozy accommodations, not an out-dated bedspread. Unfortunately, the Spa experience doesn't get much better. I am a regular spa goer and could not believe all the hype on this place. You felt like cattle being grouped and toured around the facility. The locker area was cramped and uncomfortable. There were no benches or seating to even lay your bag down on. Then, to add insult to injury, due to the huge crowds you could not even snag a place to sit in their indoor grotto area - which is their big feature. There was hardly any staff monitoring the grotto area to remove towels left behind. And the staff that did appear in the locker area were not friendly - maybe they were as disgusted with the huge crowds as the guests were! Regardless, there was not sufficient seating for the amount of guests present. Same goes for the areas where you waited to be called for your services. Even the Spa Cafe was over-crowded and did not enough seating. When I asked if I get some lunch to go I was told no food is allowed in other areas of the spa - crazy! And, the services - well I was not impressed. I had a massage and had requested a specialist in therapeutic massage, spent time pre-massage going over my needs/wants which were simply not honored - she must have been deaf. Then I had a facial which was better than the massage, but nothing out of this world or nearly worth the amount being charged. My advice if you are considering this hotel is to come for lunch or dinner at the Terrace Restaurant which has a lovely view and the food is very good. Other than that, save your money and your spa experience for somewhere else!