A Stay at Nemacolin Resort – Hotel Review

I spent a lot of time trying to find the PERFECT place to stay for my birthday. For me, here were some of the things I wanted the place to have:

• A comfy, spacious room
• A spa to relax
• A pool (indoor or outdoor, but preferably outdoors)
• A substantial number of activities to choose from
• Dining on property
• Aesthetic décor

I know, I know, that was a pretty tall order, but let me tell you-

Nemacolin had all of that and so much more!

Arrival

Nemacolin is located in Farmington, Pennsylvania, about a 3-hour drive from the MD/DC area. Apparently, there is also a private airfield on the property that guests can use (goes to show how fancy this place is).

We arrived in the evening on a Monday, around 7pm. When we pulled up to the humongous property that we would be staying at, my jaw dropped. This was our view (they were starting to decorate the property for the Christmas holiday).

Nemacolin has numerous options to stay in, but I opted to stay in the most classic choice: The Chateau, which is inspired by the Ritz Carlton in Paris.

As we pulled up in front of the property, there was staff awaiting our arrival, they unloaded our car, introduced us to our butler (more about that later), and drove my car away to valet parking (did I mention that valet is complimentary during your stay?)

We had the pleasure of meeting our lovely butler, who escorted us to our room and gave us a rundown of the property. Our room was beautiful! Pictures don’t do it justice. We were supposed to stay in the Chateau King room, but we got complimentary upgraded to the Chateau King SUITE!

Room

The King Suite has a lovely bed with a small chaise at the end of it, a small living room space, a huge bathroom with double sinks, a bathtub (with jets), and a shower. I knew as soon as I walked in that room that I was in for a luxurious time.

We were also greeted with their relaxing turndown service, which includes a box of cookies and soothing background music playing on the TV. If the goal is to make you feel relaxed and ready to go to sleep, then they definitely did the job!

After we unpacked a bit, we decided to go downstairs and explore the Chateau. When we visited the lobby, the concierge gave us both a glass of champagne to sip on as we walked around the property.

The Chateau

The Chateau is filled with many things. During our stay, many things were undergoing renovations, like some of the restaurants. The Chateau has an art gallery, a cigar bar, an afternoon tearoom, a lobby bar, a patisserie, restaurants, and more! If there is an activity that you want to do that isn’t located in the Chateau, then you can call the shuttle to take you there. Nemacolin has 24/7 shuttle service, which is greatly appreciated.

My boyfriend was drawn to the cigar bar of course, and we spent some time in there for a bit. The staff attendant was able to assist him with choosing the perfect cigar, and even went over other options as well. Once he picked his cigar, the attendant clipped and lit it for him, and then we were escorted to the actual bar and lounge itself, it had numerous comfy chairs, a small bar, and even a cozy fireplace.

I was tired from the drive, so I retired early to the room. I was excited to relax in the tub with what was left of my champagne. The tub looked like the perfect place to take a bubble bath, so I called down to the lobby to see if they had any. Unfortunately you have to stay in either one of the Chateau Cub level rooms or at the Falling Rock or Grand Lodge hotels to get that type of stuff because it comes with more personalized butler service. All 3 options, the Chateau Club floor rooms, Falling Rock, and Grand Lodge all come with a next level tier of butler services, including luggage packing and unpacking, as well as bath and pillow menus. When you stay at the basic rooms in the Chateau, you are able to have a butler, but they are more so there to assist with your arrival and departure. However, the front desk did let me know that they are able to offer some scented bath salts to use in the tub, so I chose my scent and they had someone drop it off at my door.

The rest of my night was spent relaxing and reading my book. I was so exited to celebrate my birthday the next day.

The next morning, I woke up to room service, breakfast in bed basically, there was a cart of plates of food waiting for me at the edge of my bed. There was:

• Scrambled eggs
• Pork sausage and ham
• Pancakes
• A fruit platter
• Toast with jam and butter
• Fresh squeezed orange juice

The breakfast looked amazing, the orange juice tasted so fresh, and there was no pulp at all, I was shocked because usually freshly squeezed orange juice comes with pulp. I could tell that they take great care in their food and presentation.

We were given a list of activities going on for the day, and we opted to spend some time at the spa, as well as participate in their afternoon tea.

Spa

First up was the spa, my boyfriend and I both signed up for pedicures. Each one lasted the same amount of time, which was 50 minutes. And the staff was very gentle with us and talked us through each part of the pedicure. They gave us snack and drink options, including infused water, mimosas, tea, and more.

The spa also has an indoor pool (co-ed), a relaxation lounge, steam rooms and a whirlpool. Now usually, you would have to book a body treatment to get full access to those amenities, but luckily for us, during our stay, even if you booked a salon treatment, like nails or hair, you can still get access.

The spa has many services including:

• Massages
• Body treatments
• Pedicures
• Manicures
• Hair treatments
• And facials

And in case you wanted more in-depth wellness treatments, like cryotherapy or float therapy, Nemacolin has a Holistic Healing Center on property available.

After our pedicures, my boyfriend and I booked an hour session at their relaxation lounge.

*You can book for 30 minutes or an hour*

They took us both to our locker rooms, which of course, are not co-ed, the locker rooms also have direct access to the whirlpool and steam rooms, so the only co-ed spa amenities are the indoor pool and the relaxation lounge.

After putting our stuff away and putting our comfy robes on, we headed to the relaxation lounge. There were chaises with our names on them, and a lovely fireplace in the middle of it all. The lounge also provides views of the indoor pool. I brought my book with me so I can read it in peace. They gave us some small charcuterie snacks and we had the option to get a drink. My boyfriend got the hot chocolate (which is made with milk as it should be), and I opted for the Skin Tea drink, a wellness drink that is good for your body.

Soon enough, our time was up, and we decided to go to the indoor pool afterwards. There was no one in there so we had the whole pool to ourselves for a bit. The pool was also slightly heated.

After we spent some time in the pool, we went our separate ways to go to the whirlpools and steam rooms. The whirlpool was beautiful, it reminded me of a heated jacuzzi. There were also two steam rooms: one was lavender eucalyptus and the other was a Himalayan salt wall room. I assume the men’s side has the same things.

When we both finished relaxing, we got dressed and met in the spa lobby to head back to the Chateau and have our afternoon tea.

Afternoon Tea

The Tea room is located in the back of the lobby, slightly hidden. It is beautifully decorated and filled with natural light from the big windows. We were given our tea options, I went with the sweet cinnamon plum tea, and my boyfriend got the mystic mint flavor. We also had sugar cubes and honey, along with regular sugar packets as well. Once we sipped on our tea for a bit, we were given a beautiful tray of tea snacks. Some of the snacks were savory like duck confit, while others were sweet like macaroons and mango cheesecake. I’ve never had duck before, but surprisingly, that was my favorite of the bunch, it was so yummy! Once we finished, they asked us what our favorite tea snack was, I told them the duck one was my favorite, and my boyfriend enjoyed the bacon one. To our surprise, they came back with more of our favorites, they told us that since afternoon tea wasn’t fully booked today, the chef had extras (what a great birthday surprise!).

After we finished our tea, we both went back up to the room to get some work done. Well, my boyfriend had work to get done, I just read my book some more lol.

The rest of our day consisted of a dinner reservation at 6pm, and then plans to visit the Peak, which is where Nemacolin has their outdoor heated pool that is open year-round. My birthday was on a Tuesday, so unfortunately, we weren’t able to dine at Lautrec, a well-known luxurious dining opportunity. But instead, their new restaurant: Fawn & Fable, was launching its menu inside of Lautrec’s location. So, it’s almost like we got to eat inside Lautrec without paying for the full experience!

Dinner consisted of rolls with honey butter, roasted chicken with mashed potatoes, steak, and mac and cheese. For dessert, we got the gingerbread cake, which was deliciously spiced and had a wonderful frosting.

After dinner, we called the shuttle to take us from the Chateau to the Peak. The shuttle arrived in about 5 minutes, and then we were on our way.

The Peak

The Peak doesn’t just consist of the pool, it has so many other activities like:

• Bowling
• Ax throwing
• Pool
• Indoor golf simulations
• Dining

Since my birthday is in November, it was obviously very cold outside, so I loved that the Peak’s outdoor pool had a shack where you can get heated towels and robes. This definitely came in handy to brave the cold weather while also dripping with water, lol.

The pool was huge, and it even had a hot tub on the side. There was a large TV screen, where I assume Nemacolin hosts pool movie nights during the warmer seasons. And even though I loved the vibe of the outdoor pool, it was still very cold, so needless to say, we didn’t last long out there.

We planned on going bowling, but unfortunately, there was a private event being held there for the night. So after we dried off and got dressed, we called the shuttle back to the Chateau and just chilled in our room for the rest of the night.

Our time at Nemacolin went by so fast, and there was still so much stuff that we didn’t get to do and see, especially with all the renovations happening. Luckily my boyfriend loves it and plans on taking us back lol, so hopefully you’ll read more about my Nemacolin adventures soon!