Here’s a rhetorical question: if you decided to take a sabbatical from your very excellent job – or what the heck, quit your very excellent job – to buy a big comfy RV, take the teen and preteen out of school to homeschool them for a whole year as you traverse the United States from sea to shining sea, where would you start?
I happen to know one answer, because I was at The Swag last month when the adorable Muir family of Charlotte, North Carolina, made this remote mountaintop inn the first official dinner stop on their 48-state, 50-national park journey. We were holed up there for three days of hiking,
The Swag view
eating, and season-recovery sleeping. Named for a dip in the landscape between mountains, this luxurious inn perched at a 5,000-foot elevation above Waynesville, North Carolina, successfully blends authentic rustic cabins repur-posed from old barn wood with the kind of Southern hospitality, fine food, and tasteful amenities that consistently land it on “best-of” lists.
Besides hiking trails within the 250-acre property, openings in The Swag’s meandering split rail fence get you right onto trails in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. There’s a tiny spa (massage by reservation), a racquetball court, lawn games, and secret hideaways with hammocks and chaises tucked deep into the woods.
Carolyn and Dan Muir had discovered the inn as a romantic retreat but knew that their girls, Ava and Hazel, also would be charmed. So they reserved a table for a celebratory dinner to launch their Great American Road Trip. Ava, age 13, blogged that it was one of the best dinners of her life.
Here’s the thing about The Swag: If you discover it as a romantic retreat, you’ll start thinking about a special family gathering or a girlfriends’ getaway. If you first visit with a group, you’ll surely want to slip back later with your sweetheart, just the two of you.
We were there as a couple on the last leg of our mini-summer road trip along the Blue Ridge Parkway. We hiked, played croquet on the lawn (what a step back in time!), and took indoor steam showers and outdoor private deck showers as we watched the misty “smoke” between the mountains. We could have chosen a private dinner table as the Muirs did, but we opted to join random other guests at the long communal table. Before dinner, we gathered on the porch for live music, or in the great room for a hearthside chat with that week’s resident speaker, author, and storyteller Joe Kelley, who re-galed us with funny, often-harrowing tales of his 30 years as a ranger in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Here are 16 more reasons why I love The Swag, and why it’s a great place for families to unplug and reconnect.
1. Forest trails with swinging bridges, waterfalls, and picnic rocks.
2. Your own personal one-of-a-kind hiking stick, with your name on it – for keeps!
4. Homemade chocolate chip/peanut butter Swag Bars.
5. Humongous buffet breakfasts.
6. Picnic lunches made to order in handy Swag backpacks.
7. Sleeping lofts and real fireplaces.
8. Towel warmers that work great for PJs on chilly nights.
9. Rocky, the cuddly stuffed bear who lives in your room (permanent adoption available). He shows up in a different spot each night, maybe wearing your hiking hat or holding a box of candy.
10. Two cheeky gray cats (outside only) who like to show you around. I’m not making this up.
11. The bathtub rubber ducky.
12. The cornhole game, treehouse, and cool tree swing.
13. The big family room with puzzles and books, and a cozy loft with a TV.
14. Barbecue night.
15. Sunrise over the mountain (sunsets too, but we Neapolitans rarely see sunrises)
16. Wild bears all over the place. Just kidding. But it’s fun to know you might spot one, maybe even robbing apples off The Swag’s own tree.
If you go
The Swag is 45 miles west of Asheville. All-inclusive August-September nightly rates range from $520 to $1275.
Great budget tip
If you’re watching your budget, camping, or on a road trip as the Muirs are, you might want to hike or drive up to The Swag just for the day. Reserve ahead for lunch or dinner and you can enjoy the resort’s trails and amenities at no extra charge. theswag.com; (828) 926-0430
Follow the Muirs
According to their route map at thegreatamericanroad.blog, Naples and the Everglades appear to be somewhere around Stop #93 in 2020.
The Swag 1
KAREN T. BARTLETT travels the world seeking unique and fascinating destinations. She’s the author of several destination coffee table books, and the award-winning Mostly Kids’ Guides family guidebook series covering Southwest Florida.