The Inn of the Seventh Mountain reopened this week as Seventh Mountain Resort. I went on a pre-opening tour and they have redecorated all but the least expensive rooms, have added a second swimming pool, have a new restaurant and reception area. It's nicely done. Not quite completed the landscaping and second pool yet. New management may mean a better stay for guests.

Stayed there once about 5 years ago. Thankfully it was just for a night. Room, and grounds seemed "partied out". To many other nicer more luxerious places to stay. Not a horrible place just plain average at best.



HTH

We just returned from a 4-day stay of the Inn of the Seventh Mountain (July 12 through 15, 2005). We consider the resort a tired classic on the rise. We brought along our four children, ages 2, 5, 10 and 15.



Before we got to the Inn, we researched it online...the children were so excited to play in the "big pool with the huge slide". Our 15-year-old son could speak of nothing else! When we arrived at the Inn at 1:00 pm we were told that our room was not ready, and to check back every half hour. We checked out the resort - they have MAJOR renovations going on...jack hammers, cement work, backhoes, etc. Someone is investing millions of dollars into this place - in about two years it is going to be gorgeous. Our children were immensely dissapointed that the huge waterslide is GONE! Apparently, they took out the slide for liability reasons. Anyway, we checked back every half hour - our room wasn't ready until 4:15 pm! With a restless 2-year-old son and kids wanting to get settled in, this part of our trip was not fun. We overheard several other people commenting on the same problem. Not enough housekeeping staff. However, the housekeeping staff that we did speak with were absolutely WONDERFUL! They were more than accommodating and were very friendly. While we were waiting for our room, we took the kids to one of the playgrounds. I was upset to find nails in the playground gravel. I reported the problem with the nails to the front desk immediately - they told me that they did not know of this problem and would take care of it right away. Because we had to wait so long for our room, they gave us a free drink coupon for each person in our family. This worked out well, as the "mixed drinks with alcohol" are expensive. One Corona beer and one Diet Coke cost us $7.00 - bring your own Corona!!! If you like Key Lime Pie, try the Frozen Ice Key Lime Pie in the little store - it was the kids' favorite, but was also expensive for the small amount you get ($2.75).



The pool was beautiful, and the life guards so nice! Unfortunately, there was only one life jacket available to share among all of the children in the resort - and it was too large for our 2-year-old son - so you might consider bringing your own. Sitting by the pool, however, was extremely noisy as the construction crew was jack-hammering right over the fence. It is very evident in the home movies we took! The Inn is putting in another large pool. There are two pools...a new one that is 5' at its deepest point, and the older, original is 8' at its deepest point. No one told us that there was a kids' pool...we found that out on the last day.



If you have young children (4 thru 10), take advantage of the free arts and crafts, and evening activity. The young man in charge of childrens activities (regretfully, I cannot remember his name) was GREAT! The kids get to make something every morning around 10:30 am and take it home. Then, in the evening, they participate in a physical activity such as kickball, scavenger hunt, simon says, etc. The kids thought he was WONDERFUL, and we told him so.



The renovated rooms are BEAUTIFUL. Our king-size bed was very comfortable and the rooms are decorated very nicely. Each comes with a refrigerator, microwave, coffee maker, toaster, blow dryer and iron, plus all of the pots, pans, dinnerware, etc. Also, really nice high-end shampoo, conditioner, soaps and lotion. We loved looking over our balcony....a breathtaking view of the pine forest and mountains.....the kids loved watching chipmunks, squirrels and numerous birds. Despite the major renovations, the rooms were quiet and peaceful.



We enjoyed playing miniature golf, tennis and riding horses. (Miniature golf, tennis, basketball, roller skating and playing horseshoes are all free......horseback riding, white water rafting and other activties cost money.) Our 10-year-old daughter loved riding her horse, Wilbur! Bring your camera and movie camera! Horseback riding is $30 per person for a one-hour trail ride (horses are all in a line, following the leader). The Horse Stable Staff was also very friendly!!! Riding helmets are provided.



Bring your own dvds and VHS movies - they have free players in the rooms, but to rent a movie (not new releases) they are $4 each or $8 unlimited for a day till 8:00 pm - you have to bring your movies back BY 8:00 pm - who watches movies BEFORE 8:00 pm when you're at a resort?)



All in all, our trip was great. If we could make some changes, we would suggest updating the Inn's website to eliminate the "Slide Pool" from the map. THAT WAS A HUGE DISAPPOINTMENT FOR THE KIDS. Also, in addition to the activities listed on the paper they give you, they need to have list of all of the restaurants there, a sample menu (food at the restaurant is very expensive), everything there is to do (we didn't know till we were driving away that a horse-drawn wagon ride was available). Also, they need to hire more housekeeping crew....waiting till 4:15 pm was not fun. We'd like to return in 2 years when all of the dust has settled.