A hot breeze ruffled the Virginian forest as I leaned my cheek against the cool wooden stock. In the distance, a hawk circled in currents over the Blue Ridge Mountain valley, and I adjusted the weight of the .410 Beretta in my arms. Some call it a kid’s shotgun, but I still felt like I could do some real damage.
I lined up the barrel in the general direction in which my target would be flung – I was shooting clays (not birds) and starting to get the hang of it. I was, surprisingly, pleased with myself. I’d never held a gun before, but when you’re vacationing in Virginia, home to the National Rifle Association, it only seemed fitting. Especially when you’re staying at the newly spruced-up Omni Homestead Resort, a property that has been welcoming guests since before the Revolutionary War.
But as I would discover, the Homestead’s shooting club wouldn’t end up being my favourite way to “live like a local” in Hot Springs, Va.
LOCATION, LOCATION
Surrounded by the Allegheny Mountains and blessed with 10 natural springs, the Omni Homestead is a 90-minute scenic drive north from Roanoke airport. Take a sports car if only for the wild switchbacks on the 220 highway through the old-growth forested mountains.
DESIGN
You’ve arrived in the genteel old South. Walk through the wide, welcoming white veranda with tall, round columns and rocking chairs, step into the Homestead’s long, grand hall and up to the impressive curved wooden front desk (no mincing iPad-on-a-barstool check-in here) and you know you’ve become part of this resort’s 250-year history.
Omni Resort’s management has led to stellar upgrades of the outdoor pools, spa and minigolf areas – families flock here – but it’s the history and grace of this grande dame that’s most memorable.
Go exploring and discover design delights from eras past in every nook and cranny of this more than 2,000-acre resort: from the Waterford Crystal of the grand ballroom and old glamour in the turn-of-the-century theatre, to the clubby chic of overstuffed leather couches and pro pool tables tucked behind the lobby bar. Here, you’ll drink surrounded by portraits of 23 presidents who’ve visited the hotel. (This display of wealthy old white guys would be greatly improved by adding Obama’s portrait, but staff say he hasn’t come despite their request.)
BEST AMENITY
The morning water-yoga class at the spa’s mineral octagon pool grants you access to the incredible and newly reconfigured spa garden area; the pool’s therapeutic mineral waters are fed by a hot spring – making the water-yoga class doubly beneficial. Taking a mindful walk along the stone reflexology walking path is a must. Book a treatment, too, and you can spend all day at this adults-only oasis with its massaging deluge shower, hot tub and infinity pool that’s (blissfully) out of earshot from the high-spirited main pool.
If you’re a real hot-springs fan, take the hotel shuttle to the original Jefferson Pools, built in 1761 and the favourite soaking spot of the Shawnee years before the rheumatic third U.S. president discovered it. Not much has been done to the wooden structure since – the resort is still working out details of its preservation – so a tolerance for mossy wood and peeling paint is necessary. But the water? You’ll never feel better after an hour-long soak in these 36 C mineral waters.
IF I COULD CHANGE ONE THING
The indoor pool was added in 1904, and I loved its Arts and Crafts movement design, eagerly diving in for a few lengths along its 22-metre-long expanse. But during my back crawl, I spied large flaps of paint hanging off the ceiling; I wondered whether it might fall into the water. Toweling off, I found more patches of peeling paint and rotting wood on the walls. Let’s hope the resort’s next restoration phase includes this otherwise gorgeous indoor pool.
WHOM YOU’LL MEET
At the new waterslide playground and pools of Allegheny Springs, you’ll bump inner tubes on the lazy river with lots of young families, and tee off with older kids at the professionally landscaped, new minigolf course. Expect a genteel older crowd in summer suits and gowns supping in the grand main dining room, with a younger, more casual crowd watching sports under the wall-sized TV at Jefferson’s Restaurant & Bar.
EAT IN OR EAT OUT?
You can do both here and still charge it to your room. Sam Snead’s Tavern is a two-minute walk from the back of the resort into the sleepy town of Hot Springs, and offers a fun look at the paraphernalia surrounding the local golf legend; my crab ‘n mac and cornbread was pretty good, too. A more formal night can be had at the main dining room. The elegant atmosphere makes up for the old-school offerings such as prime rib, pork chops Normandy and oysters Rockefeller. In the end, I kept returning to Jefferson’s Restaurant & Bar, where a contemporary menu and knowledgeable wait staff introduced me to a Virginia gin, which made an unforgettable G&T.
Omni Homestead Resort, 7696 Sam Snead Highway, Hot Springs, Va., omnihotels.com; 483 rooms from $180.
The writer was a guest of the hotel.