This article is a part of our 2018 guide to great fall getaways, including where to head for colorful foliage, fun festivals, and other glories of autumn.
If you were a Downton Abbey fan who thought: “Wouldn’t it be great to have a butler?,” then Nemacolin Woodlands Resort may be the getaway for you.
Of the many lodging options at the sprawling resort in southwestern Pennsylvania—about three hours from DC—the most luxe is its 42-room boutique hotel, Falling Rock. Guests in those accommodations have a butler available 24-7 to unpack a bag, draw a bath in the soaking tub, or reserve a cabana by the heated infinity pool.
Rooms range from $539 to $939 a night in fall, but this luxury could cost more—at Virginia’s Inn at Little Washington, where rooms have more swagger, you could spend at least $1,200 for a night in autumn.
To really live the high life at Nemacolin, you can arrive via private plane and be greeted at the resort’s airfield by a Rolls-Royce—either a 2013 Ghost or a 2004 Phantom. (More of a BMW person? The resort has those, too, for guests to borrow.)
While there, you might play a round of golf, take a fly-fishing lesson, hit the spa. Or splurge on wine from the 1,200-bottle cellar. The priciest? A 1961 Château Latour for $14,305.
Spend enough time there and the bottle starts to seem pedestrian. It’s not every resort that has a wildlife habitat with bears, a Bengal tiger, lions, and other animals. There’s also a multimillion-dollar art collection to tour—works include Fernando Botero’s 2,500-pound “Little Bird” sculpture, with an estimated value of $1 million.
After all, go big or go home.
Nemacolin Woodlands Resort, Farmington, Pa.; 866-344-6957.
This article appears in the September 2018 issue of Washingtonian.
