Southern Weddings

A few weeks back, John and I had the pleasure of visiting the Old Edwards Inn! The OEI is a gorgeous property in Highlands, NC (way over in the southwestern corner of the state). We had a wonderful visit, and since I think the Inn would make a great wedding or honeymoon destination, I’d love to tell y’all a little bit about it!

The drive from Chapel Hill to Highlands was long, but filled with beautiful mountain and forest views. Towards the end you even pass a series of pretty significant waterfalls, but, of course, that’s right when the road starts to get narrow and twisty, so make sure you’re in the passenger seat if you want to sightsee!

We arrived at the Old Edwards Inn in time for lunch with Melissa, the Director of Sales.

The front entrance to the Inn is right on the adorable main street of Highlands. Though we would eventually come to find that it’s a fairly large property, it fits right in to the quaint town, and all its nooks and crannies and passageways make it feel more intimate than it actually is.

We started off with lunch at Madison’s, the main restaurant on the property. John’s trout wrap was delicious, as was my not-so-glamorous-but-totally-worth-it grass-fed beef burger. Like so many of the restaurants in the western half of North Carolina, Madison’s puts a priority on fresh, local, organic ingredients, and you can absolutely taste the difference. That focus on farm-to-table dining is one of my favorite parts about the mountains!

We didn’t look quite this cozy, but here’s a photo of the inside of the restaurant so you can get an idea of what it looks like!

After lunch we set off on our tour of the property. Melissa started off by showing us around the main inn and spa, which has a delightful Old World European charm.

Almost more impressive than the beautiful rooms we passed through, however, was the excellent customer service. Melissa knew everyone we came in contact with, and everyone, from the maid carrying laundry to the masseuse in the spa, was professional, courteous, and friendly. If true luxury is unsurpassed customer service, then the Old Edwards Inn has it in spades.

After our tour of the main inn, we checked out the pool area (gorgeous), the fitness club (also gorgeous), and the Lodge (a cozy place for wedding guests to stay).

We then hopped in an Inn SUV and drove to a few other satellite properties that are available for both guest stays and wedding ceremonies and receptions. Besides the Farm, which I’ll tell you about in a minute, my favorite was the Piermont Cottage.

There was charm packed into every corner of this place! I love that you could hold your reception here and combine all the warmth of an at-home wedding with the professionalism and experience of a world class resort. The best of both worlds? I think so.

Another thing that impressed me about the Old Edwards Inn was its complete comfort with flexibility. In my experience, some luxury properties can be very stuffy about what can and can’t be done, but the Old Edwards Inn prides itself on molding its property to your wedding-day vision. See that big lawn and second-story balcony? Melissa told us about one rehearsal dinner where the couple hired a bluegrass band that played from the balcony while guests mingled and relaxed on picnic blankets spread across the lawn. Sounds perfect!

Our last stop of the day was the Farm, which is the Old Edwards Inn’s largest reception venue (currently able to host 200 guests).

Above, you can see what the Farm looked like last summer. It’s getting a massive renovation and addition as we speak, but this is a rendering of what it will look like when complete:

Gorgeous, no? I can’t wait to pay a return visit once it’s back up and running!

After our tour we headed back to our room, which was a spa suite in the main inn. “Luxurious” would be the key word here: freshly-baked peanut butter cookies, Molton Brown toiletries, heated tile floors in the bathroom, a remote-controlled fireplace, a balcony, and a very convenient touch-screen device that controlled the lights, temperature and TV. Here’s a peek:

That all sounds great, right? Just wait: I’ve saved possibly the best part about the Old Edwards Inn for the end. As if things couldn’t get any better, there were free Dove bars everywhere! Sheer bliss for this chocolate lover.

Our visit to the Old Edwards Inn made for a fabulous getaway, and I can absolutely see why so many couples decide to get married or honeymoon here. If you’d like more information about either, feel free to get in touch with the Inn! If you have any questions for me, I’d be more than happy to answer them below.

All photos are courtesy of the Old Edwards Inn except the two of our room, which were taken by yours truly :)

A huge thank you to the Old Edwards staff, which was kind enough to host John and me for the night. The opinions expressed, however, are all mine!

Written with love by Emily