Swim #4: Grove Park Inn, Asheville, NC

It is school vacation week, April 2010, and we are on a college tour in North Carolina.  But no college tour would be complete without a little R&R at a nice resort.....right?  We headed to the Grove Park Inn in Asheville.  If you are ever in the area, we highly encourage a visit.  It is spectacular.  Gorgeous grounds, views, food, and to top it off, a fabulous spa.  We spent the better part of a day just hanging out at the spa.


There are several pools, and although I entered multiple pools, I am just counting this as one swim.  The pools are designed for relaxing more than lap swimming, but I did manage a good swim in the largest of the pools, and a long, relaxing "float" in another.

In addition to the "swimming" pools, there were two "massage" pools. You climb in, sit under a thundering waterfall, and let it pound you with water (photo below).  It's pretty intense and very loud -- but it does get at those upper back/shoulder muscles!  In the locker room there are side-by-side hot and cold tubs -- the idea is that you alternate between the two, ostensibly boosting you immune system.  I loved it -- plunging into the cold tub was absolutely exhilarating.

It is difficult to describe how beautiful the Grove Park Inn is --- not to mention Asheville itself, which is now at the top of my list of places to return.  Take a look at Grove Park's website --- http://www.groveparkinn.com/Leisure/ --- and if you still aren't convinced, let us just tell you that as we were leaving, our President and First Lady were arriving for a long weekend.