A few of my closest girlfriends and I chose the Omni Grove Park Inn in the beautiful Asheville, North Carolina to celebrate a 50th birthday! We were looking for relaxing, low key, and stress-free, and that is exactly what we got. If you’ve never been to Asheville, know that it truly has something for everyone. Multiple live music joints, stunning hiking trails through the Blue Ridge mountains, top tier dining, the Biltmore Estate, and it is well known as the beer capital of the world.
One nice thing about the Omni Grove Park Inn is that it has everything you could need- meaning you don’t need to leave the resort unless you just want to explore the other things Asheville has to offer! There are multiple restaurants, a grand fireplace to enjoy your morning coffee or evening cocktail in front of, unbelievable views, and a spa that will make you never want to leave.
Asheville, NC is a doable 2(ish) hour drive from our home in Knoxville, TN, so upon arrival we still had plenty of time to enjoy the day. The lobby opens to the Sunset Terrace restaurant overlooking the mountains (we almost felt like we were in a different country!), and we enjoyed a celebratory cocktail and some appetizers before heading to our room to get ready for the evening.
We changed out of our travel sweats and into some ~cuter~ attire and headed to Edison, another Omni dining option, for a quick bite and drink before exploring Asheville for the evening. Edison overlooks the Omni property from the side of the resort, and you get a beautiful view of Sunset Terrace from here. Also, it makes sense why it’s called Sunset Terrace (see photo below).
The Omni Grove Park Inn provides valet parking, but the girls and I opted to Uber to downtown Asheville for a few hours. As promised, there was plenty of live music and merriment to be had. If you’re looking for a spot that’s open late, check out one of our favorite local dive/karaoke bars The Double Crown. After we returned to the property, we sat around a table at the Edison for a nightcap and some girl talk. Their bistro lights provide a magical effect in the evening, and I can’t think of a better way to have wrapped up night one in Asheville.
For Heather’s 50th birthday, we wanted a *gorgeous* resort and a spa day, and the Omni Grove Park Inn has a spa unlike any we had seen before. The walk down to their spa passes a walkway overlooking the other side of the resort which truly feels other-worldly. The stone interior with skylights and scattered plants was the ideal intro to the zen state of mind we were craving. All four of us on this trip are registered nurses (if you know, you know), so we were really looking forward to shutting our brains off for awhile and soaking up the relaxing atmosphere. Once you arrive at the spa, they ask for it to be a device-free environment so that you can truly unplug and unwind. We of course respected this rule- although some choose not to- and left our phones locked in the provided lockers. The only photos I was able to snap were of the walk there!
*IMPORTANT TIP* if you plan on visiting the spa! Access to the pools, grotto, sauna, hot tub/cold plunge, etc. are NOT included with your stay! There is the option to purchase a spa day pass to access these areas. This is what 2 of the 4 girls on the trip opted for. However, access to all these areas is INCLUDED with your purchase of any spa treatment (facial, massage, etc.). Since we didn’t book far enough in advance, there were only two spots available for spa treatments during our stay. We highly recommend booking your spa service as early in advance as possible! The other two girls booked these services (massages), so the price of their spa day pass was included with the price of their service. So, lesson learned, go ahead and book a spa service if you want to use the other amenities, because they are sometimes even cheaper than the day pass alone! The link to more info on the Spa at the Omni Grove Park Inn is here.
After a day of floating in the indoor mineral pool, laying by the outdoor pool, and soaking in the hot tub with a cool peppermint towel on our foreheads, we were ready to head back to the room for dinner. The spa did provide light snacks, fruit infused water, and tea, which was very refreshing throughout the day! We ate a nice dinner at the Edison before packing up our things and getting to bed. We left early the next morning to head back to Knoxville! *NOTE* The girls and I planned this trip for late April 2024 for a Monday-Wednesday, which is technically considered “off season”. That being said, not every restaurant was open during regular hours, and some amenities were limited. It didn’t stop us from having a great time though. 😉
If you have any questions about our experience at the Omni Grove Park Inn, let me know! You can find me on Insta at @macyjball. This trip was not sponsored or incentivized by the Omni Grove Park Inn, it is based on honest opinions and experiences.