In early October we topped off a week of NC sightseeing with two nights at The Swag. We had
long anticipated the stay since it has hosted many notables, has many good reviews in various
evaluating entities such as TA, and should provide a unique experience for the price paid.
In many ways our expectations were met. The rustic facilities are located in a glorious setting,
and we enjoyed some early leaf color in the high area. Our room, Danny's Room, was quite
adequate and amenities were what you would expect in a top notch inn. All staff members were
caring, well informed, and obviously focused on making the stay a memorable experience.
Deener was a truly gracious owner and hostess who spent much time in orchestrating guest
compatibility, for example the dinner seating plan for each evening. We were fortunate that
during our stay an excellent story teller entertained after dinner with stories of his nearby NC
heritage. He also led several hikes and was a great source of flora and fauna knowledge of
the area. The reason we did not rate our experience as excellent was our disappointment with
some of the food. Our initial meal, dinner, was their weekly barbeque and designed to be
cooked outside, served in the the dog trot, and consumed inside. Unfortunately a dip in temperature created problems with the logistics and food temps. They corrected this the
following week by moving things inside. We also were most disappointed in the lunches,
provided as a sack or backpack opportunity. We found the bread to be soggy in the
sandwiches, and in the case of the chicken salad sandwich, the chicken salad was in minute
quantity. After having enjoyed similar hiking fare at locations like the Inn at Blackberry Farm,
we were disappointed. We thoroughly enjoyed a terrific breakfast layout, with many choices
and to order items. Our second evening meal was also very good. We have concluded that
we perhaps had raised our expectations too high on the food end, but the food just did not meet the rest of the inn's standards. If you look for a tranquil, rustic setting with great hiking
opportunities and excellent service The Swag fills the bill. Hopefully your food experience will
be better than ours,