Guest Comments

Here's what a few of our guests have to say about their experiences at our inviting Saluda, NC Inn. We pride ourselves on providing top-notch Southern hospitality that set amidst the peacefulness and serenity of the North Carolina mountains.

If you're searching for the perfect retreat, get a glimpse of what your experience will be like; we invite you to come and see for yourself. Enjoy a dining experience at Newman's, call one of our cottages or rooms home on your getaway, rejuvenate with a spa service, sightsee just steps away from the property, or enhance your stay with an outdoor experience. We encourage you to check our availability, or you may contact us if you have any questions.

We look forward to hearing about your stay, and we hope you begin planning your trip to see us today!

Best hospitality...again

The many other 5 star reviews accurately describe this extraordinary inn. We have stayed multiple times and will continue to return. We love it. Marc and Marianne are just very kind and thoughtful people, and these qualities are reflected in every aspect of the Inn. We stayed in Holly, which is a great cottage, and I happened to focus on the wildflowers and hostas that are carefully planted and tended in front of the cottage. Every morning unusual butterflies were working away. I am also grateful for Marc and Marianne's solicitude for my son Thomas when he is feeling dicey about going to camp for four weeks. Until next year.....

Peace, quiet, a blend of old, new, American, and European

Innkeepers Marc and Marianne are charming, helpful, and attentive without hovering. Beautifully and tastefully decorated inside and out with antiques and gardens, respectively. And then there's the food. We overheard another guest remark that this was better food than he'd had at three-star Michelin restaurants. I'd agree. Each plate looked like an illustration from a cuisine magazine. The Inn is located in a beautiful spot, with many opportunities to hike, fish, stroll, and just relax on the Inn's broad covered porches. Highly recommended!

John Hampton

Another dreamy stay at the Orchard Inn

Oh what a wonderful treat to be back at the Orchard Inn. Marc and Marianne are such delightful hosts. At breakfast, I commented that I was disappointed that there were no cranberry-orange muffins. Not to worry, that afternoon, as we relaxed in front of the fireplace, Marianne brought out a plate of freshly baked cranberry-orange muffins! Marc and Marianne truly enjoy making their guests feel special. The inn is so charming and comfortable that we really looked forward to coming back each day after our little day trips and drives. At night there are two excellent restaurants right there in Saluda but two out of four nights we dined at the Inn as their food is a real gourmet treat and they have a great selection of wines. Each morning we gazed out over the beautiful mountain view and enjoyed a delicious breakfast.

Beverly, Fairhope, AL

A Perfect Change of Pace and Place

My friend, Patty, and I did a get-away. We started with the Christmas Candlelight event at the Biltmore for 2 nights....this was terrific. Little did we know that our next stop...The Orchard Inn...would totally exceed any and all expectations. We went to the Orchard Inn for 5 nights. This was our first time at the Orchard Inn. It was the most perfect change of "pace and place." We had a great cottage with fireplace and private porch overlooking the apple orchards and mountains. The hiking was wonderful...it helped justify the exquisite gourmet breakfasts. We indulged ourselves with a special dinner at the Inn...unbelievably delicious. The staff were caring...the cleanliness was immaculate. The Innkeepers, Marc & Marianne, were as nice and hospitable and accommodating as could be...they genuinely are passionate about everything they do and how they do it...it is sooooo nice to see people dedicated to bringing joy to others. We will DEFINITELY RETURN, and we are RAVING FANS. Patty and I have traveled the world and have stayed in some of the best places because our profession is working with the luxury segment of the hospitality industry, so we know and greatly appreciate quality and sincerity. We were totally amazed and every so pleased with everything at The Orchard Inn. Many thanks to Marc and Marianne and their team for their passion to please.

Judy Singer

Dear All at Orchard Inn.

Promises, promises.

We promised to soon be jotting down a few words on our stay at Orchard Inn from August Monday 18 up to and including August Friday 22 2014.

What can one do?

Keeping those promises or cowardly dodging them.

The latter choice surely seems to be extremely attractive. Why? Because last year when we stayed at the O.I. - for the first time - we were unable to find appropriate superlatives for expressing our awe and gratitude towards Marianne, Marc, Rocco and Murray and all the other members of that great Staff of O.I. that made our stay so unearthly incredibly nice.

Now that this years stay not only confirmed all those marvelous things and emotions that overwhelmed us last year, the impossible turned out to exist: this time we enjoyed our stay even more – without implying that there had been anything not to our liking last time.

So if we were to give air to our state of feelings concerning the O.I. experience, we are facing the most immense writers block ever as we cannot find whatever words superseding the superlatives already used in 2013, at least in so far as are to be taken from whichever dictionary including the ones that once were part of that ancient Wonder of the World: the Alexandrian Library.

Reason enough therefore to just walk a way from our given word, promise.

But then, how can we let know the O.I. keepers as well as anyone who is reading this how moved we are, on top of all we were happy to experience, by witnessing the concrete existence of the very Zimmerman Ramp (even if the word ‘ramp’ in Dutch means: disaster….)!

So we decided to keep those promises:

Dear all You: thank you very much for so much loving care. Who knows…. next year……
Dick and Conny van den Broek Humphreij, also on behalf of Frank and Katinka , Britt and Nina (the latter still growing of proud that they won the “most charming kid” trophies).

I wanted to send you a "thank you" note for our pleasant stay with you recently.

I am always concerned when going to privately own lodging because I never know what kind of service we will encounter. We were so impressed by our stay at your inn. I would like to briefly highlight some of the outstanding features that we experienced.

The view and atmosphere was so nice. I really enjoyed the view from the dining room. I was very impressed with the variety of things you had to offer guests (i.e. books, game room, and sitting areas).

The cleanliness of the inn and property were impressive as well.

The food was wonderful. We may have only had breakfast, but it was a great experience both days.

But what impressed me the most was the hospitality and customer focused atmosphere. From the time we walked in the door, we were welcomed by name and was called by name the entire time. Even Murray and Rocco welcomed us (once Rocco warmed up to us a little). In my profession, one of my duties is to do orientation and teach customer service to our staff. So, I am a little more sensitive to the correct ways staff should treat their customers. I will say that your customer service and friendliness exceeded my expectations greatly. Also your interactions with us were genuine and did not appear scripted as I see sometimes in large corporations. Our interactions were more like talking to friends.

When I returned to work today, many people asked me about our stay, and I told them how impressed I was with your hospitality and gave them my high recommendations to go enjoy The Orchard Inn. I referred them to your website. We hope to visit again in the future.

Thank you for making our small "get-a-way" such a pleasant experience.

Serene

That's the first word that comes to my mind when I think about the Orchard Inn. The inn is tucked away about 1 mile outside of Saluda, which is a wonderful little town with 2 great restaurants. Marianne and Mark, along with their 2 boxers, could not be more welcoming or accommodating and have outfitted the inn with inviting sitting vignettes, both inside and out. For early risers, coffee and tea are available followed by a sumptuous breakfast, which features a special dish each morning. And my favorite part – it is not a buffet! Ashville and Hendersonville are easy day rides offering something to satisfy everyone’s desire. We look forward to our return trip and this time staying in one of the lovely cottages on the grounds.

Five stars, every time!

Over 50 stays at the Orchard Inn, and many more to come! We are so comfortable and pampered there. The surroundings are beautiful in all seasons. There are usually the strains of relaxing music and mouth-watering aromas to please the senses. The included breakfast is varied, delicious, and prepared largely from local sources. Dinners are definitely gourmet, and there are plenty of options on the menus to choose from. The owners and staff are always available, eager to please, and just delightful. It's just too bad there are only 5 stars to use for rating!

Lovely Orchard Inn - Beautiful Location

We had a lovely extended family weekend spent at the Orchard Inn. The Inn is charming, comfortable, clean. The owners - Marc & Marianne - are very welcoming and gracious. The rooms were all well appointed, again very comfortable. Breakfasts were wonderful! We had dinner as well which was delicious. We stayed in the Laurel Cottage which was great for the size of our party, living room, dining room, kitchen, 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, sleeping loft and screened porch - perfect for our group. I am hoping for a return trip in the near future.