This post may contain affiliate links which means I may receive a commission for purchases made through links. I will only recommend products that I have personally used! Learn more on my Privacy Policy page.
Omni Homestead Hotel
Virginia is home to some of the most historical figures of the United State’s early beginnings. If you love American history, start your historical travel journey in Virginia. One of my favorite aspects of travel, is staying in historical hotels. The Omni Homestead is it, and it is older than our country (Established in 1766).
We booked a 2-night trip during the month of February for a quick winter getaway. Prices can be cheaper during the off season. Visiting this historical gem in the Allegheny mountains feels like stepping back into the early 20th Century. Twenty-four U.S. Presidents have visited the mineral springs and starting with Thomas Jefferson stayed in the hotel. George W. Bush has been the most recent President to have stayed in the hotel.
Stepping Back in Time
The Omni Homestead has so many activities to do while at the resort. They offer winter activities like skiing, ice-skating, and horseback riding. You can also enjoy the warm springs and hiking. The resort boasts beautiful indoor and outdoor pools, and a golf course. There is much more to entice your adventurous side at this spectacular resort. One of the main attractions is getting to swim in the warm springs bath houses. They are owned by the resort and located just ten minutes down the mountain.
Warm Springs Bathhouses -Omni Hotel
For the past eight years, getting to the warm springs has been on my very long bucket list. This by far was the highlight of our trip. The Omni Homestead has restored these very old bathhouses. Early Americans, like Thomas Jefferson, traveled on horse just to sit in this warm spring to heal his arthritis. The warm springs are always at 98 to 99 degrees Fahrenheit containing many beneficial minerals.
Ladies Bath House (Family swim)
The Omni Homestead sells tickets for $35 per person to swim 50-minutes in these clear and medicinally beneficial waters. There are two bathhouses, one for adults and one for families. There is limited space in the pools, so you must book your times in advance. By far, this was my family’s favorite activity. We plan on going back for the 4th of July. We will definitely be back for the Thomas Jefferson treatment.
Dining in Luxury
The resort has a total of ten restaurants, from casual to formal dining. We ate breakfast in the Audubon Dining room the first morning and had the buffet.
We opted for the Sunday brunch, which was one of the best I have ever had. It is tied with brunch on the Queen Mary in Long Beach, CA. The brunch is pricey, but totally worth it. It features a mimosa and bloody Mary bar, crab eggs Benedict, mussels, and sliced prime rib. We ate at the Jefferson Restaurant and lunch at Martha’s Market, both had very delicious food.
Rest and Rejuvenation
I don’t think I have ever seen such an elegant indoor pool. It has a gorgeous Art Deco style to it. There are three other pools on the property. The Serenity Garden pool is spring fed and located just outside the spa and is adult only. The hotel charges an extra fee unless you spend over a certain amount in the spa. Allegheny Springs is a two acre water park that is also fed by the springs. There is another large pool next to the water park.
Adventures Await
There are so many activity options to choose from while visiting the Omni Homestead. The resort has themed events during holidays and other special weekends like Vintage weekend. We loved our stay so much that we already re-booked for the Fourth of July.
And Now for your History Deep Dive…
One thing that draws to me to places like the Omni Homestead is its rich history. The hotel originally opened in 1766 by a Captain Thomas Bullitt. He was given a three hundred acre land grant from the British Crown after the French and Indian War. During the War, Bullitt noticed several mineral springs in the area and that they were very beneficial medicinally.
Bullitt and two militia associates, Charles and Andrews Lewis, moved their military company to the area. As a result, they established the name Homestead. The Bullitt family decided to start a hotel business with the attraction of the mineral springs. Bullitt would end up dying during the American Revolution leaving his family to run the hotel for many decades later.
One of the most famous guests was Thomas Jefferson, who visited the hotel in 1818. He heard of the healing mineral waters at the hotel and came to relieve this rheumatoid arthritis. Jefferson was extremely pleased with his visit. He said it was the best place to vacation in the whole country.
A well respected Doctor by the name of Thomas Goode bought the hotel from the Bullitt family in 1832. Being aware of the natural healing properties of the mineral springs, Goode brought in European spa treatments. The Goode family would go on to own the hotel until 1888, selling it to M.E. Ingalls.
Ingalls originally traveled to the area to do survey work for the C&O Railroad. Immediately, he realized that he wanted the property and so he and other investors to include J.P Morgan raised one million dollars to develop the hotel into a resort. Ingalls would later become the sole owner in 1911 buying out all other investors.
The Ingalls family are the ones who expanded the hotel to what it is today. The hotel was a hangout for presidents, royalty, and movie stars. The Omni Homestead does a history tour every morning at 10:00 am. This is where you get to learn about all the juicy stories about famous visitors of the past.
In 2013, the Omni Hotel brand acquired the resort from the Ingalls completing a $150 million renovation in 2023. Some historic hotels show their age. Omni did an amazing job preserving the original beauty of the resort’s architecture. It feels luxurious by modern standards. (1)
We absolutely enjoyed our stay and would recommend this place to families, couples, and history lovers. It has something for everyone and is truly a gem in American History.
If you love staying in historic hotels, check out my blog on The Greenbrier Resort in West Virginia.
Sources
(1). https://www.historichotels.org/us/hotels-resorts/the-omni-homestead-resort/history.php
