The Hideaway was our sixth VRBO rental for vacation getaways. All of them were selected, in part, because of their proximity to outdoor activities and hiking that were the real focus of the trip. The Hideaway is the first VRBO rental property we've experienced that was a vacation destination entirely unto itself. We would have been quite happy never to leave the property to do anything else.
The house is very nice and comfortable, wonderfully decorated, and could easily accommodate eight people. The kitchen has everything you need to fix your own meals and there's a Food Lion grocery store a mere 15 minute drive away in Mountain City. The water tastes great, which may sound like an odd thing to bring up, but we've stayed at a VRBO where the well water did not. The house's country location means the time you spend on the front porch is quiet and you can be relax to the sounds of songbirds and the breeze through the trees. You can hear yourself think here. During the course of our stay, we easily spent three hours ambling the trails that take you up and down the hills, through the woods, and up to the high meadows on the property. We loved this place.
We made two excursions for a little hiking. The first was south to Grandfather Mountain where we crossed the swinging bridge and took a trail down to Black Rock. There were beautiful views everywhere we looked. Our second excursion took us north to Grayson Highlands State Park in Virginia. There we followed the Rhododendron and Appalachian Trails almost to Mount Rogers. Along the way we saw a number of the wild ponies that live on the park lands. Again, the views were great and the foliage was beginning to turn to its fall colors. We'd love to return to hike more of this park's trails.
We had good reception for our Verizon phones at The Hideaway and I really only mention this if you plan to use your phone for navigation. There was practically no reception at Grayson Highlands. So, starting from The Hideaway, your phone may be able to get you where you're going but you could find yourself, like we did, unable to lock on a route back from a place like Grayson highlands. We'd recommend a GPS system that doesn't rely on cell phone signal to navigate. We eventually did pick up enough signal in Whitetop for the phone to lock in a route back to The Hideaway, so all's well that ends well.
The Hideaway is a place we would recommend without hesitation or qualification and is a place we'd like to return.