Guest Blogger: Christi Saunders
I’ve never been the girl who loved to write, I was always the girl who loved to read; the one you found curled up with a book in the backseat of the car at night reading a sentence by each passing street light. When Halle asked me to “Guest Blog” on Inn Love (which has taken off with fast strides), I admit – I was intimidated.
I’m the OHLA staff member you will find as soon as you open the door, where I am planted with a smile. I love to travel but my job doesn’t require as much traveling as the others in the office so I was excited when member hotel property, The Wallhouse Hotel, hosted a Holmes County Chamber of Commerce & Tourism Bureau educational event at their property that was in my area of expertise! Marketing and SEO’s, yippee.
So off Halle and I went! Down the highway where I saw the Longaberger Basket, (this picture doesn’t do the size justice) to the back country roads up to the land of Ohio Amish Country! Now if you are one who gets car sick, I recommend sticking your hand out the window (a little trick my mom taught me) before
you proceed down these winding roads. We arrived in Walnut Creek and I was in complete shock. The Wallhouse Hotel amidst all of this country land was not what I was picturing AT ALL. It looked like it should be planted in the middle of a downtown city! It was so vibrant with an upscale, sophisticated atmosphere. The lobby was modern and shining with sleek décor and a unique feel all around.
The Wallhouse Hotel is currently the only one of its type, located right in Walnut Creek, OH but they are expanding into new and exciting destinations!
As you’ve learned from Halle’s other posts, she is a foodie, but so am I. We inquired with the front desk staff on what our local out-of-the-normal options were. We both weren’t
up for filling and heavy home-cooked noodles and mashed potatoes so the staff recommended Park Street Pizza which was just a short drive over to Sugarcreek. The place was absolutely packed! With outside patio seating as well. You go inside and order up front before taking a seat. Now normally when I hear pizza, I am semi-disappointed because being a Gluten-free Girl, not all places have good options — but not at Park Street! We had the option to have any of their woodfired pizza’s on gluten-free crust. Halle and I decided to split the “Greek Town” Salad and the Great White Chicken pizza with gluten-free crust and made our way out to the patio to sit and take in the atmosphere after a long drive. Let me tell you, you will not be disappointed with either of these options! They were fantastic…and I have tried my fair share of not-so-fantastic gluten free options. The crust was a thin, but very good!
Once finished at Park Street, we made our way back to The Wallhouse Hotel, but had to stop at this
Giant CuckCoo Clock in downtown Sugarcreek! It isn’t only giant, it is the World’s Largest Cuckoo Clock! We got tucked into each of our beds in our spacious, clean suite and read until falling asleep.
Bright and early I woke the next day to head down to the basement floor to the fitness center to get my workout in before our E-Marketing Workshop, but not without first taking a step out onto the balcony of our room that faces the most beautiful sunrise over country land as far as you can see. After a quick but sweaty workout, I grabbed an assortment of their complimentary, hot breakfast to take back up to the room while getting ready. The two things I secretly judge a hotel by is the quality of the fitness center and how the breakfast is – both expectations were met at The Wallhouse Hotel!
I can’t forget to mention, somewhere in that chain of events, I learned what triple-sheeting was and if you’re a fan of this as Halle is, definitely head over to the The Wallhouse Hotel if not for their unique look and experience but their triple-sheeted beds!
The Holmes County Chamber of Commerce and Tourism Bureau put on a fantastic workshop with three great and engaging presenters. Lael Miller from Creative Warehouse provided me with lots of thoughts
and ideas to take back to the office on how to formulate a successful online strategy and some awesome handouts to keep with me to refresh my memory once I returned! Jordan Mullet with Sandler Sales training laid out some ways to break the rules and close more sales; and Kevin West opened up my eyes to growth and how to make positive changes to help with productivity and success.
Overall, it was an enjoyable and refreshing experience at The Wallhouse Hotel. The rooms are immaculate and the space and staff are very engaging with the most welcoming General Manager around. So on your next trip to Ohio’s Amish Country, if you decide you don’t want to stay in your usual spot or want to shake things up a bit, think about staying at The Wallhouse Hotel, you won’t regret it.
“People don’t take trips, trips take people.” – John Steinbeck