Classic Chevrolets

When I was a kid, my dad always called the impalas we saw grazing and racing across the African plains “Chevys” by mistake, and we had to correct him (and always enjoyed the joke).  Well, you won’t find a Chevy Impala over at The Inn at Christmas Place today – it’s the weekend of the Chevy Classic Car Show – but only for 1955, 1956, and 1957 models – and are they ever gorgeous.   Take a look at a few of these beauties.

The show begins in earnest tomorrow, when the entire parking lot will be a staging ground for the meticulously-maintained show cars.  The show is free and open to the public for viewing and some serious car talk. 

There is also a large concessions area behind the car show, with booths for everything from classic Chevy auto parts and accessories to food and general interest items.

I can never decide just which is my favorite – but the convertibles are hard to beat.  We couldn’t ask for better weather – so if you’re in the neighborhood, come by and take a look.

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

P.S. While you’re here, take a tour of our hotel’s public areas and check out the Christmas in July calendar in the lobby - we have a terrific lineup for the month.  It’s also a great time to book your family for our new Pigeon Forge Family Fun package!

Around Christmas Place

It’s technically still “winter” for us around here, as we’ve got lots of construction and remodeling projects underway to get ready for summer – and your next visit to our little corner of paradise here at Traffic Light 2A on the Parkway!  Here are some images that caught my camera last week.

 

Raising the roof – every building is being reroofed!

Remember those walls we put up a few weeks ago?  All is now revealed!  We’ve opened up the spaces between the front entrance, the old toy store, and right into the Personalizing gallery.

When the walls come tumbling down ..

New spaces are revealed!

We’re excited to find out what our design team has in mind for the newly-painted area that previously housed our toy store.

Cool waters for a hot spring day.

Our Parkway Oasis!

No fishing, please.

The Big Kahuna in the Little Pond.

Have you toasted marshmallows with us around our fire pit?

Beautiful blooms at The Partridge & Pear Restaurant.

A beautiful thing I found – an egg, hand-painted with a Nativity scene.  I think it is an ostrich egg, as it is quite large; we are keeping it under a glass dome.

Brilliant Vera Bradley summer-pattern bags – just luscious!  Making me want to plan a vacation somewhere sunny just so I’ll need one of these colorful bags for the trip…. 

MAD LOVE for these Home Grown veggie critters!

 Okay, time to get back to work.  But I will leave you with one more image – a photo of a new threat now looming over the city…

Giant Ape Attacks Pigeon Forge!

Thanks for joining me for a stroll around our place.  What’s happening in your neighborhood?

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

P.S. Early forecast for Christmas in July – fantastic daily fun for guests at The Inn at Christmas Place – check out the full month’s calendar over at facebook.com/InnAtChristmasPlace!

Happy 101st!

We get to celebrate some pretty special times at The Inn with our guests – and last weekend it was the 101st birthday of Ms. Bill from North Carolina.  She was here last year for her hundredth, and we expect she’ll be back next year, too.

We didn’t get a picture of her, but here’s a celebratory candle in her honor.

Happy Birthday, Ms. Bill!

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

Then & Now

I just came across a 2003 photo of the courtyard – before our hotel and Bullfish Grill and all the rest – too fun not to share!  Then (2003):

This morning before opening:

What a big change in scenery!  (That’s our after-Christmas sale tent taking up the courtyard right now – the sale continues only thr0ugh Sunday.)

It’s a beautiful day in Pigeon Forge, and we’re going to have a beautiful weekend, so come and see us.  And, if you happen to live in the area and are at home between 4 and 5 pm this afternoon, tune it to WBIR TV 10 for Live at 5 at 4 – they filmed a little story with us this week.  We’re all looking forward to seeing it today.

Happy New Year – and we wish all our readers and customers and families many, many blessings in 2012!

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

The Inn at Christmas

I was at The Inn for a meeting this morning and took a few pics of our 2011 decorations – in purple, red, and gold this year.  Looks like we are very ready for the Big Day – and we’re full through the weekend.  If you can’t stay with us, at least you can enjoy the view!

I almost made it around the corner - just as Santa was disappearing into his house after chiming the hour.

Even a drain pipe can be beautiful at Christmas!

And I leave you with a photo of my favorite spot – the bench by the pond.  Even though we are right on the parkway, this spot manages to be serene and quiet and restful, always.

We wish you all a very Merry Christmas!

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

Merry Christmas!

We had the joy of waking up to what I will call an incoming white Christmas this year – snow began falling at about 9:00 a.m. on Saturday and continued through the weekend – some of our associates report up to 15″ at their homes this Monday morning!  Here are a couple of pictures from our courtyard and looking across the parkway to the hotel.  We haven’t enjoyed this much snow in quite a while, and we’re all kids again today here at Christmas Place!

Hurray for the glimpses of blue sky!

Nothing is prettier than snow on evergreens!

One frosty slide ride today!

Did you get enough of “A Christmas Story”, wrapping & bows, leftovers, and smiles and hugs and laughter this Christmas??  Tell us about it! 

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

Dedication Day

It’s been a special day here at Christmas Place.  Early this morning, staff of Christmas Place, The Inn at Christmas Place, and The Partridge & Pear Restaurant gathered at our new fountain for a special dedication.

As you may know, we are a family-owned business.  In August this year, we suffered the very untimely death of our president, Keith Biggs.  Keith was a very creative and compassionate leader who daily shared with us his vision for the future of the company.  He encouraged every one of us to achieve our best, both for the company and personally.  We really miss Keith’s presence around here, but share wonderful memories of the too-short time he was with us.  More than just a boss, he was our friend. 

If you ever visited any of our properties, there is a very good chance you met Keith and he served you without your ever knowing he was our president.  Making the spirit of Christmas real for every guest was one of his passions.  To commemorate his role in our present success and his inspiration for our future growth as individuals and as a company, staff and his family decided to dedicate our new fountain courtyard to Keith’s memory.  The plaque is completed, and it will be mounted to a marble base with a permanent installation by the fountain.  We unveiled the plaque this morning, and want to share the message with you.

Keith lived every bit of that dash between his dates, and we feel blessed for having known him.

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

Christmas in July at The Inn

We began our second celebration of Christmas in July at The Inn at Christmas Place last week – and our guests are having a lot of fun!  Crafts, pool-side games, free Sno-Cones, story telling, Christmas caroling, and Santa concerts are among the events taking place throughout the month.  If a vacation in July is on your calendar, we’re offering a Manager’s Special this month, too – stay three nights, and receive a 15% discount Sunday-Thursday and 10% discount Friday-Saturday nights.  It’s not too late to make your reservations!

Here are a few pictures of the fun.  Make a Christmas ornament with some glitter, pine cones, and a dab of hot glue …

Uncle Sam, Santa, and Elf CC (Candy Cane!) were on hand to help.

Later, we stepped out for the first annual Christmas Costume Parade – the Junior Reindeer really enjoyed this one.

Hmmm…..

Santa, CC, Uncle Sam, our own Angel, Mrs. Claus, and one of the Kings helped make it a special afternoon for hotel guests.

The Littlest Reindeer!

The Littlest Reindeer meets Santa Claus.

We sure hope you get to join us for Christmas in July this year!

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

Christmas in July at The Inn at Christmas Place

Here’s our shiny new events calendar for our second annual Christmas in July Celebration at The Inn at Christmas Place!  We’ve lined up thirty-one days of activities for our guests.  We had so much fun with this last year that we just had to do it again. 

Now, these events are open only to our hotel guests, so if there is something you and your family would particularly enjoy, you’d better book your room now.

~Janet @ The Christmas Place

The Inn’s Mother’s Day Weekend Special

The Inn at Christmas Place has announced a special offer for Mother’s Day Weekend!

Bring your mom to The Inn for two nights over May 7-9, 2010, to celebrate Mother’s Day and Dollywood’s 25th Anniversary.  When you book two nights, either Friday & Saturday or Saturday & Sunday, you’ll receive 25% off your room rate both nights, plus a special treat for Mom.  Those same days, our concierge will have Dollywood 2-day passes for the price of a 1-day pass.

This offer is valid for two nights May 7-9, 2010 only, and not valid with any other discount or offer.

What a wonderful opportunity to treat Mom to a truly special and luxurious experience, both a stay at The Inn and a visit to Dollywood during their anniversary celebration.  Click here or call (toll free) 888-465-9644 now to reserve your room!

~Janet @ The Christmas Place