The Omni Homestead Resort is a luxury resort in

Hot Springs, Virginia Hot Springs is a census-designated place (CDP) in Bath County, Virginia, Bath County, Virginia, United States. The population as of the United States Census, 2020, 2020 Census was 524. It is located about southwest of Warm Springs, Virginia, Warm ...

, United States, in the middle of the

Allegheny Mountains The Allegheny Mountain Range ( ) — also spelled Alleghany or Allegany, less formally the Alleghenies — is part of the vast Appalachian Mountain Range of the Eastern United States and Canada. Historically it represented a significant barr ...

. The area has the largest

hot spring A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a Spring (hydrology), spring produced by the emergence of Geothermal activity, geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow ...

s in the Commonwealth, and the resort is also known for its championship

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standa ...

courses, which have hosted several national tournaments. The resort also includes an

alpine ski ''Alpine Ski'' (アルパイン・スキ一) is an alpine skiing arcade video game released by Taito in 1981. The player controls a skier on a vertically scrolling video game, vertically scrolling course who can move left, right, or increase for ...

resort; founded in 1959, it is the oldest in

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

. The resort has been designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...

; it has a history extending more than two and a half centuries. The Omni Homestead Resort is a member of

Historic Hotels of America Historic Hotels of America is a program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation that was founded in 1989 with 32 charter members; the program identifies hotels in the United States that have maintained authenticity, sense of place, and a ...

the official program of the

National Trust for Historic Preservation The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a privately funded, nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that works in the field of historic preservation in the United States. The member-supported organization was founded in 1949 ...

History

In 1766,

Thomas Bullitt Thomas Bullitt (1730 – February 1778) was a United States military officer, and surveyor from Prince William County, Virginia and pioneer on its western frontier. Early and family life Thomas was born to Benjamin and Sarah (Harrison) Bullitt in ...

built a lodge on the site, which is considered the founding of The Homestead. It has hosted vacationers ever since, including twenty-three U.S. presidents. The modern resort dates from 1888–1892, when a group of investors headed by

J. P. Morgan John Pierpont Morgan Sr. (April 17, 1837 – March 31, 1913) was an American financier and investment banker who dominated corporate finance on Wall Street throughout the Gilded Age and Progressive Era. As the head of the banking firm that ...

bought the business and started rebuilding it from the ground up. The original hotel buildings burned down in 1901, caused by a fire in the bakery. The main Homestead hotel was constructed afterwards, one wing a year, with the main lobby reconstructed in 1902. Many American Presidents and influential people were Homestead guests.

William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) served as the 27th president of the United States from 1909 to 1913 and the tenth chief justice of the United States from 1921 to 1930. He is the only person to have held both offices. ...

spent July and August 1908 at the Homestead, working and relaxing before the final campaign push, as did outgoing President Theodore Roosevelt, for a short period of time. Other notable guests included cartoonist Carl E. Schultze of ''

Foxy Grandpa ''Foxy Grandpa'' was an American gag-a-day newspaper comic strip featuring an eponymous character, created by cartoonist Carl E. Schultze drawing under the name of "Bunny." The strip lasted from 1900 to circa 1918, and was at first hugely popula ...

'' fame. From December 1941 until June 1942, following the United States' entry into

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the Homestead served as a high-end

internment camp Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without Criminal charge, charges or Indictment, intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects ...

for 785

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

ese diplomats and their families until they could be exchanged through neutral channels for their American counterparts. The diplomats were later transferred to the

Greenbrier Hotel The Greenbrier is a luxury resort located in the Allegheny Mountains near White Sulphur Springs in Greenbrier County, West Virginia, in the United States. Since 1778, visitors have traveled to this part of the state to "take the waters" of th ...

West Virginia West Virginia is a mountainous U.S. state, state in the Southern United States, Southern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.The United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau and the Association of American ...

. In 1943, during World War II, The Homestead hosted an important conference of the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

in which was implemented the foundation of the

Food and Agriculture Organization The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; . (FAO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger and improve nutrition and food security. Its Latin motto, , translates ...

. In 1993, The Homestead was purchased by Club Resorts, the same company which owned the

Pinehurst Resort Pinehurst Resort is a golf resort in Pinehurst, North Carolina, United States. It has hosted a number of prestigious golf tournaments including four U.S. Open Championships, one U.S. Women's Open, three U.S. Amateurs, one PGA Championship, an ...

in North Carolina. In 2006, Club Resorts and its parent company

ClubCorp ClubCorp (formerly ClubCorp Holdings, Inc) is an American corporation based in Dallas. It owns and operates more than 200 golf country clubs, businesses, sports and alumni clubs worldwide. Located in 26 states, the District of Columbia, and 2 cou ...

, Inc. were acquired by a private-equity group led by KSL Capital Partners. KSL Resorts assumed management of The Homestead at this time. KSL sold the resort to

Omni Hotels Omni Hotels & Resorts is an American privately held, international hotel company based in Dallas, Texas. The company was founded in 1958 as Dunfey Hotels, and operates 51 properties in the United States and Canada, totaling over 20,010 rooms and ...

in 2013 and it was renamed The Omni Homestead Resort. From October 2021 to October 2023, the entire resort underwent a complete renovation, costing over $150 million. The Homestead was designated a

in 1991. Associated with The Homestead are the Homestead Dairy Barns, listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 2007.

Golf

The Homestead features two golf courses. The club is sometimes referred to as Virginia Hot Springs Golf & Tennis Club. The area produced an 82-time winner on the PGA Tour in the late Sam Snead. The Old Course started as a six-hole layout in 1892, and the first tee is the oldest in continuous use in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. It was expanded to 18 holes by 1901, and Donald Ross redesigned it in 1913. The course has been modified at various times since, and the current course has six par 5s and six par 3s. The Cascades Course is the most famous of the two, and is usually ranked among the top 100 U.S. courses by both ''

Golf Digest ''Golf Digest'' is a monthly golf magazine published by Warner Bros. Discovery through its TNT Sports unit. It is a generalist golf publication covering recreational golf and men's and women's competitive golf. The magazine started by John F. ...

'' and ''

GOLF Magazine ''Golf Magazine'' is a monthly golf magazine. One of the first "special interest" magazines of its kind, it was started in April 1959 by Arnold Abramson and Robert Abramson, the owners of Universal Publishing and Distributing Corporation, who sol ...

''. The Cascades is the course used when hosting national tournaments, including seven

United States Golf Association The United States Golf Association (USGA) is the United States national association of golf courses, clubs and facilities and the governing body of golf for the U.S. and Mexico. Together with The R&A, the USGA produces and interprets the rule ...

championships. It was designed by William S. Flynn (who was also a main architect for Shinnecock Hills), and opened in 1923. There was formerly a third course, the Lower Cascades, which was designed by

Robert Trent Jones Sr. Robert Trent Jones Sr. (June 20, 1906 – June 14, 2000) was a British–American golf course architect who designed or re-designed more than 500 golf courses in 45 U.S. states and 35 countries. In reference to this, Jones took pride in saying, ...

in 1963. It hosted qualifying rounds for the U.S. Amateur tournament. It was closed following the 2012 season. Famed

PGA Tour The PGA Tour (stylized as PGA TOUR by its officials) is the organizer of professional golf tours in North America. It organizes most of the events on the flagship annual series of tournaments also known as the PGA Tour, the PGA Tour Champion ...

champion

Sam Snead Samuel Jackson Snead (; May 27, 1912 – May 23, 2002) was an American professional golfer who was one of the top players in the world for the better part of four decades (having won PGA of America and Senior PGA Tour events over six decades) an ...

lived in or near Hot Springs all of his life, and served for decades as the Homestead's golf pro. Snead also holds the course record of 60, which he set in 1983 at the age of 71.

Tournaments

* 1928

U.S. Women's Amateur The U.S. Women's Amateur, also known as the United States Women's Amateur Golf Championship, is the leading golf tournament in the United States for female amateur golfers. It is played annually and is one of the 13 United States national golf ch ...

, won by Glenna Collett * 1932 National Intercollegiate Championship, won by

Yale Yale University is a private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, and one of the nine colonial colleges ch ...

(team) and

Johnny Fischer John W. Fischer (March 10, 1912 – May 25, 1984) was an American amateur golfer in the 1930s. Fischer was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. He won the 1932 NCAA individual golf championship and the Big Ten Conference individual championship in 193 ...

(individual) * 1966

Curtis Cup The Curtis Cup is the best known team trophy for women amateur golfers, awarded in the biennial Curtis Cup Match. It is co-organised by the United States Golf Association and The R&A and is contested by teams representing the United States and " ...

, won by the

over

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

13-5 *

1967 Events January * January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Canadian Confederation, Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair. * January 6 – Vietnam War: United States Marine Corps and Army of ...

U.S. Women's Open The U.S. Women's Open is one of 15 national golf championships conducted by the United States Golf Association (USGA), is the oldest of the LPGA Tour's five major championships, which includes the Chevron Championship, Women's PGA Championship, ...

, won by Catherine Lacoste * 1980

U.S. Senior Amateur The U.S. Senior Amateur is a national tournament for amateur golf competitors at least 55 years of age. It is operated by the United States Golf Association (USGA). The tournament starts with 36 holes of stroke play, with the top 64 competitors ad ...

, won by William C. Campbell * 1988

U.S. Amateur The United States Amateur Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Amateur, is the leading annual golf tournament in the United States for amateur golfers. It is organized by the United States Golf Association and is currently held each August ov ...

, won by Eric Meeks * 1994

, won by

Wendy Ward Wendy Ward (born May 6, 1973) is an American professional golfer who played on the LPGA Tour. Early life, education and amateur career Ward was born in San Antonio, Texas. She attended Arizona State University where she had a successful Nationa ...

* 1995 Merrill Lynch Shoot-Out Championship (

Senior PGA Tour PGA Tour Champions (formerly the Senior PGA Tour and the Champions Tour) is a men's professional senior golf tour, open to golfers age 50 and over, administered as a branch of the PGA Tour. History and format The Senior PGA Championship, f ...

) * 1996 Merrill Lynch Shoot-Out Championship (

) * 2000

U.S. Mid-Amateur The U.S. Mid-Amateur, often called the Mid-Am for short, is the leading annual golf tournament in the United States for post-college amateur golfers, organized by the USGA. It was first played in at Bellerive Country Club in Creve Coeur, Missour ...

, won by Greg Puga * 2004 NCAA Division I Men's Championship, won by

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

(team) and Ryan Moore (UNLV)(individual) * 2009 USGA Senior Women's Amateur Championship

Spa

The Homestead offers spa services to guests including massages, facial treatments, manicures and pedicures, and stays in the Serenity Garden, where guests can soak in pools fed by natural geothermal springs. Also located in the spa is the hotel's fitness center and indoor pool, open to any guests of the resort. Another location operated by the Homestead is the Warm Springs Pools, geothermal springs housed in historic structures. Guests of the hotel and day guests can book hour-long sessions to soak in the pools. The resort provides shuttle rides from the hotel to Warm Springs.

Recreation

The Homestead offers many activities to guests, including a two-acre waterpark with a lazy river and water slides, mini golf, tennis, kayaking, fly fishing, horseback riding, skeet shooting, archery, zip lining, guided hikes, and lawn games. The resort originally featured an Olympic sized skating rink that closed when the Zamboni became unusable. In 2008, the Homestead built a new 30 X 20 foot ice skating rink in time for the 2008-2009 winter season. In 2013, the ice rink was relocated to Allegheny Springs, adjacent to the outdoor pool.

Ski resort

The

ski area A ski area is the terrain and supporting infrastructure where skiing and other snow sports take place. Such sports include alpine and cross-country skiing, snow boarding, tubing, sledding, etc. Ski areas may stand alone or be part of a ski resort. ...

at The Homestead was opened in 1959; it is the oldest

ski resort A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing, snowboarding, and other winter sports. In Europe, most ski resorts are towns or villages in or adjacent to a ski area–a mountainous area with pistes (ski trails) and a ski lift system. In North Am ...

in Virginia, and was developed by Sepp Kober, known as 'The Father of Southern Skiing'. Natural snowfall on the ski hill is supplemented by

snowmaking Snowmaking is the production of snow by forcing water and pressurized air through a "snow gun", also known as a "snow cannon". Snowmaking is mainly used at ski resorts to supplement natural snow. This allows ski resorts to improve the reliabilit ...

equipment and groomed by machines for optimal ski and snowboard experience. The resort's main and only northwest-facing slope is serviced by three lifts, including a double

chairlift An elevated passenger ropeway, or chairlift, is a type of aerial lift, which consists of a continuously circulating steel wire rope loop strung between two end terminals and usually over intermediate towers. They are the primary on-hill tran ...

which accesses the intermediate and advanced terrain at the top of the hill, and two surface lifts which serve the beginner terrain at the bottom and at the tubing hill. The chairlift has a mid-mountain drop-off station which accesses intermediate terrain. The resort offers a variety of other winter activities including

snow tubing Tubing, also known as inner tubing, bumper tubing, towed tubing, biscuiting (in New Zealand), or kite tubing, is a recreational activity where an individual rides on top of an inner tube, either on water, snow, or through the air. The tubes thems ...

Statistics:

Elevation

* Summit Elevation: * Base Elevation: * Vertical Rise:

Terrain

* Skiable area: * Runs: 10 total ** 35% beginner ** 55% intermediate ** 10% advanced * Longest run: * Annual snowfall:

Resort capacity

* Lift system: 3 lifts total ** 1 double

** 1

rope tow A surface lift is a type of cable transport for mountain sports in which skiers, snowboarders, or mountain bikers remain on the ground as they are pulled uphill. While they were once prevalent, they have been overtaken in popularity by higher ...

s ** I conveyor * Uphill lift capacity: 1,143 skiers/hour * Snowmaking: 100% of trails

March 2009 shooting

On March 21, 2009, two resort employees were shot and killed in the hotel kitchen; the community of Hot Springs was briefly locked down under code red procedures as a security precaution. Authorities identified fellow employee Beacher Ferrel Hackney as a suspect in the killings. The slayings were the first homicides in Bath County since 1983. On September 2, 2012, Hackney's remains, clothing, some personal possessions, and pistol were found near the Homestead's Lower Cascades golf course. The cause of death has not been determined.

Gallery

File:The Omni Homestead Resort.jpg, The Homestead as viewed from one of its golf courses, the Old Course File:Homestead-7.jpg, Fireworks on the lawn to celebrate memorial day File:Homestead-1.jpg, Christmas Tree lighting in the Great Hall of the Homestead File:Warm Springs Pools-3.jpg, Interior of the Warm Springs Pools, historic geothermal spa buildings operated by the Homestead in the town of

Warm Springs, Virginia Warm Springs is a census-designated place (CDP) in and the county seat of Bath County, Virginia, United States. The population as of the 2020 census was 121.List of Historic Hotels of America Historic Hotels of America is a program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation that was founded in 1989 with 32 charter members; the program identifies hotels in the United States that have maintained authenticity, sense of place, and a ...

List of National Historic Landmarks in Virginia This is a list of National Historic Landmarks in Virginia. There are currently 126 National Historic Landmarks (NHLs), and 2 former NHLs. Current landmarks The National Historic Landmarks (NHLs) are widely distributed across Virginia's 95 cou ...

* National Register of Historic Places listings in Bath County, Virginia

References

External links

Official website

Detailed look at the Cascades Course

"Taking the Waters: 19th Century Mineral Springs: Hot Springs."
Claude Moore Health Sciences Library,

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Omni Homestead Resort, The Hotel buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Virginia Golf clubs and courses in Virginia National Historic Landmarks in Virginia Golf clubs and courses designed by Donald Ross Curtis Cup venues Buildings and structures in Bath County, Virginia Resorts in Virginia Houses completed in 1892 Ski areas and resorts in Virginia Queen Anne architecture in Virginia Greek Revival architecture in Virginia Colonial Revival architecture in Virginia Hotels established in 1892 Tourist attractions in Bath County, Virginia National Register of Historic Places in Bath County, Virginia Hot springs of Virginia 1892 establishments in Virginia Historic Hotels of America Brick buildings and structures in Virginia Omni Hotels & Resorts