Loose Leaf Notes

~ The following are some of the photos I took to accompany a recent story in the Floyd Press, written by the paper’s editor about the Hotel Floyd’s expansion. The narrative below comes from a piece I was commissioned to write about the expansion.  It appears in the current issue of The Floyd Magazine.

The Hotel Floyd opened in 2007 as downtown Floyd’s first green lodging establishment.  Built by Jack Wall and Kamala Bauers, it features themed rooms that showcase the music, art, mountain culture and natural beauty that is increasingly drawing visitors to Floyd.

Constructed with eco-friendly building materials, and with photovoltaic solar panels on the roof, the hotel was well received, which led to its expansion. In 2011, an electric car charger was installed on the 2 ½ acre grounds and two pet-friendly suites with full kitchens were built adjacent to the hotel’s 14-roomed original building.   In the summer of 2013, construction began on the hotel’s four-story addition and was completed in June of 2014.

The new addition includes 24 themed rooms (singles and suites), a reception lobby, a gift shop, a holistic fitness room and a conference center.   The conference center, which is available for rent, features state of the art meeting equipment and opens onto a courtyard garden, making the combination suitable for wedding receptions and other events.  A café is also housed in the new addition, providing space for the hotel to now offer continental breakfast that will incorporate locally produced food.

The hotel’s central downtown location has contributed to its popularity.  Offering boutique style and modern amenities amidst a small town setting, the hotel is within walking distance to historic sites, the Floyd Farmers Market, antique and clothing stores, fine arts and crafts shops and a town park where mountain sunsets can be enjoyed.  Artisan baked goods, farm-to-table meals, tapas, Mexican fare, brick oven pizzas, micro-brews and traditional country cooking are all available downtown.

On Thursday evenings from May to October, the hotel hosts free concerts at the Hotel Floyd gazebo bandstand.  Other live music venues are a footpath away and include Dogtown Roadhouse, Oddfellas Cantina and the world famous Floyd Country Store, a Crooked Road Heritage Music Trail destination and home of the Friday Night Jamboree, where people come from all over to enjoy traditional Appalachian music and dancing.

Nearby activities and places of interest include hiking trails, kayaking on the Little River, small farms, artists’ studios, wellness centers and wineries.  The scenic Blue Ridge Parkway with more than 40 miles running through Floyd and Floydfest, a popular five day annual music festival, are among the area’s attractions that have made the one-stoplight town of Floyd a destination.

The hotel’s themed rooms and suites are decorated by local artists, groups and businesses and reflect the creativity of the Floyd community.  The natural hardwood furniture is all made local and some of it is handcrafted. Special touches that add to the themed decors include an antique typewriter in the Floyd Writers Suite that was once used in the Bank of Floyd, a collection of framed quilt and lace crochet samples in The Old Church Gallery Suite, a handmade fiddle displayed in the Floyd Country Store Suite and lamps with honeycomb designs in the Spikenard Farm and Bee Sanctuary Room.  The Floyd Press Room features a framed montage of past top news stories, including one on Floyd NASCAR driver, Curtis Turner.

“What I think is unique about the Hotel Floyd is that it showcases the essence of Floyd.  When you travel in most communities and stay in a lodging establishment, you can’t tell where you are because everything is the same.  At the Hotel Floyd all the rooms are different and each one represents a special person, organization or place in Floyd,” said Kamala Bauers, hotel co-owner.

Photos: Hotel Floyd, Spikenard Farm and Bee Sanctuary Room, 16 Hands Artisan Room, Floyd Press Room, New Mountain Mercantile Room, Hotel Live Music Gazebo, Virginia’s Blue Ridge Music Festival Room,  Mugs in the Music Festival Room, A thread filled lamp in The School House Fabric Room, SustainFloyd Room and below Angels in the Attic Room and Hotel co-owner Kamala Bauers showing visitors the hotel courtyard.

Visit the Hotel Floyd’s website to see more photos HERE. 

_____Our World Tuesday