Shire Suite at the White Lotus Eco Spa Retreat

This is the second time we've stayed at the Shire Suite at the White Lotus Eco Spa Retreat, and both times have been great. It's a wonderfully cozy spot, and the property itself is lovely. So much to see and explore! It's a very beautiful, quiet area that isn't too far from town with a charming little coffee shop (Maybelle's on Main) and all your basic necessities. Charlottesville is about a 40-minute drive, which isn't bad. We intend to come back every year for our anniversary. Looking forward to next year!

The grounds are lovely, as are the residents both human and animal. If you like being surrounded by nature and appreciate great care and detail put into a unique stay, book here.

Unique property in quiet, country setting. But still quite easy to go into Charlottesville and surrounding areas for food, sightseeing, and recreation. Best to bring your own food. Host and helpers are responsive. Takes a bit of getting used to. It was what I was expecting. Did not disappoint. Comfortable beds. Be sure to ask for accessible accomodations if needed. Go in with a sense of adventure.

I plan on being very transparent with this review so others know what to expect. My husband and I booked the Shire Suite for our wedding anniversary/ baby moon. When I booked the room, I received an email confirmation with the keypad code to get into the room; my reservation was not for at least a month. It definitely made me question the security of the space. The room itself looked like the photos online but did not give a cozy feel like we were hoping. The suite is right behind the bar and next to the communal bathrooms, which we did not know. The walls are thin so we could here people talking, going in and out of the bathroom, etc. The chairs in the room were so uncomfortable. I sat in the recliner and became itchy; I'm thinking it is because there was dog or cat hair on it. The throw blanket on the bed had hair on it and I almost used a dirty fork. The bed made a lot of noise. Unfortunately, I was 8 months pregnant and hardly got any sleep because of the thin walls and squeaky bed. The location is more of an Airbnb vibe as we are expected to wash and dry our dishes, set up the hot tub if we wanted to use it, etc. Plus, no one was there at check in; so we had to figure out a lot on our own. There is the option to text the property manager but we decided not to (that's on us). The continental breakfast was not what we were expecting. They had very minimal items; we ended up driving into town for brunch. As a whole, the property looks beautiful. When taking a closer look, the plants and grass were overgrown, the hot tub looked unsanitary, there were random piles of trash/junk; it felt very outdated. The benches and other furniture were not properly taken care of; ie rusty, dirty. Overall, it was a decent stay. Now that we know what to expect; we might come back. For the price, it seems worth it to us. We can always adjust our expectations.

Unique. Rustic. Peaceful. Positive: If you love Lord of the Rings, you will LOVE this. Such a unique, magical property! Very peaceful to wake up to the sound of birdsong. The suite was spacious and comfortable. The rest of the grounds were beautiful, we loved exploring all the different buildings and rooms. The solarium in particular was a perfect place for yoga and meditation. The suite was well stocked with coffee, tea, a mini fridge and microwave, etc. Though we never met the staff in person (self check in was a breeze!), they were very helpful and responsive via the app. Negative: It would have been nice if the continental breakfast was offered in the nice shared kitchen in the Barn where the suite is — for convenience, and because the shared kitchen space in the Castle (where the continental breakfast is) had would benefit from some updates and a deep clean. This is very nitpicky, but the tile floors throughout the suite were very cold; I would have loved some more rugs to walk around barefoot comfortably. Note there is no cell service and food options nearby are limited, so be prepared for that. But all of these were minor inconveniences - overall we had a wonderful stay, and would definitely recommend for anyone looking for a peaceful, rural, off-the-beaten path style of retreat for yoga/meditation/reading.