Let’s Go!: Is Nemacolin The Country’s Best Resort?

Photography by Jordan Millington-Liquorice

At the I-can’t-believe-I’m-here ultra luxe resort, Nemacolin, “nothing is impossible” is much more than the founder’s motto. It’s become the driving force behind every action, every decision made by this special destination that genuinely combines first-class hospitality, stunning design, up-to-the-moment technology and sheer wonderment creating excellence in every corner, everywhere you look and experience. The late founder, Joseph A. Hardy III, was really on to something. ‘Nothing is impossible’ as corporate ethos is a winning strategy to be sure. And how.

Maggie Hardy, the daughter of the late founder, has morphed Nemacolin, which started as a private, western Pennsylvania lakefront familial retreat in 1987, into a global destination of distinction. Together with her son, PJ Magerko-Liquorice, they’ve been making YOLO getaway dreams come true for more than two decades. Their love of life, the outdoors, beauty, glamour, perfection and invoking a couture wow-factor for their guests is evident—and that’s really the key to the resort’s success and magic. Technicolor wonderment is at the heart of the everchanging visual at the resort. My personal experience of Nemacolin was that of an adult Disneyland—with a touch of Moulin Rouge meets Top Chef—rolled into a five-star haven overseen by a queen. So, yes, eye candy abounds and there’s even a private air strip for the so inclined.

While a family-friendly playground has been implemented with more activities and venues than kids may have time for during a stay, Nemacolin remains an undeniably cultured adult respite from the everyday. The owners not only treat this resort as their retreat, living museum and sanctuary from their worldly travels, but dutifully bring back to the spa and wellness center, for example, first-class, cutting-edge longevity therapies and the most innovative holistic remedies that alter our exterior façades and nurture our inner peace. This 360-approach to living our best life is, in a word, wonderful—and available at Nemacolin in spades. 

So, what’s a day at Nemacolin like? Well, you might go from an intense workout at the gym to a three-minute Cryotherapy session; do 40 laps in the indoor/outdoor heated pools and have a transformative facial; partake in a paint lesson and head to a scrumptious lunch. Oh, but there’s more. Let’s head to the rifle range or throw on a sport coat for Afternoon Tea in the Bleu Room or dip into PJ’s Ice Cream Parlor just in time for your Chroma therapy and facial acupuncture appointment before needing a nap in your sumptuous chambers. Mind you, this is all before the evening’s never-ceasing enchantments commence.

Prior to diving into Nemacolin world, it’s important to know that there’s so much to do, to see and to indulge in, you might fear not experiencing everything you can to its max. With some organization and a well-thought-out to-do list, you can do it. A time investment on the resort’s comprehensive website (and their app) helps a lot. Nemacolin’s interactive map gives you the full lay of the land. I started my booking separating the things I wanted to do that were available before 10am and after 6:30pm (gym, pool, golf, steam) so I could select my daytime excursions and services within that time frame. Keeping in mind there could be wardrobe changes in between dining, excursions, spa, Afternoon Tea or Holistic Healing Center appointments. Time management, as always, is key when maximizing your experience at Nemacolin.

While the property has three seriously exceptional room HQs—Falling Rock, The Chateau and The Grand Lodge— three estates and eight deluxe homes (all in close proximity via a short jaunt or perpetual resort shuttles) are also available options. Nemacolin’s built-in amenities and venues will have you seamlessly toggling the above, intended for you to treat the entire compound like your own private fantasy amusement park.

From the first moment you set foot inside the resort’s grounds, it’s so clear the Hardy family wants you to relax, indulge, escape and participate in the magic they provided. No wonder the accolades keep coming, including the coveted five-star and five-diamond assignations from no less an authority than the luxury resort bible, Forbes Travel Guide. 

A couple of venues that shouldn’t be missed are the two legendary Pete Dye-designed golf courses at Falling Rock (one is regularly used as a PGA tour stop) as well as The Royale at The Casino—who doesn’t love cocktails and a show with a side of some blackjack fun in the same place? 

Hungry? Dreamy dining concepts and award-winning chefs bring a sophisticated culinary delight to Nemacolin, from sunup to sundown. On-the-go delicacies, in-room dining, bar side, poolside or table service, everything you eat at this resort is meant to be an experience. While Fawn & Fable is your go-to, round-the-clock dining destination, it consistently impresses with steakhouse grills and delish farm-to-table fare in a modern, sustainable castle design. Aqueous serves artistic cuisine for breakfast and dinner. Gusto! serves up casual Italian elegance with freshly made pastas (Tagliatelle Bolognese: Oh. My. God.). Milanese’s features exceptional woodfired pizzas, amazing wines and decadent desserts (Olive Oil Cake: Oh. My. God.). Luxurious in every sense, Lautrec offers Toulouse-Lautrec lithographs and five-course “culinary masterpieces” with perfect sommelier pairings and a three-course tasting menu for elegant bar sides. With a handful of clubby and experiential bars and chill lounges with exquisite bites, each has an identity where mixology meets glamour. Standouts include Lobby Bar, Circle Bar & The Study, Amber Bar, The Bleu Room, Nightcap and The Hardy Room for luxe libations and cigar pairings. I mean, it’s a lot—a lot of impossibly great choices.

While I tip my hat to the entire Nemacolin resort family for a next-level overall experience, I’d like to call out the resort’s exceptional and extensive meta/physical wellness procedures. Cue standing ovation.

The Fitness Center, Woodlands Spa and The Healing Center separately are individually attended to in the most maximized, every-detail-matters-oh-so-much of protocols—at each venue. While other places dabble with the occasional guru service, Nemacolin presents a barrage of superior, results-oriented, beautifying and chakra-inducing treatments, both tried and true and cutting-edge. This is something I know a lot about, having circled the planet experiencing the very best spas and resorts for many decades now. Nemacolin isn’t messing around.

Some of my wellness faves at the resort include the $250 Wellness Pass trifecta which includes a whole-body Cryotherapy session, NovoTHOR Photobiomodulation (PBM) Therapy (a cocooned bed of red and infrared light for human cell healing and oxidative stress) and a 30-minute detox Float Therapy session in a shallow pool of super dense salt water. There’s very little fluff here. Most services are medical grade, including seaweed infusion wraps and body scrubs, head-to-toe acupuncture, exercise physiology assessments and guidance, sound therapy (very underrated) and overall curated wellness packages and prescribed apothecary (two-week supply) and review from Dr. Jerry Lin, the on-site master of traditional Chinese medicine. This healing even extends into a (half day) Golf Wellness Package that includes their mobility/range of motion assessment, medical massage and golf lesson. The extensive massage list delves into migraine relief, cupping therapy, Gua Sha contouring, energy work, reflexology and restorative treatments. All so darn good.

While an amazing selection of anti-aging skincare brands are available for purchase, for Nemacolin to be using Biologique Recherche as the premier skincare line means the resort’s facial treatments are transformative. From handheld tools, procedural devices, gemstone-infused masks and more, you’ll be purring “mirror, mirror on the wall” after every luxurious treatment. I chose the Diamond Decadence and the Beyond Botox facials, with add-ons Plumping Nano Needling, Dermal Exfoliation and Sculpting upgrades, where I was tightened and lifted (and who doesn’t love that?). Need a glam blowout, balayage or color retouch? The Salon isn’t only Madison Avenue-worthy, men will also feel compelled to get a haircut, the resort’s signature Men’s Scalp Treatment or even the game-changing CBD-infused mani/pedi. Bro Glam is on like Donkey Kong at Nemacolin.

Whether you came for adventure as an adrenaline junkie, for an open-all-hours Vegas-like indulgence or endless family entertainment, there’s a lot to choose from. The nationally recognized Rod & Range Club is dispersed across some 150 acres of Pennsylvania’s Laurel Highlands with can’t-miss activities that include fly fishing, archery, shooting lessons, sporting clays (with seasonal Cosmic Clay Crush under the stars) and so many more. There’s also skiing, snow sports and snow tubing, Jeep off-roading, a high ropes challenge, mini golf, trail rides, new golfer bootcamp, art classes, golf simulators, Italian cooking classes, cosmic bowling, ice skating, dog sledding, a Fun Zone at the Hardy Girls Gym (tumble track, laser tag, ninja warrior course) and on and on. Best Part? The service—well, not the service exactly, but the people who perform the service—are beyond friendly and helpful, they become an integral part of your Nemacolin experience. It’s perfection, really, but what else would you expect from a resort that has their own in-house school for teaching how to become a butler? I mean… 

Just an hour outside of Pittsburgh, the drive to Nemacolin is both scenic and quick (the resort offers an airport car service pickup option). So, if you just need to get out of town, step outside of yourself or get in tune with your Ohm, Nemacolin is the absolutely perfect all-around indulgence that’ll have you creating memories filled with countless experiences and escapades. That unfamiliar feeling overtaking your soul after spending time at Nemacolin is bliss. Pure bliss. And yes, while there may be moments of dress up and black tie, you can also feel at ease getting a little dirty in the chicest of ways. When you hear references to “town and country,” they must have had Nemacolin in mind.

Your seasonal destination of surprise and awe awaits you. So, does Nemacolin fulfill its ‘nothing is impossible’ credo? Without question, yes. A million times yes.