A few weeks ago, I was invited to the Eagle Ridge Inn & Resort for a media morel dinner and lunch, and had quite a fabulous time! Aside from picking morel mushrooms, which I found out about at my local Farmers Market last season, I was super excited to travel to Galena, Il once again, since I love it so much. My husband and I honeymooned there, and it will always hold a special place in my heart.
One thing that I love about Eagle Ridge Inn & Resort was the ease of getting to it. It is literally right off of Route 20, and there were no crazy twists and turns to get there. The amount of land that the resort sits on is vast, and you could literally spend weeks exploring it all. After entering what I thought was the hotel path, I had a 3.5 mile drive to the actual front door of the inn. Park was ample, and I did arrive during construction, but it didn’t limit me in the least. The alternative route was clearly labeled and got me right where I needed to be. Check in was a bit long since a company was registering their employees for a long weekend, but the conversation was nice, and I didn’t mind waiting.
After getting checked in, I walked into my room and absolutely loved it. I realize that I may be in the minority, but I LOVE hotel rooms. It’s not often that I get to stay somewhere alone, and I cherish those times. What makes it even better is when the accommodations are plush. There was a wonderfully comfortable king sized bed waiting for me, along with a sitting area complete with loveseat and individual arm chairs. I had a great overview of the lake on the back of the inn, and it was so calming.
The bathroom was deeper than your regular sized hotel rooms with a jetted bathtub, that took me a moment to figure out how to empty. Because I rise to the challenge, AND didn’t want to have to call downstairs to ask, I poked and prodded (gently) until I figured out that you had to twist the overflow valve to release the water. Color me embarrassed.
While I didn’t spend much time in the room since I was there for a media trip, I will say this, as soon as my head hit my pillow I was asleep. It takes a lot for me to knock out when I am away from my husband, and I was able to sleep comfortably.
On site, but not used by me were the pool, and spa (which I hear is to DIE for, so I can’t wait to go back again) and I was able to eat a wonderful breakfast buffet that offered made to order omelets. Talk about great service!
When your resort sits on 6800 acres of land, it takes quite a bit to impress more than that factor, and Eagle Ridge Inn & Resort did just that. Just the right amount of luxury, while still making me feel at home. What REALLY did it for me though was the food that we were able to take part in as part of the media trip. Morels make me happy!
Our chefs were fantastic, and you could tell that they really took pride in the way that they prepared food. This was evident in every single course from our dinner, and in every single item of food prepared for lunch.
I’m going to have to give Eagle Ridge a great big two thumbs up, especially since I’m in the planning stages of visiting with my husband. After not vacationing last year, we NEED a getaway, but still don’t want to travel too far out of our city. With Galena, IL being approximately 3 hours away, this gives us the perfect feel of being out of state without having to travel far!