Ericka

If you think you’ve seen the beauty that is Twin Farms, you really haven’t seen anything until you’ve seen the rolling hills covered in snow. The snowfall in New England this year has been excessive to say the least and it has created a veritable winter wonderland in Barnard, VT.

For our second stay at Twin Farms, we booked through DavidO / Virtuoso which availed us a bottle of Dom Perignon, chocolates, and a generous upgrade. And since our stay was on a Sunday night, the property also allowed us to take advantage of their mid-week package which included spa services and late checkout. All of these benies, added to the already all-inclusive nature of the property, made for a tremendous value. And I was really missing those crackling fires which made winter an ideal time to visit.

Service
As with our last visit, service was pleasant and very casual. Most of the staff somehow knew who we were and treated us more as friends than as customers. We arrived late morning in order to do some skiing and were told that our room wasn’t ready so we were shown to the Washington Suite in the main house for a comfortable place to change….nice.

Perch Cottage
By lunchtime, we were shown to our room, the Perch Cottage. While the overall fishing theme was clever, the best part of this room was undoubtedly the bathroom with its gigantic copper bathtub made famous by zigzag in the “unforgettable bathtubs” thread. The tub had views through the woods and out over the ski trails. As with all rooms, there was original artwork throughout and a fabulous wood-burning fireplace. And even in the dead of winter, the cottage was within comfortable walking distance to the pub and the main house.

Activities
Most of the outdoor activities were accessible from the warming hut just off of the main house. Inside, there was a wood-burning stove and a gentleman to help you with all of the supplies needed for your outdoor adventure…the latest skis, boots, snow-shoes, sleds, toboggans, hand warmers, a bottle of water, etc. We tried just about everything and the scenery while cross-country skiing and snow-shoeing was divine.

Our main activity was downhill skiing. Mr. Ericka used to be a ski instructor and he would tell you that while this was certainly not the best skiing in New England, there was something to having not only the whole run, but the whole mountain to yourself! The Twin Farms poma lift is gone (too costly to maintain) and in its place is what they call the sherpa...a very large snowmobile with seats made to transport skiers up and down the mountain. The runs were short so that after you were dropped at the top, you and the sherpa met down at the bottom at the same time, ready for the next trip up! No lines, no wait…you just kept skiing until you’d had enough. They don’t make snow at Twin Farms but they do a good job of grooming. Unfortunately, there was sleet the night before we arrived and there were only two runs (one blue, one green) out of six maintained enough for comfortable skiing. The black run couldn’t be groomed…it’s only skiable during ideal conditions, and there was no bunny hill, however the sherpa could drop novice skiers off partway up any of the runs, which is how I got myself re-acclimated. Most of the time, it was just Mr. Ericka and me, which was pretty amazing.

The next time we visit, we will make time for ice skating and the sleigh rides which I believe happen on Saturdays.

The Japanese furo and the in-room massages provided a nice break for our tired muscles.

Food
As before, there were no menus at Twin Farms. Instead, they kept our food preferences on file from our last visit. We are not foodies, but always think our meals there are superb. Our favorites from this trip include the soufflé pancakes, a melt-in-your-mouth roasted pork shoulder, and simply the best hot chocolate EVER garnished with homemade whipped cream. We had a great picnic lunch delivered to the room on the second day. Our only complaint would be with one dessert where the chef appeared to be trying too hard, packing too many layers, or flavors, into the one dish.

We had dinner in front of a roaring fire in the pub where we watched the Superbowl (yay Packers!). The wines were excellent and included a Chateau Montelena cabernet and a Meursault Burgundy white.

All in all, winter was a great time to visit Twin Farms.

zigzag

Wow, that's a three category upgrade, nice work DavidO! I always think it helps that you are a repeat customer at any hotel/resort, and why not, Twin Farms for me is perfect!
Thanks for a great trip report once again. I loved that you had the mountain to yourself, that's were I learned to snowboard 15 years ago with no one around to witness all the "faceplants" in the snow.
I wish the porch in the Perch Cottage was heated like the floor in the Barn Cottage so you could sit out there in the winter. Bliss!

Ericka

Forgot to mention the lovely screened porch. We obviously didn't use it in the dead of winter but I bet it is a wonderful little hideaway in the summer.

Regarding upgrades, we deliberately sought out dates when the property was low occupancy and I'm sure staying mid-week helped.

paul2

Thanks Ericka,great report. I think I will leave Twin Farms for a summer break though,I've had enough snow at home to last quite some time!

Jasper2009

Thank´s, very interesting!

May I ask what´s included in this "all-inclusive property"?

Is it "regular" meals and all drinks or would it also include things like picknicks, private BBQs, transportation around the place, activities?

Definitely sounds like a fantastic property!

Ericka

All meals including private picnics and special locations, all-day snacks and high tea, average $40-50 wines and top shelf liquor, transportation from certain airports and around the property, and yes, pretty much all activities though without the mid-week package you would be paying for the spa.

I have a fall version trip report on here as well that may have more detail if you want to search it out.

Jasper2009

Thank´s for the response!

I found the other trip report, looks like an amazing property!

ABG

Do you know if they will crack some more prestige bottles if wine is your thing?

I'm hoping to make it down in March for my birthday and wine is sorta my new thing!

Ericka

They have an extensive wine list and wine cellar. It's my understanding that you may pick anything you like from the wine cellar if you are that interested though we have always allowed the staff to pick for us. There is also a Reserve Wine List which has their most expensive bottles which are an additional charge.

You can also have a private meal in the wine cellar which would probably be fun for you!