The Biltmore

The first weekend in December,

Kevin and I traveled to Asheville, NC, to celebrate our Anniversary.

We were married on December 5th, 19 years ago.

On Saturday, we toured the Biltmore, this being my first visit.

The massive size of the beautiful mansion is overwhelming!

The 175,000 square foot home was built between 1889-1895, by George Washington Vanderbilt. It is the largest privately owned home in the States, and features 250 rooms.

Can you imagine waking up to this view every morning?

The architectural details of the exterior amazed me the most!

And to think, each intricate detail was created and constructed in the 1800's, long before the modern conveniences, machinery, and tools we have today to do so.

The Biltmore in the late evening.

Luminaries surrounding the massive Christmas tree on the front lawn.

After our tour, we dined at the romantic Deerpark Restaurant, one of the restaurants on the estate. I would have taken more pictures in the restaurant, but I didn't want to appear as if I'd never been anywhere! ha! :)

It was so nice to retreat back to the Hampton Inn, which was beautifully decorated for Christmas.

Wanted to get a picture of the inviting lobby fireplace, but others were also enjoying it.

Towards the end of the week, I'll do one final post on our trip;

shopping at one of the all-time best antique malls I've found on my travels!