[White Sulphur Spgs.] Greenbrier reopens with new look, new attitude

[seicer]

Greenbrier reopens with new look, new attitude

Key --

1. After the Sept. 11 incidents, the Greenbrier was closed to non-guests citing 'terrorism' concerns.

1a. It is reopening much of the facility to non-guests again.

2. It has reopened completely after three months of work.

3. Non-guests can shop, golf, ride horses, and participate in the 50+ recreational activities that include indoor/outdoor tennis, rock climbing, falconry and fishing.

3a. Reservations are required for the spa, dinner and groups of 5+ people.

4. The Greenbrier Spa will be open to non-guests Mondays through Thursdays. Tours of the Cold War-era nuclear fallout shelter will be open four times a day, seven days a week.

5. The renovations ($50 million in all) are still ongoing. New features include...

5a. In 63 guest rooms, there are now marble bathrooms with soaking tubs and walk-in showers. Those rooms also feature fresh fabrics, wallpapers, executive-style desks and new furniture. The remaining rooms will be upgraded through May.

5b. After that, work will continue on the dining rooms, then the kitchen.

5c. Renovations should be complete within 3 years.

5d. All 721 guest rooms now have new bedding and linens, plasma-screen TVs, and electronic key locks.

6. "Amenities that had been lacking, such as telephones in the bathrooms, were cited in 2000 when Mobil stripped The Greenbrier of its five-star rating after 38 years."

7. Hemisphere, a new restaurant with an international flavor, will open summer 2007. 3880, a workd music cocktail lounge, will open as well.

Article information: "Greenbrier reopens with new look, new attitude, Herald-Dispatch, Monday, April, 2, 2007"

[seicer]

Greenbrier opens doors

By Curtis Johnson, Herald-Dispatch [Huntington], August 6, 2007

The Greenbrier reopened earlier this year, a four-star, five-diamond resort in Greenbrier County. Some policy changes came along with the reopening, including one that prevented non-registered guests from accessing parts of the resort and courtyard. Now, room reservations and tea times are no longer required to visit the four restaurants, three golf courses, 35 shops, carriage rides, spa, and bunker tours. The policy was put in place in January 2004 to spring 2007 -- until new management was put in place.

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Cold War-era bunker helps Greenbrier thrive

By Curtis Johnson, Herald-Dispatch [Huntington], August 6, 2007

Project Greek Island was designed as a top-secret bunker aimed at protecting members of the U.S. Congress and President. Today, it is a public relations "machine" that draws visitors of all types to the The Greenbrier. The bunker was planned by Congress and President Dwight D. Eisenhower's administration, and was designed to provide a place for Congress to continue full operations in the case of a catastrophic event or nuclear attack that destroyed Washington, D.C.

The bunker included 153 rooms in 44 separate locations and remained secret for more than 30 years. It was kept at full-operation status until The Washington Post revealed its identity in 1992. The resort began giving public tours in December 1995. It had "several good years" before interest began to wane, but was revived after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

The bunker has daily tours that includes views of the power plant, communications center, a 25-ton blast door, underground medical clinic, and dormitories.