I got married last Saturday, and since my husband (still not used to using that word!) is in law school, we were only able to get away for a few nights. After having a wonderful stay at a suite in the Omni Downtown Austin, we headed over to The Inn Above Onion Creek in Kyle, Texas for two nights.
We came here a few months ago for just one night and immediately knew that we would be back. The property is only around 20 miles southwest of my city of Austin, but it feels like you’re in another world. It’s tucked away on 88 pastoral acres off a winding country road.
The Inn Above Onion Creek has an on-site spa down the road from the main buildings and a pool, but the best perks are the delectable three-course gourmet dinners and gourmet breakfasts included in the room rate. You can choose to have the dinner in the dining room at 6 p.m. at shared tables (where you will meet tons of interesting people) or you can pick it up to-go at 7 and enjoy it on your own. My mouth is still watering from the homemade tres leches dessert on the first night. Oh, and you have 24/7 access to jars of two different types of fresh-baked cookies, plus free popcorn, sodas, and juices. You won’t find that at a hotel.
The B&B has 12 guest rooms–two of which are stand-alone cabins. The regular rooms and suites are in two separate wooden buildings next to each other. During this stay, we were in the Kuykendall Suite, which actually spanned two stories and had a fireplace on each level. Click on that link to see high-quality pictures of the room.
Every room has a porch or deck, some of which are private. Our last room had a ground-level private back deck; this time it was a second-story deck that we shared with two other rooms. But the deck was huge, and none of the other guests were ever out there when we are, so it felt private. It overlooked the countryside and was blissfully quiet and peaceful. We spent so much time sitting out there reading, playing guitar, and just talking.
I took this photo of Bryan hanging out on the deck using the iPhone app Panorama for the first time:
The inn’s library is another one of its unusual treasures. With a fireplace, grandfather clock, rows of hardback books, and comfy leather chairs, it feels like you’ve gone back in time. The room also has tons of board games you can use, in addition to a huge DVD library. You can borrow them for free and take them back to the DVD player in your room or watch it in the library’s TV. Bryan enjoyed digging through University of Texas yearbooks from the 1960s and a photo history of the Civil War, while I made a cacophony with the accordion that was sitting in a shelf (my talent remains with the cello; it’s fortunate that no other guests were in the room to hear it).
The inn’s name isn’t arbitrary. There’s a path leading away from the inn (the one you see in the panorama picture above) that takes you to a scenic overlook of the creek the inn is named after. It’s only 400 yards to the overlook, but it’s a lovely and quiet walk among the trees and cacti.
Sadly, we arrived to find no water. We later learned that the creek is in fact dry most of the time. Despite this, I was so happy to be away from a desk and out amongst nature.
While we spent most of our time outside, our two-story suite was fantastic. We always had one of the fireplaces going, and the king bed was incredibly comfortable. The bathroom was larger than the size of my bedroom at home. To the right was a two-person jetted tub, and to the left was a double shower. I had never seen one before. It was enormous, and it even had a bench inside–amazing for those of us who have to shave our legs. Now I want one!
The inn is a short drive to the charming town of Wimberley, and it’s a great home base for exploring the Texas Hill Country’s wineries. But we went there to just unwind and be together. The first time we went, I asked the innkeeper what there was to do in Kyle. She said not much–that most people went there to “just be.” That’s what we did. There’s nothing like sitting on a porch in rocking chairs watching the sun set over the countryside. And then stuffing your face with homemade cookies.
