Montreat Conference Center (Retreat at Montreat)

Worth knowing

• Groups choose between hotel-style Assembly Inn rooms and seven lodges, from a 20-person lodge up to a 68-person lodge.
• Group retreat season is roughly mid-August to mid-May; the site's guidance is that meals can be bundled in or skipped, and lodge-only groups cook for themselves.
• A 35-person minimum applies for dining-room meals, and the Complete Package needs 15 inn rooms or a full lodge.
• Listed nightly lodge rates are flat per building (for example $600 for the 20-person Hickory Lodge and $1,700 for Winsborough).

What the operator states

Sleeps

Assembly Inn 100 rooms, up to 200 guests; Winsborough 31 rooms, up to 68 (group size also listed as 20-50); Glen Rock Inn and Apartment up to 41; Reynolds Lodge 16 rooms, up to 32; Sylvan Heights Lodge 7 bedrooms, 25 beds; Hickory Lodge up to 20; Walnut up to 7; campground 29 sites, up to 6 per site. No campus-wide total is stated.

Largest single building

Sleeps 200

Kitchen

Seven lodges are offered; many have full kitchens and guests do their own cleanup and checkout. A lodging-only package means the group cooks for itself.

Meals and dining

Buffet meals in the Assembly Inn dining room at fixed times (breakfast 7:30-8:30, lunch 12:00-1:00, dinner 5:30-6:30). The dining room needs at least 35 people on any date meals are requested. Meal counts lock 30 days before arrival; meals are reserved two weeks ahead (four weeks if dietary restrictions or custom menus). Standard dining-room prices: breakfast $12 adult / $6 child 5-11, lunch $15 / $7.50, dinner $18 / $9, under 5 free, plus NC sales tax. Boxed lunches available.

Meeting space

40 rooms and spaces that can be set classroom, boardroom or theater style. Assembly Inn alone has 10 meeting rooms; others include Anderson Auditorium, The Barn, Freeland Hall, Belk Center at Left Bank, Moore Center, Walkup and Wayout buildings. Seat counts are in a Capacity Chart on Montreat's site, not in the page text read.

Outdoors

29-site campground with two bathhouses; Montreat wilderness trails; Robert Lake Park is open to the public dawn to dusk.

Pets

Pets and emotional support animals are not permitted; ADA service dogs are welcome. Pets must be leashed in the Montreat wilderness; dogs are not allowed in Robert Lake Park.

Alcohol

Limited to designated areas and must follow the group's contract policy; prohibited in Robert Lake Park.

Minimum stay

Complete Package: two nights minimum with at least three dining-room meals, and at least 15 Assembly Inn rooms or a full lodge. Lodging-only package: full lodge, two nights minimum. Campground: two-night weekend minimum.

Season

Group retreats run mid-August through mid-May; lodging and meeting spaces are used by conferences in summer.

Group rules

Montreat describes itself as a Christian institution, says it may decline facility use to any individual or group, and says hosting a group is not an endorsement of its beliefs. Discrimination against guests is not tolerated. Quiet hours 11 PM-7 AM (Town of Montreat ordinance). No candles or open flames. Firearms and recreational drones are prohibited on its property. Tobacco only outdoors where urns are provided. Blue painter's tape only; do not rearrange furniture. Check-in 4 PM, check-out 10 AM.

Price

Group lodging per night: Winsborough $1,700; Glen Rock Inn $825 (apartment $275); Reynolds Lodge $1,200; Sylvan Heights Lodge $550; Hickory Lodge $600; Walnut $275; campground $30-$50 per site. Assembly Inn rates vary and are not listed. Meals priced separately. (no date on the page; confirm before you rely on it)

Ask before you book

Built from what the operator's page left open when we checked.

1. Is your stated capacity the permitted occupancy, or a count of every bed and sofa?
2. Can a church bus or coach reach the building, and how many cars fit?
3. Which rooms and bathrooms work for a wheelchair or walker?
4. What is the full price, with cleaning fees and taxes?

Copy these questions

Also read what "sleeps 30" really means and the full question list.

Where this came from