As new parents, it is bittersweet leaving our baby girl for a night because we miss her so much…BUT as new parents, we also need our time to recharge, reconnect, and have a grown-up date. We found the perfect place to do all of that at the West Baden Springs Hotel at French Lick Resort … close to home, but we felt like we were millions of miles away!

Growing up, I always admired the haunting beauty of the West Baden Springs Hotel…it was overgrown and dilapidated, so I had to use my imagination. Thankfully others took an interest too and put their imaginations to work, starting a massive restoration project that returned the historic hotel once known as the “8th Wonder of the World” to all her glory and is more stunning than the visions I had as a child. Since it reopened as a hotel in 2007, we enjoy visiting the property every change we get.

When we checked in on Friday afternoon, we were greeted by the bellmen staff at the entrance who were very friendly and offered their complimentary services. Since we were just staying for one night, we did not have much with us so we declined and began making our way to the front desk. Once you enter the hotel, you make your way through the grand Atrium as you walk to the lobby where the front desk is located. Even though I have been here more times than I can count, I still couldn't help but snap a few photos because this place has the "wow" factor every single time, no matter if it's your 1st visit, or 100th.

My fiancé and I have stayed in a number of hotels and resorts, but I have to say the attention to detail in the suite cannot be matched, down to the bathing products and white plush robes. Since we were looking to make the most of our date night, we called to make a reservation at Sinclair’s, the fine dining restaurant. Sinclair’s is the perfect backdrop for a romantic evening. It is located just off the Atrium, with white table cloths, fine china, and an impressive menu.

Our dinner reservation wasn’t for a while and we were starving so we decided on an ice cream treat because the smell of the waffle-cones was too tempting to ignore. Plus, since we were splurging on a date night, we wanted to include all of our favorite indulgences, even if that means eating dessert before dinner! With our treats in hand, we made our way back to the Atrium…it has a way of pulling you back in and the furniture is so inviting, we had to take a seat. As we were relaxing with our sweet treats, we began people-watching, one of our favorite pastimes. Music was also playing and it added a very relaxing feel to the ambiance. The daylight was filtering through the skylights in the domed ceiling, so even though the temperature outside was dropping, we were warm under the beautiful Atrium. It felt as if we were part of a European streetscape and not somewhere so close to home.

Once again, the Atrium pulled us in. It takes on a whole other life at night, especially with a bottle of wine. Live music was playing and the lights had been dimmed down for the light show. We relaxed into two chairs and generously poured the wine into our glasses. We sipped while talking, laughing, and enjoying the romantic atmosphere.

We slept great, but we had to be up early because of a wedding. We made sure to stop by Café Sinclair’s for breakfast before heading out. Again, our waitstaff took care of our every need…even offering to get us Starbucks coffee from Xanadu. The menu had many options, so we went to our go-to breakfast order…a Belgian waffle with bacon and scrambled eggs for me and biscuits and gravy for Tommy.

Even though our stay was only for one night, the luxurious surroundings made the escape feel like more. It was definitely what we needed! Now that we've experienced West Baden Springs Hotel as guests, we know we will be back because we haven't experienced it all. Did someone mention they have balcony rooms overlooking the Atrium? We will have to start saving a little for that that indulgence, and maybe make an entire weekend out of it!