Great House for a Christmas Family Reunion

Guest: Michael (Toronto, Canada)
Date of Stay: 12/20/09 Review Submitted: 01/28/10

This was a wonderful house for our week-long Christmas family reunion. The house was even larger and more comfortable than we had imagined from the pictures on the website. It easily accommodated our 20 family members with plenty of room to spare. The kids had plenty of room to spread out in their space, and the ping pong table in thegame room was a big hit. The dining room was large enough for all of us to comfortably have dinner together every evening, and the fireplace in the dining room added to the festive atmosphere. Dr. Levis is a very considerate and gracious host who made us feel right at home. Before we arrived, he had arranged to have a Christmas tree put up in the living room for us, and he checked in regularly to make certain that we were comfortable. Manchester is a great place to visit. Lots of Vermont charm, an abundance of designer outlets and plenty of good skiing nearby. We had a wonderful week and could have easily stayed longer.

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, sightseeing, pet owners, age 55+, families with young children, families with teenagers.

Family Gathering July 4 weekend

Guest: Barry C. (-)
Date of Stay: 07/01/11 Review Submitted: 09/23/11

The Mansion was terrific for our family gathering of 29 on July 4 weekend. The place was clean and the common rooms provided great space for smaller groups to play cards, ping pong, board games, etc. Also, the outdoor space was an added plus for whiffleball, babies in small pools and just sitting in a circle and enjoying the outdoors. The only (slight) drawback was that the kitchen is dated. All in all the place easily handled our large group and I would definitely recommend this rental house.

Owner response:Is the kitchen dated? yes and no. I will give you a description: we do have three kitchens, one for cooking, one for drinks and sitting down for a group, and a third on the top floor apartment for convenience. The first kitchen has two gas driven stoves with 8 top burners and two bottom stoves, two huge refrigerators and a triple sink and dishwasher. There is a cuisinart and many appliances around. Dishes and silver are available for more than 30 people. There is an antique woodburning stove in one corner and many cabinets with glasses and dishes that remind you of the old times. There is a pantry with more cabinets.. There is adequate countertop space which can be expanded as needed with the addition of table. I recently painted the kitchen. Overhead ventilation is good and many recessed lights, All the same, I will continue my effort to improve the unit. Albert

Recommended for:Families with young children, families with teenagers.

Great location for an amazing weekend ski getaway

Guest: Jurawa (Brooklyn, New York)
Date of Stay: 02/18/11 Review Submitted: 02/22/11

What do you do when 25 good friends all want to get away for an epic ski weekend? You rent this amazing mansion! We were struggling to find a place that would accomodate us all, until we found Teleion Holon. Beautiful and spacious, this house served us perfectly. There is plenty of common space for relaxing and playing games and the fireplaces were great for keeping it cozy and warm. The bedrooms are all beautiful and each had its own feel to it - most even have attached sitting areas and private bathrooms! Also, The commercial size kitchen was well stocked, and great for cooking for so many people. We used the other downstairs kitchen for drinks and we didnt even need to use the third kitchen upstairs! Best of all, the owner Albert was a pleasure to work with. He went above and beyond by giving us a short tour of the house and the artwork inside which he has curated and calls the Museum of the Creative Process. Very interesting, and gave us much more appreciation for the art in the house. All in all, it was a great experience and I would highly recommend this house to anyone with a large group.

Owner response:The house has generated me many friends. Here is another group that upon leaving would like to book the place for next year. There are two discrete features making hospitality special in this large house. These guests discovered both of them. I acquired this house as a base for my son's organic farming and food production project, but also to utilize the building for educational retreats on the creative process. Although my son's farm has been moved to another location where it is thriving and expanding beyond a local CSA to a regional manufacturer of a range of culinary delights, from outstanding breads and popular vegiburgers, to garlicly spiced humus and pesto, I am interested in preserving the building as a bastion for agritourism so young people can discover farm life and occasional guests experience VT as a real countryside destination. As far as the educational mission, I am publishing a book on the exhibits of the Museum of the Creative Process, one of which is the Gorski Retrospective, housed at the Teleion Holon mansion. I thank you for enjoying the visit and look forward to your return. Regards, Albert

Recommended for:Sightseeing, age 55+, families with young children.

Wonderful Accommodations

Guest: Stephen (North Reading, MA)
Date of Stay: 01/21/11 Review Submitted: 01/23/11

We had a magnificent weekend gathering of 18 family members for a 50th Wedding Anniversary celebration. The mansion has lots of character with many wonderful artifacts and stunning architectural elements. We all stayed for two nights and enjoyed the many amenities such as the commercial quality kitchen, expansive dining room, large game area, impressive family room, numerous well-kept bedrooms and bathrooms, etc. All family members (from young children to grandparents) had something to do from enjoying the wonderful game room to relaxing in the comfortable family room. At night we used two of the many fireplaces to provide a spectacular festive atmosphere. The grounds and also the views are simply breath-taking. Dr. Albert Levis, the owner, is very gracious and was very accommodating to our needs. There are many activities to enjoy in the area including skiing, lots of shopping options, enjoying spectacular mountain views, restaurants, sightseeing and much more. We would highly recommend this place to any family or gathering of any type.

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, sightseeing, adventure seekers, girls getaway, age 55+, families with young children, families with teenagers.

Vermont Wedding

Guest: Susan (Middlebury VT)
Date of Stay: 09/24/10 Review Submitted: 10/16/10

With my eldest son getting married in Manchester, my younger son who is a chef in California wanted to cook their wedding dinner. Being best man precluded that option so they decided he would take on the "rehearsal" dinner. So, where to do that, how to find a place big enough with a kitchen he could use. Some searching on the internet led us to the Teleion Holon house owned by innkeeper Albert Levis. As well as meeting that criteria so well, this fabulous mansion with lawns surrounded by woods, hidden off River Road, could also accommodate up to 30 of the wedding party. And being close to town and our wedding site, it was the prefect solution for a large gathering for the weekend. The kitchen has a two oven-10 burner stove, two refrigerators, dishwasher and large double sink. A little limited on counter space, adding a prep table was a huge help. The "ballroom" was just big enough with the game tables removed to seat 34 people at a single long table. Freshly painted (thank you Albert) and set with flowers, candles and strings of little white lights made for a beautiful setting for our table . And there was plenty of room after dinner in hall, living room and ballroom for the additional guests for an after party. Albert loaned us tables and chairs which helped for the dinner. The butler's kitchen was great for overflow party supplies. And the Wilburton's chef was so friendly to my son and generous in sharing his kitchen equipment. The rooms upstairs were really attractive: clean, attractive with simple decor and comfortable; the guests staying there loved it, having the house to themselves to really settle into for the weekend. It was indeed a perfect part of a perfect weekend.

Owner response:The task of a rehearsal held in house was a new challenge. It was not easy as I had to remove all art and games from the ballroom and transform it into a function room.The comments of the guest family are reassuring. Our staff was helpful and the event went on smoothly. I have some pictures from this happy event that show how the guests were creative in decorating the house and making it a truly successful family affair. Now we are aware that the place can serve its mission as an extension of our relocated farm and as the extension of our Museum of the Creative Process to offer its cultural training program combined with an agricultural and culinary experience. Albert

Recommended for:

New Year Eve Weekend

Guest: Ilan31 (NY, NY)
Date of Stay: 12/31/09 Review Submitted: 01/05/10

I was just there over the 4 day weekend with my kids and friends.. We had a total of 28 people in the house. It was a beautiful house and great surroundings. The adults as well as the kids had a blast... I would definitely recommend this house to people with kids.. Albert, Sorry for the mess we made....... this house is not for the lazy ones....we really needed a maid to clean up after us EVERY DAY.. The house is also close to everything.. especially the outlet... a lot of good sales going on there. I don't mind going back again next year.

Owner response:I appreciate the honesty of this guest and reviewer. Indeed her group of friends left the place messy and I had a bigger job in cleaning the house up after they left. I will accept her recommendation of making house keeping available for guests that are "lazy" and also for big groups and in the future I will ask for a security deposit to cover excessive cleaning after a stay. I am delighted in welcoming groups to this huge house but I am learning the limits of hospitality and the conditions for good long term relationships. For instance I will never have a group of high school graduates party in this house again; that was the worst experience ever. I recoil remembering the liberties they took in this place like a beer pong drinking competition across the ping pong table. The mess of this last group is minor compared to the mess the school graduates left behind. Albert

Recommended for:Sightseeing, families with young children.

Great Place for Large Family Reunion

Guest: Grammy Jo (Geneva, NY)
Date of Stay: 11/25/09 Review Submitted: 12/07/09

This enormous old mansion was great for our big 4-day family Thanksgiving reunion. We had 14 adults and 9 kids (2-9 yrs) to fill up the 11 bedrooms and 10 bathrooms on the upper two floors. The large main kitchen and two smaller ones with a total of 3 ovens were all used in preparing the Thanksgiving Day feast, and, surprisingly, we all fit around the two tables in the dining room. The huge Game Room was well used for all kind of activities during the day, and well into the night by the adults. The kids would disappear for hours at a time on the upper two floors with their own made-up games. There were plenty of outside activities in good weather in the nearby athletic field, playground behind the Equinox Inn, hikes on the numerous trails, visits to the artwork at the Wilburton Inn, and shopping outlets. Albert, our host, was wonderful to us and was always ready to help with anything we needed. We all left with a feeling that it would be good to return here for another reunion.

Owner response:Both reviews of the site have come from Thanksgiving family reunions. Is it because the groups were particularly versed in giving thanks or because the house could accomodate the many challenges of providing for the variety of age groups and interests of a very large family reunion upon the most demanding culinary holiday? There is one correction for the review: the count of bedrooms is 12. All together the house has 12 bathrooms, two are on the first floor. I welcome the challenges of big groups and I am relieved that the place has met the guests' expectations and that they sincerely would like to return. Incidentally I welcome I also complaints as they help to improve the experience for the next guests; and this place has undergone and will continue to be improved as it is very popular by demanding big groups. The extra kitchen was added to decongest the first as the place to store drinks and coffee gear, as well as for those who like to sit, chat and sip drinks while others are preparing food. It is also a good place for the kids to snack other than the large formal dining room. The third kitchen is on the third floor; it is useful for those who live up there and do not wish to go downstairs for every little thing. I hope I get some reviews for other times of the year as we are equally good for Christmas reunions, winter and summer vacations. It remains to be seen. Albert

Recommended for:Families with young children.

HUGE Thanksgiving house for large family reunion!

Guest: Mary's family (Middleboro, MA)
Date of Stay: 11/26/08 Review Submitted: 11/30/08

This is the first time our large family could ALL be comfortably accommodated under one roof! This house would be absolutely perfect for many ski-loving families or friends, since there is a very large room to store winter sports equipment. We had one of our BEST Thanksgiving get-togethers here 2008. We had 21 adults, 13 children ranging from 18 months to 19 years old, and one dog, and we were surprised at how spacious and luxurious this house was. The owner, Albert, welcomed us, gave a tour of his art collection within the house, and was as hospitable as you would expect an Innkeeper to be (he also owns the Wilburton Inn up the road from this house.) His Inn's chef Jason did a wonderful job of roasting one of our turkeys for us, lending us a large coffee urn, and being genuinely happy to assist us. We will gladly go back to not only enjoy the hospitality and beautiful and elegant surroundings of Manchester, but also because of our rooms!! The bedrooms are extremely roomy, tastefully decorated and accommodated, and each have a private bathroom, making us feel like we were at a luxury retreat house! Outside, there's PLENTY of Vermont's finest scenery of mountains, forests, and fields for the kids to play football and just run free! Indoors, there are many very large windows to enjoy the incredible views, and a large gameroom which we used for our ping-pong tournament, and for the older kids to sleep on their sleeping bags, which they enjoyed. Everything about this house is ENORMOUS, and we felt like we were in the lap of luxury for our four nights! Maybe next time we will come to ski! THANKS to Albert and his staff!!

Owner response:I was concerned about having such a large number of guests in this house and I am truly gratified that they were comfortable and thankful. Thank you for your kind words. Albert

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, sightseeing, pet owners, adventure seekers, age 55+, families with young children, families with teenagers.