Bears Hearth - The Gathering Place for Your Family
About the property
- Chalet
- Bedrooms6
- Sleeps12
- Bathrooms3
- Half Baths0
- Minimum Stay3 nights
Chalet, 6 Bedrooms 3 Baths, (Sleeps 12)
Our family has enjoyed gathering at this mountain chalet since we first purchased it in July 2001. The main floor has a large common area where you will find 2 sofas with the entertainment center; 2 overstuffed chairs in a sitting/reading area in front of the stone hearth fireplace; and two dining tables with adequate seating for 12. In the midst of the common area, behind the fireplace is where you will find the kitchen (cook not provided!)
Also on the main floor are 4 of the bedrooms - 3 with King Size beds and 1 full size. There are two full bathrooms on this level. There are two bedrooms on the lower level - 1 King and 1 Full. The downstairs level also has a bathroom as well as a laundry room with a washer and dryer.
The hot tub is located on the lower deck. This octagon-shaped chalet has a large deck that wraps around 5 sides on the main level. Here is where you will locate a charcoal grill, a picnic table and some various deck furniture for your enjoyment.
We frequently see bears especially in summer and fall months. We have been visited by a mother bear and her 3 cubs on more than one occasion! Our hope for you is that your 'family' will enjoy the time you share in our home as much as we do - play games together, gaze at a starry sky from the hot tub, talk about your dreams, make memories, enjoy!
Keywords: Chalet in the Mountains
Owner
Carla Martin
- Response rate:
- 70%
- Response time:
- within a few days
- Speaks:
- english
- Calendar last updated:
- May 25, 2018
About Carla Martin
Bears Hearth is owned by 3 couples from Taylorsville, Kentucky: Dwayne and Mary Lynn Martin, Dwight and Carla Martin, and Tony and Janie Mathre. Dwight is a retired firefighter from the City of Louisville Fire Department. He and Carla own a heating and air conditioning company as well as a screen-print and sign shop. Dwayne is a firefighter for the City of Louisville and Mary Lynn is a high school administrator. Tony works for the Ford Motor Company and Janie is a social worker for the Department of Families and Children. Among us we have 12 children (counting in-laws) and 10 grandchildren.
Carla Martin purchased this Chalet in 2001
Why Carla Martin chose Gatlinburg
Our family has had many vacation adventures together (Disney World; Washington, DC; Watertown, NY; New York City; to name a few). One of our favorite places on earth is this Chalet in Gatlinburg! We can stay in and watch for bears strolling down the driveway, play games, or soak up the mountain sounds from the hot tub. There are so many fun and interesting things to do in the area. Dwight and I like to go into the park and hike. Dwayne and Mary Lynn enjoy antiquing, mini-golf and go-carts. Tony and Janie like to visit the unique shops in Gatlinburg. We all like to eat!
What makes this Chalet unique
One of the advantages of staying with us is that we are members of the Chalet Village Owners clubs which offer 3 locations for your convenience. There are pools at each location as well as various other amenities such as tennis courts, ping pong tables, foosball, pool tables and playground.
Amenities
- Air Conditioning
- Hot Tub
- Fireplace
- TV
- Satellite or Cable
- Washer & Dryer
- Kids Welcome
- Parking
- No Smoking
- Heater
Bedrooms
- 6 Bedrooms, Sleeps 12
- Bedroom 11 double
- Bedroom 21 king
- Bedroom 31 king
- Bedroom 41 king
- Bedroom 51 double
- Bedroom 61 king
- King size beds (4), Double Beds (2)
Bathrooms
- 3 Bathrooms
Location Type
- Mountain ViewView of Mount Leconte - third highest peak in the Great Smokey Mountains National Park.
Meals
- Guests provide their own meals
General
- Parking
- Air Conditioning
- Heating
- Linens Provided
- Living Room
- Clothes Dryer
- Parking Off Street
- Telephone
- Towels Provided
- Washing Machine
- Wood Fireplace
Kitchen
- Kitchen
- Coffee Maker
- Dishes & Utensils
- Dishwasher
- Ice Maker
- Cooking Utensils
- Microwave
- Oven
- Refrigerator
- Stove
- Toaster
Dining
- Dining
- Dining Area
- comfy seating for 12 people
Entertainment
- CD Player
- DVD Player(2)
- Foosball
- Pool Table
- Satellite / Cable(2)
- Stereo
- Television
- VCR(2)
- Video Library
Outside
- Balcony
- Deck / Patio
- Outdoor Grill
Pool / Spa
- Communal Pool(3) Includes access to 3 Chalet Village Clubhouses with various sizes of pools.
- Hot Tub
Attractions
- churches
- live theater
- museums
- playground
- restaurants
- theme parks
- water parks
Leisure Activities
- antiquing
- horseback riding
- miniature golf
- outlet shopping
- scenic drives
- shopping
- sight seeing
- sledding
- walking
- wildlife viewing
Sports & Adventure Activities
- rafting
- cycling
- golf
- hiking
- ice skating
- kayaking
- mountain biking
- fishing
- skiing
- snowboarding
- snowmobiling
- spelunking
- swimming
- tennis
- whitewater rafting
House Rules
Check-in: 4:00 PM
Check-out: 10:00 AM
Cancellation Policy
100% refund if canceled at least 30 days before arrival date. You must contact the owner directly to request cancellation.
25 Reviews
Latest reviews
Lots of roaches, dirty and broken furniture
The pictures are VERY deceiving! When we arrived, our first impression was that the house had not been cleaned. The floors were dirty and the sofas had hair and dirt on them. The carpets are very dirty and in desperate need of replacement along with most of the furniture. A couch was torn upstairs and one downstairs had a broken arm. The majority of the table chairs were either loose, rocky or broken and should not be sat in. One of the beds downstairs is leaning. The recliner was broke. The blinds were a mess and some broken off. The oven light is broken. The oven is on the fritz. Dried Blood on one of the pillows and what appeared to be dried cheese (?) on another beds blanket. Sheets did not look like they had been cleaned. The towels were wet and had hair on them. Just hope they were washed and not dried completely. Then night came and the roaches came out for dinner. Not just a few but several. The roach killer they have in the house does not work. They need an exterminator. Pool table and foosball table were both broken and could not be played on. We paid cheap and got exactly that. House needs major renovation and repairs. You will not get my recommendation for this house!!! Now for the pros: we saw a bear...I’m not trying to be so harsh, but this is what I’d want to know before renting a property. There’s much more we could add but this is enough to get the point across. :(
I am very sorry you had a bad experience at Bears Hearth. We do have an exterminator in every month. Since your review I have talked to their office and they are going to send a supervisor with this month's service to see what more they need to do. We obviously intend the house to be clean for each guest. If there were issues with that I wish you had called. We would have had the cleaning crew come back and change out all towels and bedding. They usually do a fantastic job for us so this issue is surprising. I know there was someone in right before you, so maybe they rushed more than they should have. Again a phone call would have taken care of that problem.
We really try to keep Bears Hearth in good condition. The chalet is older and the carpet is worn - one of the things at the top of our "to do" list. We are prioritizing what to do in 2018. Regarding the game room , we will stop advertising those items. Our kids really like to play on them when they are there, but they are definitely not adequate for adults.
All in all, I think if the chalet had been more clean, the other issues would have been understandable for the price paid. Our intention is always that the guest find the place clean and inviting and that issue will be addressed.
Wonderful stay at the cottage!
Lovely and look back to come for next summer
It feels like home!!
If you are looking for a cookie cutter luxury hotel - this is not for you. But if you want to feel like you are home this is the place. We evacuated Florida because of the hurricane Irma and Carla was the best getting us this place. She was actually worried about us and about our belongings in FL. She never raises any price or tried to take advantage of the hotel shortage with millions fleeing FL. There are very few people with the heart like Carla. We felt at home!! Thank you!!
met our needs budget friendly needs updating
The cabin met our needs with six couples and children . There was plenty of room and although view was blocked by trees you could way to a perfect view in minutes. The cabin needs updating and pool table was unplayable. The big issue we had was there were roaches in the kitchen. When I called the lady was pleasant but did not send anyover to spray. Could have wanted to wait till we left. We did enjoy ourselves and saw about 9 bears.
Wonderful!!
The house is large enough to acomadate all of us.
Bear family visited us 3 times.!!It was a wonderful experience for the kids.
Great location for groups
Our tabletop gaming group enjoyed our stay very much. The two full-size dining tables made it especially easy to get everyone a seat. We did end up seeing some bears our last two days. If your looking for an inexpensive place to stay a bit away from the strip, this is a great place. Watch out for the toaster though! It will burn a bagel or toast if you don't watch it closely and the outside gets as hot as the stove top.
Location
Access to Chalet Village Owners Clubs (3) with ping pong, tennis courts, foosball, swimming pools, playground and much more!