North Georgia isn’t immediately synonymous with winemaking, but at Chateau Elan, you get to experience the first winery and vineyard built in the area since Prohibition. It started as a small vineyard producing muscadine wine and now includes a 3,500-acre resort with vineyards, a winery, a spa, swimming pools and golf courses. Muscadine grapes still grow on these rolling hills, and the winemakers now bring in California grapes as well.
Grapes, wine and the vineyards — which are planted throughout the resort so you can see them from different vantage points — are the foundation of Chateau Elan today. The resort has been designed to resemble a 16th-century European château (hence the name) with a lot of decidedly American amenities.
It’s hard to believe you’ll encounter a replica of the French countryside when you exit I-85 and enter the resort from a suburban roundabout. But once you drive through the gate, you’ll see a sculpture of a woman stomping grapes in a fountain, surrounded by symmetrical plantings and roads, leading to Chateau Elan’s winery. From some areas of the resort, you do hear and see the roadway, but even in winter when the leaves are off the trees, it isn’t obtrusive.
In addition to its winery roots, Braselton, Ga., has more interesting history. In the late 1980s (just a few years after Chateau Elan opened), actress Kim Basinger purchased the majority of the town, hoping to build a movie studio. She sold it in the mid-1990s when facing financial difficulties. Some say her story was an inspiration for the TV show Schitt’s Creek. There are other Hollywood connections, too. Many TV programs have been filmed at the resort, including Murdaugh: Death in the Family.
Recently remodeled, Chateau Elan is now a multifaceted resort with a gated living community, as well as an inn, a lodge, a spa, a racquet club, golf courses, and other amenities for locals and visitors. The area’s many beautiful views — and the capacity to host parties and conferences — make it a destination for weddings, too.
The winery and vineyards are the draw. The resort offers tastings with a sommelier and extensive wine lists at each of its restaurants — not to mention more than 175 bottles of bourbon.
But even those with limited interest in wine will be able to amuse themselves. There’s plenty of lounge space, including cabanas by the outdoor pool and hammocks behind the winery and spa. There are outdoor firepits for s’mores and indoor fireplaces for reading or playing board games (which you can check out from the hotel staff), plus volleyball, bocce ball and hot tubs with waterfall backdrops. There’s a full-service, multi-level spa. Some of the products used in the treatments are made from grapeseed oil and other wine-related ingredients. And there are 45 holes of golf, plus multiple gift shops.
Thanks to its proximity to Atlanta (and the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport), Chateau Elan welcomes a diverse crowd, including wedding parties and wedding-goers who appreciate the resort’s many good photo ops.
What’s Nearby
Chateau Elan is about 45 miles from Atlanta. Near the resort are all sorts of suburban offerings, including several restaurants. While it’s easy to head into Atlanta, there’s enough to do at the resort to keep you entertained. And shuttle service is included with your resort fee, so you can get from the golf course to the spa to the inn without getting in your car.
What To Do
The resort fee includes use of bikes and nature trails, tennis and pickleball, swimming pools and hot tubs, and three different golf courses. Take advantage of the spa treatments, or just unwind with live music at the Irish pub. Seasonal activities run the gamut from Vineyard Fest, a two-day wine festival, to Mother’s Day afternoon tea.
Where to Eat
Unlike some resorts, Chateau Elan has a number of on-site restaurants — each with a different feel and menu. This lets you stay on property for multiple days and nights without getting bored. Options range from Marc Bar & Restaurant, a chophouse in the winery, to Versailles Restaurant, which serves French-inspired food under a giant atrium (reminiscent of Gaylord Opryland). There’s also spa dining, a gastropub, a golf-course-adjacent lunch spot near a coffee shop, a tasting room, and an Irish pub.
How to Get a Good Night’s Sleep
As is the case with dining, there are lots of options for places to stay, including standard hotel rooms in the inn, suites in the spa building, and multi-bedroom villas. The resort also owns the on-site Hampton Inn, which is referred to as the lodge. Many rooms have views of the area’s rolling hills, including the vineyard, nature trails and surrounding landscape.
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