vanDiemen

In addition to what Bret and Adnan mentioned, At tapoco, I could walk out my porch and see what was happening down below. Can't do that at Fontana. Yea it's big but it's so spread out I felt more isolated there.

The wifi is a moot point since it will be available,

so the only thing is being able to book the whole place. I feel that we could have had more of our people stay there since I saw plenty of other types of cars throughout the weekend.

Proximity to deals gap is awesome too. You don't lose a whole hour if you need to turn around like you would at Fontana.

PJCC

Great review Brett, thanks for posting.

I stayed at Fontana, but I think Tapoco was a fantastic venue. Beautiful building and grounds.

Here are my two cents (following Brett's categories):
Location: It is really nice to be so close to Deal's Gap. Being by the river for either social or solo time is great. However, being totally exposed to traffic on 129 gets annoying really fast, although that's not an issue for most. In that regard, Fontana is a lot quieter and secluded.

Cell/Internet: Fontana wins here. Tapoco might catch up soon.

Grounds: Both places are beautiful in their own right, but in very different ways.

Staff: I personally think everyone is just very nice at both places. It might be easier to run a smaller operation.

Food: At Tapoco, everything was VERY good. Certainly better than the Wildwood Grill at Fontana, but maybe not as good as the Mountainview Restaurant. Like Brett said, it's a matter of what you want at any given time. Having more options is always good. I really like the fact that the overall quality of the food options has certainly improved in the last few years. Like everyone else has said, the pizza was fanfriggintastic! Also, the four course paired menu Ken shared with me was waaaaayyyy better than anything I've ever tasted within a several hundred mile radius. To me, it feels great to to have the option of a quick, high calorie breakfast at the Gap when I don't want a sit-down breakfast, multiple high quality lunch options in nearby cities (Telco Plains, Franklyn, Bryson City, etc.), and (a) very good burgers/pizza at Tapoco or (b) also very goos sit-down dinner at Fontana.

Rooms: Accommodations are a matter of taste, and from what I saw, Tapoco's cabins are smaller but nicer. However, some of Fontana's rooms have fireplaces in them, which is really nice.

I think what matter most is the balance between participant's taste/expectations and group size. For a small group, Tapoco is perfect. For a large group, Fontana might be better suited. I didn't mind the drive between Tapoco and Fontana.

Pedro

GranPrix

I ended up staying at Fontana and I must say it's gotten pretty bad since I was last there in 07. It looks run down, the bathrooms smell very badly and drainage is horrible. The shower took 20 mins to drain. It is very poorly lit at night and the roads need some help. Fontana definitely needs a major revamp. For me it's Tapoco hands down, especially that paddock style garage.

EJ86

This times over 9000!!! Personally loved everything about the venue, but being stuck driving 20 mins to the microtel in robbinsville every night, and waking up extra early just to get to tapoco in time in the morning was rather a mojo killer. I mean this year we didn't even have half the registered cars we had last year AND YET STILL people had to sleep elsewhere due to lack of availability. That is my only gripe with it, and as stated above, for that reason alone i'd prefer fontana. Rather have the ability to walk to my cabin drunk than to drive to my hotel sober.

Billman250

The outdoor eating spot, with multiple fire pits right next to the river is among the nicest place to meet and hang out anywhere. Big big plus.

vanDiemen

I agree. Everyone could actually FIND the beer swap unlike at Fontana driving through the dark forest looking for a garbage fire.

Having the beer swap with the cups really made it the best this year I think: it didn't have anybody having to commit to a full bottle and allowed for conversation and multiple people being able to try the bomber sized ones.

(Also, tapoco staff is pretty cool: they let me put down Adnan under Ozamataz Buckshank when he arrived to check in later)

S2KWALT

im a fan of tapoco. great grounds, great staff, great scenery, and great food. only downside as said before, is that they can't fit everyone. i would stay at tapoco again

chrisaltima

Tapoco is definitely nicer on all angles without a doubt. The food was great for being in the middle of nowhere. (This is coming from a spoiled city dwelling New Yorker). I found the grounds much easier to maneuver around and well kept. We stayed at the white oak cabin which was absolutely insane. The care and service was second to none.

darcyw

I've stayed at both.

Tapoca has the better ambience, more comfortable beds, nicer cabins (ours had our own personal car wash hose), food options, beer, staff and scenery. Our cabin lacked any cooking facilities so we just had cereal, juice, and fruit for breakfast. Our cabin cost an extra $10/night ($149/night) over fontana, but will only accomodate 2, rather than the larger cabins at Fontana which accomodate 3 or 4 easily. I liked Tapoca's location on US 129. Fontana's staff were never lacking, but i liked how engaging the Tapoca staff was- as an example, they just came around and would hang around and talk.

Fontana can accomodate more people and is a fine location overall.

I would happily stay at Tapoca again- it has a more intimate, welcoming vibe. That being said, I would stay at Fontana again.

darcy

pwrinxs

I'd stay at either because in the end its about the people and the roads more than the venue for me, plus I don't drink :-) This message has been paid for and approved by Mr. Ozamataz Buckshank.