A Personally Planned Getaway, Thanks to Our Experience Design Team

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So many guests who’ve taken advantage of our new Experience Design service have said the same thing that John Manfredo did.

“I wouldn’t have known about half the stuff that was available there.”

In case you missed it from last week’s blog, our Experience Design Team is your free personal planning concierge, there to make every visit memorable. And it’s tailor-made for people like John — visiting the resort for the first time, needing questions answered about special accommodations, and getting an education about all there is to see and do here.

Traveling from New Jersey to visit family in the Midwest, John took a friend’s recommendation to make a stop at French Lick. Wanting the best experience for his granddaughter Madison who has cerebral palsy, John emailed the resort a general inquiry beforehand since he knew accessible services can sometimes be tricky at historic hotels.

Enter Derin, one of our Experience Designers who emailed John back and got started personalizing an entire Manfredo itinerary.

Derin recommended West Baden Springs since it’s the hotel most easy to navigate with a wheelchair, and arranged a suite so their entire group of six could be near each other. One of John’s questions was how Madison would do with horseback riding at The Stables. So Derin let the Stables staff know, and they had an extra guide on each side to make Madison was safe and secure during her trail ride.

Derin also called ahead to the bowling alley to reserve the lane closest to the ADA ramp, and got them special permission to use a golf cart on the FootGolf short course (even though cold, rainy spring weather ended up nixing those plans). Experience Designers are also your resort insider, of sorts. Derin advised of a few things to book in advance, so she was able to get their group in for dinner at 1875: The Steakhouse and the special Taste of French Lick event. She also got the granddaughters set up for Cupcake Decorating Class, and steered them toward a couple good places to eat outside the resort.

All told, John and Derin swapped about 15 emails, working through a few proposed itineraries before all the plans lined up perfect.

“I had a lot of questions, because it was a place I’ve never been. Communicating back and forth with her was such a delight. She was awesome,” John says. “Even when I was at the resort, I reached out to her a couple times. There was one time we couldn’t make something and we needed to change it, and she took care of that for us.”

Derin even took the extra step of getting a couple teddy bears from the gift shop for Madison and her twin sister Jade, since “we try to do little things that make people’s experiences just a little bit more special,” Derin explains.

All you’ve got to do is ask. And one of our Experience Designers can be your personal guide to a truly memorable trip.

“The stay was great. No doubt,” John says. “In fact, friends of mine are going up there from Jersey — and I actually had them contact Derin.”

Want help personalizing and planning your own visit? Contact our Experience Design team at (812) 936-5920.