Berry Hill

This is a nice Washington Post piece on Berry Hill, a "plantation" in South Boston that actually lives up to the stereotypes-- a huge, lavish house with breathtaking grounds. The place is beautiful. I stayed there three Christmases ago (I think it has opened and closed twice since then). I hope they can make a go of it this time. Here is the official site, and here is a direct link to the History page of the official site.

The recent story of the house and grounds is that AXA, an international insurance conglomerate, purchased the plantation in the mid-90s to use it as a corporate retreat. Here is a stray PDF I found on the website of the consulting engineer-- it was called AXA University. AXA completely refurbished the house, adding first class dining facilities, a 100 room hotel (hidden from view) and an indoor pool, then they decided not to use it and sold it to some local folks, who then sold it to Marriott, who has since sold it to someone else. It now appears to be owned by an outfit called "Benchmark Hospitality International." Given South Boston's non-proximity to an airport, they may have a tough time doing enough business to keep a resort going. I wish them good luck, and I recommend the place highly.

NOTE: This piece was modified after Eric Monday recalled the history of the AXA ownership and emailed me with details-- thanks very much Eric--