Weekend in Excelsior Springs
- Vicky
- Sep 14, 2022
- 4 min read
I am a runner. I hate running and yet love doing it all at the same time. I have done countless 5k races plus a few half marathons. When Van Till Winery announced that they were going to be hosting a 5k race on through their farm and vineyard I immediately signed up. Thinking how fun it will be to do a race and hang out in Excelsior Springs for the weekend.
I decided that we would stay at The Elms Hotel and Spa. The original hotel was opened back in 1888. The current hotel is quite impressive from the inside and out. This is also true for its history. This first hotel caught on fire in 1898 and fire would later destroy the hotel again in 1910. The limestone of the second Elms was salvaged and used to create The Elms of today. In the heyday for The Elms Hotel, they had some quite famous and even infamous guests, such as Harry S Truman, Jack Dempsey, Al Capone, “Pretty Boy” Floyd, and Bugsy Moran.
As we checked in, we were told that it was WaterFest. This festival fills downtown Excelsior Springs with many vendors and guests to celebrate the city’s mineral water heritage. Excelsior Springs existence is all due to the number of natural springs. One of the natural springs was discovered by accident by farmer Travis Mellion when he gave the mineral water to his daughter, who suffered from a form of tuberculosis, and was cured. We explored the festival on Friday when we arrived to check out the various vendors and had dinner at the festival. Later we relaxed at the Tavern for music before going to swim at one of the pools. To end the night we watched the firework display from in front of The Elms.
Race morning arrived. The weather was cool because of the rain from the previous day. I got ready and we headed to the winery. Van Till Family Farm Winery is located about 15 minutes from downtown Excelsior Springs. They have wonderful wine. However, they are most famous for their wood fired oven pizzas. Something we were greatly looking forward to having for lunch after I finished the race. As I got ready for the start of the race, you could tell that it was going to be a hotter day than Friday. The course was going around various locations of their property and even going through part of their vineyard. Michael cheered me on and got rained on by the start/finish line. I seemed to have been running between the scattered showers because it was never raining as hard as he told me it was. It was quite humid, and I was very much excited to be done with race.
After a bit of time, we went to the Wine Garden to order our pizza. The oven is an imported French oven that burns at 700 to 800 degrees Fahrenheit which takes the pizza about 3 minutes to bake. We ordered our pizza. Normally we would order a bottle of wine that would pair well with the pizza, but, with me being 18 weeks pregnant and Michael not feeling like having a glass of wine, we obviously didn’t do a recommended pairing. Like the many times we have gone the pizza was excellent.
Some time later we decided to check out the pools at The Elms. There are two that guests can use, the indoor European Lap Pool and outdoor seasonal pool. The European lap pool is a narrow pool that has relaxing light, and you can either swim or walk around the about four-foot-deep pool. We would later learn that where this pool is located was originally a speakeasy and a gangster was shot in the back corner. It is rumored that people still see him from time to time sitting there.
After eating and relaxing, I wanted to go on the ghost tour that is offered by the hotel at 9pm. Michael was unsure, but I was able to talk him into going just because there is more history to learn about this beautiful hotel. The tour meets up in the lobby of the hotel. Our tour guide, Jay, told of us about many elements of the hotel from the tile floor, marble staircase, and of course ghostly encounters. From the lobby we headed up to the top floor and made our way from floor to floor as Jay told us stories from each floor. Some of these include furniture being overturned in a room, weird pressure changes, and a door handle that would turn repeatedly from the inside. The guests who experienced the door handle thought someone was trying to get into their room, but the disturbing thing is the handles work independently from one another. So, when the handle moved inside the room, it wasn’t something wanting in, but wanting out. Other stories included hauntings in the grand ballroom, the European Lap pool, and the Tavern. I would highly recommend this tour to anyone even if you aren’t a fan of the paranormal because Jay tells the stories in such a comedic way that you just enjoy yourself. Michael was quite surprised when we ended that an hour had flown by.
Next time you want a weekend getaway explore Excelsior Springs. This little town offers great history, wine, and a place to just relax.
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