Vines RV Resort
Recreational vehicles long ago stopped being travel trailers and are truly luxury homes on the road, so it follows that the facilities that cater to their owners offer up-scale amenities. Life on the road is a delight when you can pull into accommodations like those being offered by Vines RV Resort that also has very chic facilities coupled with old fashioned values at affordable pricing.
Owners Karen and Jeff Marsden have constructed a wonderland of recreational facilities located adjacent to the 101 freeway just north of downtown Paso Robles on Wellsona Road. “We are the Waldorf Astoria of the RV world,” Karen said as we toured the spacious grounds. It is evident that this is the truth when you see the décor in the main clubhouse building.
“This used to be the Doll Museum owned by the Moe family,” Marsden said, and also was once the home of Ethan Allen Furniture. Up until this purchase by the Marsdens, it functioned as the worship location for Harvest Bible Church. So much local history in just one set of buildings fueled the Marsdens desire to honor that past.
“We’re old souls,” Karen said repeatedly and one could tell that this feeling has gone into the development of this multi-faceted RV resort. For one thing, resort is the appropriate word. This isn’t a place to come to in order to park your RV overnight and then take off on the road again. This is a destination in itself.
Elegance and charm ooze out of every area. Two spacious ballrooms occupy the main building and each room has crystal chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. Both the Mulberry Ballroom and the Royal Oak Ballroom are equipped with top of the line chef’s kitchens. As you look around at them you can imagine elegant dinners being served here or perhaps a night of dancing to big band music.
The vision for the décor came from the Marsdens. With the assistance of Lisa Marlow, Interior Designer and owner of Marlow Interiors in Paso Robles it became a reality. Marlow did a series of paintings that hang in the ballrooms and other areas of the resort.
In the Magnolia Beer and Wine Lounge guests can play a game of pool, tickle the ivories on the baby grand piano that is also a player piano with nice background music, or watch the latest sporting event on the large TVs. “We will have guest pianists come in to entertain too,” Marsden said. For those who desire some quiet time there is a fully stocked library. “I was fortunate to be able to obtain quite a few books from the local Paso Robles library,” Marsden commented.
In the adjacent building guests can avail themselves of the work-out room that contains all the equipment one needs to recharge their fitness battery. Just outside are two pools, one for the youngsters and one for adults that has a covered area for shade. “Aerobic exercises in the pool and yoga are in our plans,” Marsden said.
Even the restrooms are a cut above with individual gold-framed mirrors over the sinks and finely crafted fixtures. There are bathhouses for gentleman and for ladies located near the pool that have individual showers. A full service laundry is also there.
Outdoor life includes shuffleboard and horseshoes and two full barbecues available. One of the barbecues was constructed using the original bricks taken from the building during the remodeling.
There is even an outdoor fireplace to relax by while sipping a selection from some of the local area wineries. At each RV site is a square picnic table with seats on four sides to facilitate easy card playing or casual conversations as opposed to having a long rectangle table.
“We will have connections with Sky River RV rentals,” Marsden said, “and local people can rent an RV and come and stay here.” Crown Limousines will also be on site offering package tours of wineries and other local attractions. “Guests can also use the limo service for any kind of tour they would like to do on demand,” Marsden commented.
An interesting service that is unknown anywhere else will be available at Vines RV Resort in conjunction with Dominoes Pizza in Paso Robles. A kiosk with equipment to order pizza is situated on one side of the clubhouse. Guests can order just as if they were at the pizza shop and Dominoes will deliver to them at the resort. “This is a first of its kind anywhere,” Marsden said.
Dogs will have their day at this resort too as they get a chance to scamper around and play in the specially constructed dog park.
Online reservations are available for RV sites as well as wine tours, events, special needs such as flower deliveries, and more.
Karen and Jeff Marsden are also owners of the adjacent Mars Mega Storage. With more than 25 years in the north county area, the Marsdens are keen on referring their guests to all the local amenities for entertainment and business. “We like to give back to our community,” Karen Marsden said with a smile. Vines RV Resort will definitely be a great addition to the Paso Robles area and the Marsdens are eager to meet all the traveling RV folks.
— Ruth Ann Angus
