The mansion, situated on seven, park-like wooded acres that include an open sided pavilion, has become very popular as a place for weddings, having had as many as 70 and more per year since it opened in 2000. In fact, 28 weddings were booked the first year.
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By Jack Kneece
(April 2008) The Ryan Nicholas Inn — a stately Georgian-style mansion in Simpsonville, S.C. — seems to be a blend of Tara, the White House and the family home in "The Sound of Music."
And it is, because it was designed in 1998 with those mansions in mind.
Kim Becherer, the proprietor and owner with her family, said those were the homes she used as models and inspiration when she and her father designed and built the 10,000-square-foot inn at 815 Holland Road.
The mansion, situated on seven, park-like wooded acres that include an open sided pavilion, has become very popular as a place for weddings, having had as many as 70 and more per year since it opened in 2000. In fact, 28 weddings were booked the first year.
Just off of I-385 via Exit 33, the sumptuous AAA Four-Diamond inn is a 15 minute drive from Greenville, and although it has just four big bedrooms, it has been successful since the doors opened, Ms. Becherer said.
She said this is mostly due to its many weddings, which start at $4,000 and go on up, depending on the number of people and how elaborate the catering.
This financial success may be, in part, because they decided to use the finest of everything in the construction. That includes floors of Brazilian cherry hardwood— nothing like soft, furniture-grade American cherry.
"It is so hard nails cannot be driven in it," she said. It also needs no stain to reflect a deep and warm brown-orange glow. It is found throughout the mansion except for the tiled bathrooms.
The mansion also includes several crystal chandeliers, hand-crafted plaster medallions and ceiling decorations, ornate and detailed dental moulding on the ceiling peripheries almost two feet in depth; period furniture obtained by Ms. Becherer over a period of years from America and Europe, lush wall coverings modeled after early American designs, and a 2,000-square foot gathering room and dining area. The place is so large that it can easily accommodate a reception for 400 and has accommodated as many as 600 at one wedding alone. That was, in fact, the first wedding, a $23,000 extravaganza.
The gathering room, which can easily double as a grand ballroom, has 24-foot high ceilings. At one end is a staircase that was modeled after the one in "Gone With the Wind's" Tara plantation. But if a modern-day Rhett Butler felt a little exhausted, he could use a nearby, discreetly positioned elevator to take Scarlet to the boudoir.
 Perhaps the best example of Ms. Becherer's finest-only philosophy are the six columns supporting the White House-style portico out front. A substantial savings could have been realized by using fluted aluminum columns of the type found in most modern colonial and Georgian reproductions today. But she insisted on hand-fluted redwood.
This genuineness and attention to detail is reflected throughout the house. The name, by the way, Ryan Nicholas Inn, is from her two sons, now teens, Ryan and Nicholas.
Each room has fireplaces with hand-carved mantels, private phones, TVs inside a large hardwood armoire; private baths with two-headed steam showers, jacuzzies and regular showers. Two of the rooms also have adjoining sitting rooms as large as some hotel rooms. These adjunct rooms include conference tables, sitting areas, and balconies. They also can be used for small, catered dinners. The inn has a liquor license and does all of its own catering with a permanent chef, and a small army of part-timers who regularly work at the inn.
Staying at the inn is a fine experience, although it is hard not to feel a bit self-indulgent. The rates of $155 per night are low for the luxury and fine breakfasts, and this is due to the successful subsidy of costs by the weddings. Becherer said she has not had to advertise because guests at each wedding have proved to be her word-of-mouth advertising.
A recent guest found a room with a bed 44-inches off the floor, necessitating hardwood step-stools on either side. Its furnishings included a converted four-bulb kerosene hanging lamp, a large hardwood armoire and television, soft drinks, bottled water, a small bottle of wine; mints and chocolate, an ice cannister, regularly re-filled; a small bottle of brandy, a pair of luxuriant, deep-pile Turkish bathrobes; a hairdryer; an elaborate zip-up packet of amenities by Gilchrist & Soames, including a shower cap, shoe cloth, shampoo, conditioner, body lotion, sewing kit, tooth brush, three kinds of bar soap, and other items. The bath also included a foot massager, cotton balls, Kleenex, Q-tips, and a larger than usual quantity of thick towels. The large shower, steam and regular, included grab bars on the tiled-walls. Heat and air-conditioning are controlled by the guest in each bedroom.
 The working fireplace - the mansion has four massive chimneys – was surrounded by finely carved wood, including two lions' heads. There were two upholstered sitting chairs and a good quality wooden folding card table. Decorations included an old but functioning clock. On the walls were hunting prints, including fox hunting prints similar to Currier & Ives.
There was a variable speed ceiling fan above the bed that included a regular light and a night light. This was called the "Gentleman's Room," because it was more masculine in motif; the other three rooms are decorated in a more feminine fashion. One of the bedrooms has two beds for use by bridesmaids or family at a wedding. All the rugs in the inn are high-quality Orientals. Doors are coded for security, with guests being provided the codes, which are changed daily.
Windows are fine, heavy patterned draperies over wooden blinds. The bathroom window is an oval, complete with fitted wooden blinds.
Breakfast, which can be had in the room or in the dining area, consisted on a recent visit of two perfectly poached eggs with Italian ham, a plate of fresh fruits of several varieties, including cantaloupe, blue berries, raspberries, a good rich coffee, freshly squeezed orange juice, and delicious cinnamon buns cooked by the chef.
There are also terraces and balconies where you can dine or just look at the rolling, landscaped gardens. Although the inn is non-smoking, smokers can use the outside terrace or balcony. Scarlet and Rhett would feel at home in this modern-day Tara. (Updated April 2008)
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