Changes at Smoky Mountain Tower - part 2

As promised, here's "the rest of the story!" We told you before about the removal of the sofa-sleeper. In its place, there is a new daybed and trundle. Here's how it got there!

Our great maintenance guys, Mark and Darren, brought the trundle in first. You can imagine how much 'fun' they had getting it up 4 levels!


Then, the guys from Carl Hatcher Furniture came with the daybed frame and mattresses.


In no time, they had the frame assembled.


The only problem was that they forgot to bring one of the mattresses, and we had to leave before they got back with it. So we don't have pictures yet of BOTH the daybed and the trundle. But here is how it all looks when it's made up and ready to go.


And here is a side view.


The trundle is under the daybed. It just wheels out. Then you squeeze a lever and it pops up into place. So you have two twin beds with brand new mattresses!

We plan to be in Gatlinburg in about two weeks and will take more pictures that show both daybed and trundle. Meanwhile, we hope you'll stay with us so you can experience our new beds first-hand!

We're ready for your reservation!

Just got the news - IVOL is back online. So we can now take reservations, send directions and everything else we need to do to take care of our guests.

It was an interesting situation. We got a message this morning that three things went wrong:
-The power went out, thanks to Irene.
-The server company had a backup generator, but it didn't work.
-When they got a new generator and hooked it up, there was a data line that also had to be hooked up.

Interestingly, a similar thing happened recently in our little town in North Carolina. The power went out to 911 because of a tornado, but the backup generator didn't work. Makes you wonder just how many people check their generators. Betcha it will be a lot more in the future.

Anyway, we're back in business. Thanks to all the IVOL folks who have really worked hard during the last 18 hours or so.

Stay tuned - the daybed story is coming...

Hurricane Irene got us - indirectly!

Here's some special news for anybody who wants to make a reservation or is staying with us in the next month. We manage all our reservations through IVacationOnLine (IVOL). Unfortunately, their server (located in Connecticut) is down because there is no power - thanks to Hurricane Irene.

I just checked and it could be "a week or more" before they get power. We're in touch with the folks at IVOL and they're doing everything they can to get back online. But as of now (Sunday night at 10:17 pm), we don't have any access to our guests' information. And it's impossible to make a direct reservation online through IVOL. We also can't send out directions or accept final payments. We're up to date (as of last night) with everybody who has made a reservation, and I don't think we will have a problem. But if you're a registered guest and you have a question, please don't hesitate to contact us (see below).

Our credit card server is running, though. So if you want to make a reservation, please send me an email - dave@smokiesrentdirect.com - or call me directly on my cell phone - 828-244-5579. I'll take down all the information manually, and we'll get it all entered as soon as IVOL is back online. And we'll let you know when things are back to normal.

We apologize for the inconvenience, but we are still here to help you. Thanks for your patience. And we SURELY hope none of you have had any problems with Irene!