Policies – and What to Expect

The 10 cabins in Birch Hollow are on 300 secluded, heavily-wooded acres that provide the ultimate in privacy. Each cabin has its own unique view of the surrounding area – whether mountains, amazing rock formations, a creek, waterfalls, the catch and release pond, an abundance of wildlife, or an interesting variety of trees.

We have 4-5 miles of private road for your hiking and exploring adventure. Roads are a mixture of blacktop, gravel and dirt, with steep inclines to several cabins and a few steep driveways.  A new hiking area called Dale Hollow Trail offers two great hiking options available only to our guests, without having to leave the Hollow at all!  

Adventurous hikers can attempt the steep hike to the top of the Ridge to see several outcroppings of rocks on top.  The view overlooking all of Birch Hollow is spectacular and well worth the hike!  

Several times throughout the year, our developer Dale Smith will be at the cabins and will be delighted to take interested guests on a guided hiking tour throughout the Hollow, pointing out interesting landmarks like the 150-year-old chimneys where houses once stood, unusual trees native to the area, and lots that are being prepared to sell when a new pond and dam are built.  Ask Dale to tell you the story about the bootlegger named Aunt Bee who used to live where Brookside cabin is now located! If you would like to know whether Dale will be available during your upcoming stay at one of our cabins, feel free to call him at the office at 606-663-0005.

We highly recommend four-wheel drive vehicles for easy navigation, especially during the winter months, but all cabins are accessible by two-wheel drive vehicles. Six cabins are located halfway up the mountain, on gravel roads, which makes them inaccessible for motorcycles. Four cabins in the lower portion of the Hollow are on paved roads for easy access, even for motorcycles: Brookside, Sundance, Lakewood, and Snuggle Inn.  If you intend to ride a motorcycle, be sure to book one of those four cabins.

Our deluxe mountain homes are owned by private individuals who take great pride in the attention to detail and quality workmanship of their properties, as this is how we attract good customers like you. 

Each cabin is cleaned and maintained by a dedicated staff to make your stay as enjoyable as possible.  As our guest, you are responsible for taking care of the cabin, furnishings, and grounds as if this were your own “home away from home”, and for leaving the cabin as you found it, so the next guests can enjoy it just as much as you did.  You are also responsible for the behavior of your guests. 

A few specific tasks that are expected of each guest prior to departure are explained in the rental agreement, along with details of our overall rental policies.  When our policies are not followed by our guests, we must charge for negligence and/or damages.  We hope you understand our commitment to keeping our cabins the premiere accommodations in the area. 

You can print the complete rental agreement, which you will be required to sign at check-in or to email prior to your arrival, by clicking here.  Please review it carefully before you arrive, and call us if you have any questions.  If you do not initial and sign the rental agreement and return it to us at check in or by email, it is assumed that you have read it and agree to its terms.

Our cabins are completely furnished, including satellite TVs, DVD players, charcoal or gas (Lakewood only) grills, washers and dryers.  Every cabin has a gas or electric fireplace inside and a porch/deck and fire pit area outside. (Lakewood cabin has its own wood-burning fireplace on the deck instead of a fire pit.)  

Kitchens are fully equipped with stove, refrigerator, dishwasher, microwave and coffee maker, as well as basic cookware, dishes, glasses (including wine glasses), mugs, and utensils.  We provide all bed linens, dish towels, and a bath towel, hand towel, and washcloth for each registered guest. 

Your cabin will have a basic supply of paper towels, toilet paper, trash bags, hand soap, dish washing detergent, and dishwasher tablets more than sufficient for a typical 2-3 day stay for the number of guests in your party.  If you will be staying with us longer than 2-3 days, we will leave additional paper goods, plus we will check with you after the 3rd day to see if you need more paper goods or anything else, such as more firewood. You will also be provided laundry and bleach tablets to start a load of towels before you leave, as specified in the rental agreement. For the convenience of guests who may want to launder other items, we leave additional detergent tablets, as well.

Each cabin has an iron and a small ironing board. 

Please be aware that we do not provide hair dryers, so be sure to pack one if you will need it.

Since all cabins have a complete kitchen, be sure to bring your favorite food and cooking items, plus bath soap/shower gel, shampoo, personal toiletries, DVDs, games, books, camera, matches for the fire pit, and bug spray.  Also, bring your favorite beverage of choice, as Powell County residents just voted to go “Wet” for the first time in May 2018, and it will take awhile for the local businesses to get their licenses and start offering beer, wine, and other alcohol, after being a “Dry” county for many years.

Each cabin has an iron and a small ironing board.  Please be aware that we do not provide hair dryers, so be sure to pack one if you will need it.

Depending on the season, the length of your stay, the number of guests in your party, and your choice of activities, you may also want to bring sunscreen, bathing suits, beach towels or other extra towels, binoculars, hiking boots, flashlight, jackets, sweaters, coats, gloves, snow shoes, and hats. 

If you have more than 6 people in your party, or you are staying more than 3 days, you may choose to bring along extra basic supplies (paper towels, dishwasher tablets, laundry detergent, etc.), although we do our best to provide plenty of the basic paper and cleaning supplies.  The closest grocery store is Kroger in Stanton, KY, about 10 miles west of your cabin.  Kroger stores are also located in Winchester to the west or Mt. Sterling to the east. 

For your convenience, a sample grocery list is provided here to make sure you don’t forget some important food or personal items, based on input from our many guests over the years.  You may want to pack some of these items and bring them with you from home.

Check-in is after 4:00 PM and check-out is before 11:00 AM.  It is extremely important for guests to adhere to these times in order to give our cleaning staff enough time to thoroughly prepare each cabin inside and outside for our incoming guests, to determine if departing guests left personal items behind, and to make any emergency unanticipated repairs as the cabins turn over. 

You will check in at 170 Birch Hollow Road, Stanton, KY, where you will find a white “Check In” mailbox containing an envelope for you with a rental agreement and a map to your own special cabin in our development. You need to initial, complete, and sign the rental agreement, then put it in a secured black “Drop Box” mailbox.  (Both of these documents can be downloaded from this website ahead of time and brought with you. You may also fill out the rental agreement completely and email it back to us at info@cabinsofbirchhollow.com before you arrive.)  Please be aware that if for any reason we do not receive your signed rental agreement in the black mail box when you arrive, or via email before you arrive, it is assumed that you have read it and agreed to all terms and conditions.  If you pre-ordered firewood for the outside fire pit at your cabin (or the outside wood-burning fireplace at Lakewood), you will find a small envelope in the white mailbox for you to leave cash for firewood.

You will be provided the combination to your cabin lock box the day before your arrival via text, so you can drive directly to your cabin and start to enjoy your mountain getaway! You will return your key to the lock box when you depart.

Please contact us as soon as possible if your plans change and you must cancel or re-schedule your stay.  We will work with you to re-schedule your dates if you have an unexpected change of plans.  A $50 cancellation fee applies to all cancellations, and no refunds are allowed within 14 days or less of your booked check-in date.  No refunds are permitted due to sudden inclement winter weather – but come anyway and get snowed in with us! We will accommodate late checkouts if roads are hazardous on your departure day. 

Please be aware that no refunds are permitted for cancellations on holiday weekends, which include New Year’s weekend, Memorial Day, 4^th of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.

Bookings Prior to June 2018

For bookings made prior to June 2018, Birch Hollow guests paid $75 + 10% Kentucky tax per booking for our cleaning/maintenance crew to thoroughly clean the cabins inside and outside, clean and provide all linens, treat the hot tubs, clean the grills, and make emergency repairs between guests.  Our crew also handles emergency trouble calls during your stay.  We have been fortunate to retain a committed and caring crew for many years that strives to keep our guests happy and returning year after year. 

In addition, in response to many requests from our guests, internet was installed in all of our cabins in 2015 as an optional add-on at $9.50/day for guests who were glad to pay for the convenience of wi-fi and “wi-fi calling” to assure clear cell service.  Guests who booked prior to June 2018 can call the office at 606-663-0005 to add internet to their booking, and they will receive a pass code for internet access. Internet has become so important for quality cell service that 95% of guests choose to add it to their booking.  Because we already paid sales tax to AT&T, we offered internet tax-free to our guests.

We also offered an optional damage waiver to guests for $39 + 10% Kentucky tax, to cover up to $1,500 of accidental, reported damage to the property.  Guests who did not purchase the damage waiver were responsible for the full cost of damages, which could be far more than the small price of the waiver.

Guests bringing a maximum of two pets to our four pet-friendly cabins paid $50 + 10% Kentucky tax, per pet, to cover the special cleaning and deodorizing process our crew has to do after guests and their pets depart, so that the cabin can also be enjoyed by future guests who are sensitive to pet hair and/or odor.

Bookings on or after June 1, 2018

Several changes in Kentucky law have occurred that required us to re-examine the services offered to our guests and our service fees.

• Kentucky tax regulations require us to increase Sales and Use Tax, plus Powell County Tourism tax and Transient Tax on all bookings from 10% to 10.24% overall, and
• Kentucky now requires tax on all revenue generated from a booking – no item is exempt from taxes anymore
• Charges for AT&T high-speed internet in this remote area have increased significantly since 2015, as initial teaser rates have expired – plus internet is now taxable due to the new Kentucky tax regulations mentioned above, making internet more expensive for our guests
• Satellite TV charges have increased, mainly due to our adding a 2nd TV and satellite box to every cabin, at the request of our guests – we had not charged for satellite TV at any time previously
• Travelers have come to expect some type of property damage protection when booking on popular web sites such as Airbnb, VRBO, TripAdvisor and HomeAway – and are willing to pay a daily rate – to avoid hassles over accidental damage, and to avoid a huge security deposit

When facing these new Kentucky tax requirements making all revenues taxable and at a slightly higher rate, price increases for internet and satellite TV, and travelers’ growing preference to pay a reasonable amount for damage protection to avoid hassles, we wanted to provide an affordable service package to exceed our guests’ expectations by offering all the services and amenities they want and expect, plus a bonus in a peace-of-mind damage waiver that is comparable to major travel web sites, in one bundled fee to make it less expensive than charging separately.

Effective with bookings on or after June 1, 2018, we are offering a new Service Fee Bundle pf $125 + 10.24% Kentucky taxes with every booking to every guest, to include:

• Cleaning and maintenance fee – the same excellent service we have provided for years and will continue to provide
• High-speed internet service to every guest at every cabin – guests are demanding inclusion of internet for extended stays and to assure good cell service – and now guests no longer have to call and request it
• Satellite service for 2 flat-screen TVs (one cabin has 3 TVs!) – assuring every cabin has at least two flat-screen TVs
• Damage Waiver – with up to $3,000 in coverage for accidental damage, or twice the amount we previously offered as an option – for one flat fee, not a daily rate as most popular traveler web sites offer

We are very proud to continue to offer our guests a truly unique experience they can get only  at Birch Hollow, plus new adventures await our guests in the choice of two hiking trails within the Hollow itself and guided tours several times during the year at no cost when our general manager Dale Smith is at the cabins – to add even more  value to your getaway with loved ones and friends.  

We know our guests appreciate and enjoy all the special features of a getaway in our deluxe mountain homes in Birch Hollow – features you just can’t find anywhere else in the area.

Bookings prior to June 2018

Since August 1, 2014, we have offered a peace-of-mind damage waiver / protection plan fee as an option guests can choose to take advantage of. This small non-refundable $39 fee + tax provides coverage to our guests for accidental damage up to $1,500 that occurs during your stay, provided you report the damage to our manager Dale Smith upon departure by calling him at 606-663-0005.  

Accidents can happen from time to time to anyone, and this waiver removes the expense and inconvenience of charging our guests an upfront security deposit, as well as the hassle of dealing with partial or total assessments for accidental damage after your departure. Intentional damage, or accidental damage exceeding $1,500 is not covered, and damages to hot tubs/hot tub covers/lifters and pool tables are not covered by this waiver – due to the high cost and time required to make repairs to these items.

Be sure to read the damage waiver in its entirety and contact us if you have any questions about the terms and exclusions. All guests who opt to purchase the damage waiver are required to sign and date the damage waiver document, along with the rental agreement, when stopping at the Check In mailbox upon arrival. We believe this small fee will give our Birch Hollow guests a huge benefit in knowing that they will not be charged for up to $1,500 in reported, accidental damage that can happen to any of us.

If you want to have the peace of mind that comes from not worrying about being responsible for accidental damages, contact Dale Smith at 606-663-0005. We will add the $39 fee + 10% Kentucky sales tax to your credit card.

Bookings on or after June 1, 2018

If you booked on or after June 1, 2018, you are automatically covered for up to $3,000 in accidental, reported damages in our new Service Fee Bundle.  The terms of the Damage Waiver are the same as described above in terms of reporting accidental damage and what is covered and not covered, however coverage is doubled to a maximum of $3,000, and the cost is included in your booking, so you don’t need to request it as an optional add-on.  

Smoking is prohibited in ALL cabins!  Smokers may smoke outside or on the outside decks, where ashtrays are provided, but please be courteous and respectful of our properties and properly dispose of cigarette butts in the trash container.  Do not flick cigarette butts off the decks or drop them on the grounds, as fires are a constant danger in this area. 

As stated in the rental agreement, evidence of smoking inside the cabin will result in additional charges for cleaning and odor removal, as many of our guests are allergic to or sensitive to the smell of smoke.  

Six of our 10 owners have strict no-pet policies, as many guests have pet allergies or sensitivity to pet odors or pet fur.  Four of our cabins (Sundance, Mane Stay, Mountain Spirit and Woodsman) allow pets for an upfront non-refundable $50 pet fee per pet, with a limit of two pets. 

Pets must be crated if left in the cabin unattended.  If evidence of pets is found in any of these four pet-friendly cabins after guests have departed, and no upfront pet fees were paid at the time of booking, additional charges will be assessed to cover these fees. 

Guests who bring pets into any of the other six cabins, which have a strict no-pet policy, are subject to immediate eviction with no refund, plus additional charges to cover cleaning and complete deodorizing of the cabin, per the rental agreement.

All cabins have cell phone boosters, but please be aware that cell phone service may be weak or intermittent, due to the mountainous area and heavy forest.  Cell phone reception is usually best on decks or in the cabins with the highest points.  You will have good cell phone reception when driving into Slade or Stanton.  However, since Internet is now available at all cabins, you can get great cell service via Wi-Fi calling, if your smart phone has this feature.

In response to numerous requests from our guests, AT&T Internet was installed in all cabins as of summer 2015 to provide access to high-speed Internet for guests who told us they will gladly pay for this service. Internet access enables you to check e-mail, surf the Internet, download music/games, or do just about anything except download movies. Guests who booked prior to June 2018 can purchase Internet service as an optional add-on for $9.50/day and will receive a password prior to check-in.  If you booked prior to June 2018 and choose to book online and take advantage of the online booking bonus, be sure to call or text the office at 606-663-0005 to add the Internet fee to your booking – or you can add it when you check-in by calling Dale at 606-663-0005.  Guests booking on or after June 1, 2018 have internet included in the new Service Fee Bundle and the password will be texted to you the day before your arrival.

Occasionally, satellite service will be poor, due to weather conditions or other circumstances beyond our control.  We suggest you bring DVDs and games to enjoy, in case your TV service is interrupted. 

Your cabin is carefully cleaned and checked especially for you prior to your arrival after 4:00 PM for check-in.  If you have any housekeeping or maintenance issues, please report them to our staff by 6:00 PM for same-day service.  Issues reported after 6:00 PM will be handled promptly the following day. 

Occasionally, malfunctions of the satellite TV, appliances, hot tubs or gas fireplaces will occur.  While we make every effort to resolve problems, no repair is guaranteed, and mechanical failures will not guarantee a refund.  It is our mission to make your stay as comfortable and trouble-free as possible. 

Please be aware that on rare occasions during our busiest season, when cabins turnover very quickly, your hot tub may not be warm until later in the evening, especially if it had to be drained.  

All cabins are routinely treated for pest control, but please be aware that you are in the forest, and we have invaded the habitat of insects and animals native to the area.  Chances are, you will see spiders, wasps, lady bugs, wood roaches, and carpenter bees, and many more.  You may also encounter deer, wild turkey, bobcats, raccoons, squirrels, and a variety of birds and owls. 

Do not feed or approach wildlife or leave food out at night – otherwise, you may have uninvited guests at your cabin!  Please be aware that this is snake country, so take extra care to wear heavy boots and thick jeans on your hiking adventures.

The maximum number of guests per cabin varies from cabin to cabin and is posted on the individual cabin page on this website.  This restriction is imposed by the State Fire Marshall for your safety. Fires are allowed only in designated fire pit areas (or in the outside wood-burning fireplace at Lakewood cabin).

Kentucky state law prohibits transporting firewood across state and county lines, to prevent the transfer of wood-destroying insects and disease.  You may purchase firewood and have it delivered to your cabin for $20 cash, paid at check in, or a larger pile for the Lakewood outside wood-burning fireplace for $25 cash, delivered to the wood bin next to the fireplace on the covered deck.  Each cabin has a designated place for delivery to keep the wood dry.  Just call or text Dale at 606-663-0005 to make arrangements for firewood no later than the day prior to your arrival, as delivery must be scheduled with our crew in advance.

No ATV, dirt bikes or 4-wheeling is permitted on the properties. Firearms and fireworks are strictly prohibited.