ROANOKE, W.Va. — A lakeside resort in the hills of northern West Virginia has been ranked among the best resorts in the U.S. South by Condé Nast Traveler readers, marking its fourth consecutive appearance in the magazine’s annual Readers’ Choice Awards.
Stonewall Resort, located in a 1,900-acre state park near Weston, at the source of the West Fork River, ranked No. 12 among the 20 best resorts in the region for 2026, earning a reader score of 96.87.
The Greenbrier, in White Sulphur Springs, in southern West Virginia, also made the list, ranking No. 5 with a score of 98.29, according to Andre’ D’Amour, general manager at Stonewall.
D’Amour said nearly 800,000 votes were cast in the magazine’s 39th annual Readers’ Choice Awards, which recognize hotels, resorts, airlines, cruise lines, destinations, and other parts of the travel industry.
“We are honored to be recognized by the readers of Condé Nast Traveler,” D’Amour said.
“This award is especially meaningful because it comes directly from travelers who have experienced Stonewall Resort firsthand. It is a testament to our dedicated team and to the memorable setting, service and hospitality they create for every guest.”
Stonewall has made the list four years running
The 2026 recognition continues Stonewall’s run in the Condé Nast Traveler awards. The resort ranked No. 14 among Southern resorts in 2023, No. 19 in 2024, and No. 5 in 2025, before finishing No. 12 this year.
Unlike many nationally recognized Southern resorts, Stonewall is located some distance from major cities and established coastal tourism centers. It sits along Stonewall Jackson Lake near Roanoke, a small Lewis County community about three miles from Interstate 79.
Its location also puts it within driving distance of several major metropolitan areas. Pittsburgh is about 140 miles away, while Columbus, Washington, and the Charleston-Huntington area have also been among the markets the resort or West Virginia tourism officials have targeted for visitors.
Stonewall includes more than 250 accommodations in its lakeside lodge, cottages, and lake houses, along with restaurants, a marina, a spa, a campground, and conference and event facilities.
The resort includes more than 250 accommodations in its lakeside lodge, cottages, and lake houses, plus restaurants, a marina, a spa, a campground, and conference and event facilities.
Its 18-hole Arnold Palmer Signature Golf Course is one of the property’s principal attractions. The course has also received national recognition, appearing on Golfweek’s list of the Top 200 Resort Courses in the United States in 2019, 2020, 2023, and 2024.
The course, which opened in 2002, winds through the hills above Stonewall Jackson Lake and has participated in Audubon International’s Cooperative Sanctuary Program, an initiative that encourages golf courses to protect wildlife habitat, conserve water, and reduce their environmental impacts.
The surrounding lake also offers visitors boating, fishing, kayaking, and paddleboarding, while trails through the state park provide hiking and biking opportunities.
A resort built around a lake with an unusual history
The landscape visitors see today is relatively new. The lake was created as part of a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers flood-control project on the West Fork. The dam entered service in 1988, and its construction transformed the surrounding valley. The lake was named for Confederate Gen. Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson, who was born in nearby Clarksburg.
Among the places affected was the original community of Roanoke. The federal government acquired much of the town, and its former site now lies beneath the reservoir. The state subsequently developed Stonewall Resort State Park along the lake, and the modern resort opened in 2002 following a public-private development effort.
Today, the combination of a large lake, extensive public land and a full-service resort gives Stonewall a setting unusual among West Virginia’s state parks.
“This recognition reinforces what so many of our guests already know: Stonewall Resort is a special place to reconnect, celebrate, meet and explore,” D’Amour said.
“We look forward to welcoming both returning guests and first-time visitors to experience the hospitality and natural beauty that make this destination unique.”
Readers determine the Condé Nast awards
Condé Nast Traveler’s Readers’ Choice Awards are based on responses from travelers, not selections by the magazine’s editors, according to the magazine. Readers rate travel experiences in categories including resorts, hotels, cities, islands, airlines, and cruise lines, and the results are converted into scores used for the annual rankings.
Stonewall’s 96.87 score placed it just behind Montage Palmetto Bluff, in Bluffton, South Carolina, and ahead of Sanderling Resort, in Duck, North Carolina.
Southall Farm & Inn in Franklin, Tennessee, topped the Southern resort category with a score of 99.37.
For Stonewall, however, the 2026 result continues a distinction that has now lasted four years: readers of one of the nation’s best-known travel publications continue to rank a resort in the hills of central West Virginia among the best in the South.
For Stonewall, the 2026 result continues a distinction that has lasted four years, but the surrounding setting is considerably larger than the 1,900-acre state park itself.
A state park and a wildlife management area
The adjoining Stonewall Jackson Lake Wildlife Management Area encompasses more than 18,000 acres of forest, former farmland, and rolling hills around the 2,650-acre lake. The lake has 82 miles of shoreline, while the surrounding public lands provide habitat for black bears, white-tailed deer, wild turkeys, waterfowl, and other wildlife.
That setting sets Stonewall apart from a conventional destination resort. Visitors can move within minutes from a lodge, spa, and Arnold Palmer golf course into thousands of acres of public land in the hills of central West Virginia.