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Inn Life in California
Western Sonoma County is a unique part of California, one that offers a cluster of scenes that rival the vineyards and farms of Europe. In an area both scenic and relaxing, one can find the perfect place to stay and enjoy a special vacation. The Farmhouse Inn, perfectly positioned in the western part of the county, is an ideal place to enjoy the fruits of the field that the innkeepers offer in their breakfast and dinner menus. The 18-room inn and restaurant is run by Catherine and Joe Bartolomei and their family has farmed in the area since the 1870s. Visit www.farmhouseinn.com for prices and packages.
A Timeless Resort is Reinvented
After more than 230 years of serving guests in a luxury resort setting, a grand old resort has been reinvented as a casino and entertainment complex. Add a wonderful spa, the great outdoors, and you have a formula for relaxation. The famous Greenbrier, once a hideaway in the West Virginia countryside, has debuted a new casino and entertainment venue this spring. The Greenbrier still offers outdoor life with the Greenbrier Sporting Club, set amid 6,500 acres of woodlands, with areas for fly-fishing, a European sporting clays trail and an equestrian center. Enjoy the top-notch golf as well, with lush, 18-hole private courses overlooking the beautiful Allegheny Mountains. Check out details at www.greenbrier.com and www.thegreenbriersportingclub.com.
A Birthday Celebration in Texas
The 30th anniversary of a luxurious hotel is reason enough to visit Dallas, but who can resist the special rates now in effect to celebrate this big birthday? Head straight for the famous Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek and enjoy the lap of luxury. Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek, once a private residence, is celebrating its three decades in style with a totally redesigned look in the hotel’s posh 143 rooms and suites, just revealed this month. Check out the historic Mansion Restaurant, under the direction of executive chef Bruno Davaillon. The stunning Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star, AAA Five-Diamond property is a retreat for special occasions, especially with the packages offered this year. Visit www.mansiononturtlecreek.com for details.
New Orleans Boutique Hotel
New Orleans, LA—A lovely Beaux Arts hotel, slightly off the beaten path but close enough to the action beckons the New Orleans visitor with style and surprisingly reasonable prices. Just two blocks from the French Quarter, it’s a find for visitors who are tired of the large convention hotels. Try the International House Hotel, a hotel that was a bank when it was built in 1906 and then named the first World Trade Center in 1943. After 1998, it became a boutique hotel and was reincarnated in 2007 under the direction of the designer LM Pagano. Try loa, which means “divine spirits” in Voodoo, for a bar that is an escape from the ordinary. Check out the packages on www.ihhotel.com.
Beaux-Arts Hotel Opens in New York
New York, NY—With so many great hotels in “The City that Never Sleeps,” visitors have many options in New York City. Add to that list the city’s newest luxury hotel, recreated from a past glory. The Surrey, on the Upper East Side, was relaunched after a 14-month renovation this winter. The Beaux-Arts property is located in the heart of the city’s cultural attractions on East 76th Street between Madison and Fifth Avenues, and it also boasts a vast collection of contemporary modern art of its own. Guests can also enjoy The Spa at Surrey, a small private spa that features ancient Aboriginal healing practices. The Surrey is home to Daniel Boulud’s relaunched Café Boulud. This elegant hotel is a great “old is new again” escape. Visit www.thesurrey.com or call (800)978-7739.
Miami’s Hot Hotel
Miami, Florida—The local buzz has been great for well over a year now, and visitors have caught on that the Epic Hotel on Biscayne Bay is the place to stay. Kimpton’s foray into the Florida scene, this sleek hotel adds some striking architecture to the Miami skyline. Go to the 16th floor for a dip in the rooftop pool and a great view and perhaps make a stop at the rooftop bar. The guestrooms are ultra-modern and the Epic Hotel has been referred to as “very Manhattan-y,” a nod to the sleek, modern style and superb service. The signature restaurant, Area 31 Restaurant, offers top seafood and another great view. Pampered guests can enjoy the spa, available at www.exhalespa.com. For details and reservations go to www.epichotel.com.
Escape to Sedona
Sedona, Arizona—The new year ushers in a host of enticing packages at the popular Enchantment Resort in sunny, arid Arizona, including many that include dining credits, unique Native American treatments and spa services.
Located two hours from Phoenix, the resort is tucked into the towering red rock walls of the Boynton Canyon and offers panoramic views and clear skies for star-gazing. Among the 2010 deals, the Spa Tranquility package for two nights or more includes access to the Mii amo spa facilities and one 60-minute spa service per person per day for a cost beginning at $1,184. For outdoor types, the Outdoor Adventure package includes four nights, a Pink Jeep tour, a group red rock hiking tour, and breakfast per person per day for a cost beginning at $1,751. For details and reservations call (800)826-4180 or visit www.enchantmentresort.com.
Santa Monica Art Deco Hotel
Santa Monica, California—The Hotel Shangri-La in Santa Monica, a popular boutique property on the Pacific Ocean, recently reopened with an Equinox Fitness partnership that extends benefits to guests for one of the county’s most luxurious gyms and spas. The Art Deco hotel, now offering 71 rooms and suites, a courtyard with elevated pool and cabanas, and a restaurant, is a local gem with wonderful views of the ocean. The new alliance allows privileges for hotel guests at the nearby Santa Monica Equinox. Visit www.shangrila-hotel.com.
New Orleans Charm
New Orleans, Louisiana—The quaint historic French Quarter hotel known as the Dauphine Orleans Hotel combines a group of eighteenth- and nineteenth-century buildings into a luxurious 111-room hotel. Guests can enjoy the hotel bar, once the site of one of the city’s most famous bordello, called “May Baily’s Place” in the 1850s when the red light district was a big part of the local entertainment. Romantic guestrooms, palm-filled courts and classic furniture make this hotel a New Orleans favorite. Check out the renovated fitness and exercise room and the rich library. For reservations go to www.dauphineorleans.com.
Baltimore’s Best
Baltimore, Maryland—Centrally located within steps of the Inner Harbor, the Hyatt Regency Baltimore is one of the city’s best choices for accommodations when visiting Baltimore. As the venue holding AAA four-diamond status longest in the state, it offers superb service and is popular with visitors and locals alike. The nearby Inner Harbor offers a multitude of great dining choices after enjoying the attractions at the aquarium, museums, and shops, and it is one of the city’s most popular stops. Hotel guests and visitors can also head back to the Hyatt to enjoy Bistro 300, a cozy American restaurant serving local cuisine including a Maryland Crab Cake platter, grilled salmon and cream of crab soup. Go to http://baltimore.hyatt.com or call (410)528-1234 for details and packages.
Spa Life, Vegas Style
Las Vegas, Nevada—The Wynn Las Vegas offers 2,716 rooms. Don’t be intimidated. You can relax here and discover excellent spa treatments that use brown sugar and sake. Plus, you have plenty of restaurants to choose from while you relax in Vegas luxury. Spa treatments include the Sake and Rice Body Treatment, Pacific Paradise and Bamboo Lemongrass Body Polish. For another diversion, the golf packages are offered year-round. Check out www.wynnlasvegas.com or call (877)321-9966.
Luxury Desert Escape
Ojai, California—For a true change of pace in one the country’s most scenic locations, discover the dramatic landscape of the San Joaquin Valley. Part of the protected National Landscape Conservation System, the 250,000-acre grasslands are a natural wonder. Just two hours away is the luxurious Ojai Valley Inn and Spa, where you can be pampered after a desert jaunt. The 80-year-old resort, voted among the “Top Ten Spas in the U.S.” by USA Today, offers 308 rooms and suites in a gorgeous setting. The Teen Spa program and the many family programs in this upscale resort offer unique amenities. Go for golf, tennis, spa treatments, and fine dining. Visit www.ojairesort.com for packages and details.
Back Bay’s Hip Hotel
Boston, Massachusetts—Location, location, location. This Boston hotel has a great one, just steps away from Pru shopping, stylish Newbury Street, historic attractions, prime dining, and more. And the recent $20-million facelift at The Colonnade Boston doesn’t hurt either. Suddenly hip and cool, this boutique hotel in Back Bay/Copley Square is within walking distance of Fenway Park too. And how about the rooftop pool, which draws not only city swimmers but musical acts, including the singer Duffy? Special rates and packages make this a keeper. Visit www.colonadehotel.com for a look at the sleek makeover.
New York’s Pierre Opens
New York, New York—One of the city’s landmarks reopened on June 1, 2009 after a $100-million renovation. Overlooking Central Park, The Pierre first opened in 1930 on Fifth Avenue and offers 89 luxury guestrooms and 49 suites. The iconic hotel was acquired by Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces to join the hotel group’s 64 hotels in 45 locations. Joining general manager Heiko Kuenstle at The Pierre will be executive chef Stephane Becht. Chef Becht came from the Miami-based Norwegian Cruise Lines where he was corporate executive chef. For opening packages and more information on this luxury hotel, visit www.tajhotels.com/pierre. Take the virtual tour of Café Pierre and the Rotunda Restaurant for a peek at the good life.
New Luxury Escape Opens
Chelan, Washington—The Lake House at Chelan, a luxury family-friendly resort on Lake Chelan, officially opened to guests on May 1, 2009. Surrounded by award-wining golf courses, including Bear Mountain Ranch and Desert Canyon, the new hotel and residence is located three hours from Seattle. At this all-season destination families can enjoy beach volleyball, boating, tennis, snowmobiling, tubing, and more as well as visit to a skateboard park and water park. The neighborhood is great for wine lovers, too, with up to 13 local wineries nearby offering tours and tastings. A 4,000-square-foot Pool House keeps the kids busy all year. Visit www.thelakehousechelan.com or call (509)293-5982 for special packages and more information.
Seattle’s Green Hotel
Seattle, Washington—The brand-new 346-room Hyatt at Olive 8 in Seattle is the epitome of a “green” hotel and is, in fact, the first LEED-certified hotel in the city. Architect Richard Gluckman designed this new plan as a prototype for all future Hyatt green hotels. The striking blue glass elements and living green roof are all part of the look and feel of this sophisticated hotel. Visitors just need to look across the street at the Grand Hyatt to compare the “old” versus the “new” Hyatt. At Hyatt at Olive 8, natural light streams from floor-to-ceiling windows and views from the tower rooms look down on the living roof. The Elaia Spa and the yoga studio are great choices for relaxation, while Urbane bar and restaurant is an ultra-cool place to relax some more. For details visit www.hyatt.com.
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