Nov 20, 2009 by Jennifer Bernstein - comment
We scope out the wine baths, pet psychics, caviar facials, gourmet cooking classes, revolving rooms, and other extravagant extras that will push your vacation over the top.
In Cape Elizabeth, a charming New England coastal town located on Crescent Bay just outside of Portland, Maine the picturesque Inn by the Sea offers offers travelers eco-friendly luxury, stunning waterfront views and true New England hospitality, with a paranormal twist. The resort claims to be haunted.
Lydia, the ghost of a 19th century bride-to-be, seems to be making the Inn her permanent residence, but doesn’t mind sharing the newly remodeled grounds with out-of-towners. Talk to many of the staff, and even some guests, and learn about odd occurrences that are said to be linked to Lydia’s mischief.
If wayward spirits aren’t really a draw, the Inn by the Sea offers a number of attractive vacation packages, from pet friendly to family vacation ideas. Book in October and enter the Inn’s pumpkin carving contest (October 1-31st). Let Lydia inspire you and get creative. The winner of the contest will have their expenses credited back to them!
Weekend getaways are always a coveted luxury; an opportunity to get away from the daily grind. Throw in a hotel with a on-site spa and you’re practically in heaven. Does it get any better?
It just did.
The Fairmont Chicago will actually bring the spa to your room. Included in it’s in-room dining services, the hotel offers the Serenity Bath. Order one and a bath sommelier comes and sets up a relaxing atmosphere for you. They’ll draw your bath, adding soothing aromatherapy oils. They’ll also set up neck pillows and loofahs, a fruit plate and bottled water, a variety of soaps and lotions, and leave a CD player with an assortment of relaxing music.
Add this to the already tantilizing array of gourmet dining options from the hotel’s in-room dining menu with signature dishes like pan-fried crab cakes with tomato-herb chipotle aioli, or roasted halibut and suddenly seeing all that Chicago has to offer from the view of your posh suite doesn’t seem so bad.
Order up a Valhrona chocolate lemon tart for a post aroma bath treat, indulge, repeat.
Getting kids to bed on a normal night can be harrowing. Trying to get them to bed while on vacation can be down right impossible. What with hallways to run down, elevator buttons to push and beds to jump on, kids have a lot of ground to cover before its lights out.
But, as the old saying goes, if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em. So while staying at the Ritz-Carlton Palm Beach why not surprise your kids with a pillow fight! Enjoy this lively turndown service that will get the whole family involved (and hopefully tuckered out). Guests are armed with 30 small silk pillows and miniature boxing gloves. Boys vs girls, parents vs kids, or every man for themselves. You’ll also get game ideas to help inspire some of the greatest memories a vacation can offer: having fun with the family.
The pillow fight service also includes milk and cookies and a sweet treat that can go to the winner.
Other awesome kid-oriented amenities at this family-friendly Ritz include a ‘Bath Science’ service that features a floating science lab of test tubes, beakers, and things to make the water froth and change color. Send them out for the day to hang out at the AquaNuts day camp where they can meet other kids and participate in both indoor and outdoor activities like swimming, arts and crafts and nature tours.
France-based Sofitel hotels are generally known for their, naturally, French flair, but the luxurious brand’s Philadelphia property is adding a dash of English charm with its new London taxi service. For hire by hotel guests only, the iconic London taxi, imported directly from England, offers free rides around town and to/from the Philadelphia International Airport (a 20-minute drive) Mondays through Fridays between 7 and 9 A.M (reservations recommended). Booking the service any other time of day will cost you, depending on the duration of your ride, upwards of $25 for lifts within the city center and $45 to the airport. Not cheap for most chaps, but the five-seat, mini-bar laden cab makes for a bloody fun alternative to typical transportation, wouldn’t you say?
Getting something permanently drawn onto your body should not be a decision made quickly. So maybe a long weekend getaway with friends isn’t the best time to sit down under the needle. That giant sun wrapped in barbwire to commemorate your trip to Florida might not seem so awesome once back home in Wisconsin.
Then again, vacations are known to motivate, and friends can be pretty convincing. And what more inspirational setting then ink-clad, super-hip Venice Beach, California? And what better excuse then a hotel offering a “Ink and Stay” hotel package?
Known as the Algonquin Round Table, some of the most influential literary minds of our time met at the Algonquin Hotel to share stories, opinions and meals, thus shaping the American literary landscape. Dorothy Parker, Robert Benchley and Robert E Sherwood were among the regulars (and founders) of the group that called this chic hotel home.
Ideally located in midtown Manhattan, steps from Times Square, theaters, and shopping, the Algonquin Hotel continues to be a classic choice when staying in the city. And now, if you left your favorite book at home or (even worse) on the plane, they have you covered. Staying true to it’s rich literary heritage, and commitment to stay cutting edge, Kindles are offered to all guests loaded with your favorite reads, for you to use during your stay.
Suddenly loosing your book sounds kind of cool. We think Dorothy Parker would approve.
With honeybees rapidly disappearing in the U.S. over the last couple years, one hotel is stepping in to save black and yellow buzzers and the sweet golden nectar they provide. The Fairmont Washington D.C. recently let 105,000 honeybees check in to three new hives on the hotel’s roof. The 300 pounds of honey that the bees are expected to yield within the first year will be used in soups, salad dressings, pastries, ice cream and other delectable creations in the hotel’s Juniper restaurant.
Of course, this begs the question: Will guests want to stay in a hotel that is also home to over 100,000 bees? Would you?
Yes, you read it right: To commemorate Woodstock’s 40th anniversary, San Diego’s Hard Rock Hotel is giving away free pot brownies to all guests checking in from August 14-16. The brownies, served à la mode, will come straight from the hotel’s cafe, Maryjane’s.
So…wait, what?
Visiting and getting around a new city is never easy–but biking is fun, great exercise, and offers fantastic views of any new place. We’ve previously covered the trend of hotels offering loaner bikes for guests, and it looks like the amenity is continuing to spread like wildfire. As of this spring, Fairmont Hotels across Canada have introduced state-of-the-art BMW Cruise Bikes as the newest benefit for guests. At the Fairmont Château Whistler, guests can explore mountainside bike paths, while guests at the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth can expore the avenues of Montreal before stopping for a coffe at a cafe. The BMW bikes are great for both busy urban streets and scenic wooded trails, and the sleek frames will have you looking hip. Other original features include an integrated brake routing system that enables you to stop on a dime—a nice comfort factor for infrequent riders! The 24-speed bikes come in red and pearl white, and they retail for $1,190, so taking one for a spin is definitely a steal. Bonus: In addition to offering a selection of BMW Cruise Bikes, each hotel will have a variety of child-size BMW bikes on hand, allowing families to take in the sights together.
Hotel Saint Cecilia (named after the patron saint of music and poetry) is a great boutique hotel that opened last year in Austin’s South Congress District. Among its offerings are mini bars that Cecilia herself would see fit to rename with a decidedly more grandiose adjective. If Warhol, poetry, and legendary furniture design features give you a craving for elegant eats, head back to your suite, bungelow, or studio and, with mother-of-pearl or olive wood utensils in hand, dine in-room on global gourmet treats. Tucked inside the minibar are handmade chocolates, shortbread cookies, olive oil crackers, and, on the more opulent end, red lumpfish caviar, a variety of cheeses, duck rillette, salami, and bison jerky. Wash it down with a fine Pinot Grigio or Rioja, and nurse that possible hangover later with kombucha, or a Victorian lemonade.
