Journeys

DESTINATIONS by KIM KAVIN

JOURNEYS Ocean House Collection guests love the exclusive benefits of Relais & Châteaux. For an exceptional getaway, consider these North American destinations.

CANADA

Post Hotel & Spa

The Post Hotel & Spa was built during the World War II era by a crew of just 10 men. It has since had several owners who expanded the property, with the current owners taking the reins in the late 1970s. They added fine dining and Europeantrained chefs, and grew the wine program. By the mid1980s, the restaurant was so popular they decided to expand and upgrade the hotel too.

Today, the Post’s wine cellar is among the most impressive in Canada, with a collection of more than 25,000 bottles. In 2020, the hotel was yet again a recipient of the Wine Spectator Grand Award, the brand’s highest honor for the top level of wine service—an award the property has won every year since 2002. Guests eager to taste some noteworthy bottles with finely paired cuisine should try the Wine Maker’s Dinner Series, with each meal limited to 30 guests.

For serious foodies, a new offering called the Gourmet Package is scheduled to begin in June. Chef Hans Sauter is preparing a six-course menu paired with wines from the cellar. The package also includes two nights in a deluxe room with a king bed and fireplace, breakfast each morning, and a welcome wine and fruit basket. Working off those calories should be fun and easy, with activities that include biking, rock climbing, fishing, horseback riding, whitewater rafting and golf. Banff National Park has almost 1,000 miles of trails to explore, and there are four noted golf courses nearby. The renowned Banff Springs offers a par-71 course with 18 holes and stunning mountain views.

And when it’s time to relax, the hotel’s Temple Mountain Spa offers a range of massages, body therapies, facials, and nail and waxing services. The Temple Mountain Escape package is a top-level treat. It combines a body scrub, followed by a Thai stem massage that includes yoga-style stretches, heated herbal stem and deep-tissue massage, all in a surrounding aroma of soothing lemongrass.

Left: European-inspired cuisine Top: Hiking in Lake Louise Center: Many deluxe rooms and all suites have fireplaces. Bottom: Guests can use the hotel’s hybrid bikes.

DID YOU KNOW? 1

Lake Louise is a place and a body of water. Both the hamlet and the lake are within Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada.

2

The turquoise color of Lake Louise comes from rock flour—silt-sized rock particles—that flows in from glacier meltwater.

3

Post Hotel & Spa’s wine list is 65 pages long. It includes over 60 types and vintages of Champagne.

4

The resort was originally built in 1942, but because of the war and other reasons, it wasn’t able to open until 1948.

5

Yes, there was a building on the property leased to the post office. That’s one reason for the Post Hotel & Spa’s name.

DID YOU KNOW? 1

L’Auberge Carmel, which goes back to 1929, was originally known as Sundial Court Apartments— the city’s first apartment building.

2

Carmel-by-the-Sea is home to numerous historic buildings including the Tuck Box, a restaurant that began in 1927.

3

L’Auberge Carmel underwent multiple renovations in the early 2000s, including a million-dollar remodel in 2012.

4

Carmel Beach is a few blocks from the hotel. The beach is known as a favorite spot of surfers and off-leash dogs.

5

The weather is almost always good in Carmel-by-the-Sea, with year-round temperatures from 50 to 75 degrees.

CALIFORNIA

L’Auberge Carmel

At Aubergine, the awardwinning restaurant of L’Auberge Carmel, the eightcourse tasting menu changes every day. Executive Chef Justin Cogley and Pastry Chef Yulanda Santos work with the season’s best ingredients, and with the property’s 2,500bottle wine cellar, which has a special focus on bottlings from Monterey County and France. Expect the menu to include dishes made with interesting combinations that elevate the palate and surprise the senses, such as an artichoke tart with white anchovy, honeycomb and mint, or a strawberry cremeaux with pistachios and olive oil cake.

The restaurant, like the rest of the property, combines modern excellence with classic touches. L’Auberge Carmel has a décor that features original coved plaster walls and antique doorknobs, but also flatscreen televisions and Wi-Fi. Bathrooms combine antique travertine tiles with radiant floor heating. The sinks are hand-hammered copper, while the custom bath products are contemporary. Helga Horner, most recently in the news for interior design on 2626 Larkin—one of San Francisco’s most renowned townhouses at an asking price of $25 million—chose the open-canopied and tufted beds, antiques and custom fabrics found throughout L’Auberge Carmel’s guest rooms.

And everything that L’Auberge Carmel offers is in the heart of Carmel-bythe-Sea, a city that in and of itself combines classic architecture and the feeling of a quaint village with modernday pursuits such as surfing and scuba diving. Shops here are as unique as they come, such as Viau’s Antique

Jewelry and the Carmel Pipe Shop. Restaurants in Carmel, too, are far from the ordinary. One example is Le Soufflé, with just six tables, fine dining, French wines and, of course, various types of soufflés for dessert. (A bite of the Grand Marnier soufflé, perhaps?)

L’Auberge Carmel helps guests make the most of all the city encompasses through offers such as the Wine Tasting Package, with a selfguided walking tour of 10 tasting rooms near the hotel; and the Hang Ten Package, which includes a surfing instructor and lessons. There are on-site packages such as A Grand Day with the Chef, which brings hotel guests behind the scenes with Cogley to learn practical and professional culinary tips, ending with a dinner based on the menu they’ve helped prepare.

Above: Classic architecture blends with modern touches. Right: Aubergine offers awardwinning cuisine. Left: The Tasting Menu changes daily.

Above: Nearby trails come with water views. Left: One of 20 elegant guest rooms.

NEW YORK

Glenmere Mansion

When real-estate developer Robert Walton Goelet died in 1941, he owned more property than almost anyone else in New York City. He had his choice of where he wanted to spend his time, and starting in 1911, that included Glenmere—a country retreat he commissioned in the style of villas he had seen in Tuscany, Italy. The retreat overlooked Glenmere Lake and thousands of acres of land he owned, and he hired America’s first major female landscape architect, Beatrix Jones Farrand, to design the Glenmere Gardens.

Much of their vision survives more than a century later at Glenmere Mansion, which has been restored with a great deal of attention to preserving original architectural details. Guests can walk through the marblecolumned porticos, up the majestic interior and exterior staircases, and throughout the formal gardens—all 150 acres of them, including the fountains. The Supper Room is filled with antiques and custom, hand-painted eglomise panels that depict the countryside in Tuscany. An Italianate fireplace sets the mood during the fall and winter months.

Glenmere is in the heart of the Hudson Valley, near renowned and unique sites including West Point and the Historic Harness Racing Museum and Hall of Fame. The countryside in this part of New York State presents numerous opportunities for antique shopping, exploring quaint towns and touring farmers’ markets.

On the Glenmere property, guests can enjoy an outdoor heated swimming pool, fitness center, tennis, bocce ball, croquet and more—the latter, much as guests during Goelet’s era did. The modern on-site spa is home to a marble bath house/ hammam, and there are golf courses, outlet stores and more a few miles

away.

When the day’s activities are done, dining is a multifaceted gourmet experience. In addition to the Supper Room, Glenmere has the China Room, where parties as large as 32 people can enjoy custom menus while surrounded by a collection of fine porcelain and silverware. The Frogs End tavern has a full bar service, light fare and a seasonal fireplace near cozy chairs for playing chess or reading a book. Outdoor dining is in the Cortile, which has a marble staircase under the stars. It is an ideal location for custom wine tastings with Glenmere’s sommelier.

Top: The China Room offers private dining. Above: An opulent retreat, the spa features water therapies. Below: Italian-inspired gardens Bottom: A spacious and elegant Glenmere bedroom. Left: Lobster rolls are a popular menu item.

DID YOU KNOW? 1

Brotherhood Winery, which dates back to 1839, is within touring distance of Glenmere Mansion. The cellars are America’s oldest.

2

Storm King Art Center, also nearby, is a 500-acre outdoor museum that focuses on large-scale sculpture and commissions.

3

Glenmere partners with the Volvo Test Drive Program to make a car available for complimentary guest use each day.

4

At the local Woodbury Common Premium Outlets, shops include Armani, Brunello Cucinelli, Carolina Herrera and Dolce & Gabbana.

5

Harriman State Park is nearby. It’s New York’s second-largest state park, with more than 47,500 acres and 200 miles of hiking trails.