As part of my adventure in pain relief, I stopped in for a soothing massage at La Papillon Day Spa early last week and, while there, I found out about a nifty package spa owner, LaVerne Mordus, created that combines wine tourism, gourmet food and pampering. And since today marks the beginning of National Tourism Week, I thought it an ideal time to mention it.

Here’s how it works:

1. A limousine picks you up from La Papillon (yes,
Francophiles, Mordus uses “la” instead of “le” to emphasize that the business is woman owned and operated) and whisks you off to our wine country back roads where you will tour and taste leisurely at boutique wineries selected from among Ferrari-Carano, Bella Zichichi Family, Michel Schlumberger, Dry Creek, Lambert Bridge, Twomey, Rochioli Vineyards, Camellia and Rued.

2. During the tour, a gourmet, picnic lunch is provided by local deli and caterer, Sally Tomatoes. Sandwich choices include veggie, roast turkey, roast beef, corned beef or ham. Salads include Italian chicken, chicken Waldorf and balsamic roasted vegetable. Beverages are a variety of soft drinks and water.

3. The limousine returns you to La Papillon, where you end your day with a relaxing massage (Swedish, okazaki, deep tissue, acupressure and more) or facial.

This is a full-day experience priced at $300 per person or $550 per couple, including wine touring via limousine, lunch and spa treatment. This sounds like a superb deal for those who have retained their jobs during this recession; taking part would boost several local businesses, too. 

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To live in San Francisco is to have access to the best of Northern California. For most of us situated along the bay, this means less than two hours to wine country, three hours to coastal destinations, and four hours to skiing. Indeed, some of the country’s most celebrated resorts are found within these regions, and they are worth visiting. What is less worth doing is braving traffic, and crowds, and (for those of us whose leisure time is at a premium) sacrificing the time it takes to get there. Though we hope for long, scenic drives that gently separate us from our day-to-day and ease us into our vacation, we often get crowded interstates and road-raged motorists, elevating us to an even higher level of stress.

What if short getaways could be different? What if we could find ways to get out of the city or go out of town without relinquishing numerous hours and shreds of our sanity just to get there and back? What if we could find peace and tranquility, luxury in service as well as aesthetics, culinary excellence, and world class spas right here in our own backyards? The Claremont Resort and Spa in Berkeley and The Lafayette Park Hotel and Spa are the only two resorts in the East Bay that guarantee that we can.

Both maintaining AAA Four Diamond status in 2009, these properties mix full service with quality. Each offers large, comfortable guest rooms with distinctive choices for views and other in-room features; each houses two restaurants—one for casual dining, the other for fine dining; each maintains elegant common spaces that implore guests to sit and relax; and their spa facilities—in many ways, the jewel of both resorts—are among the best in the Bay Area. Their similarities end, however, with overall look and feel. Whereas The Claremont appeals to one’s sense of grandeur, The Lafayette Park satisfies a desire for intimacy.

The Claremont Resort & Spa
Once the private residence of the Thornburg family, The Claremont was lost in a checker match to Frank Havens, who converted the property to a hotel in 1915. Its dignified perch on a mountainside in the Berkeley Hills—with dining areas, patios, spa windows and some guest room windows overlooking city, hills, and bay—bespeaks a sense of vastness. This aura of plenty is also carried in the array of activities available to guests—from tennis amid the palms at the immaculate racquet club, to swimming and exercise (including classes) at its state of the art fitness facility, to public events that include a jazz concert series and a diverse set of monthly workshops, to hours spent in its spa, the Claremont offers something for everyone.

The philosophy of the wildly popular Spa Claremont is to focus as much on wellness as on relaxation and to develop treatments that are aligned with the emerging needs of its customers. Consequently, its menu is continuously innovating to reflect some of the most exotic (e.g., the Tibetan Sound Massage) and relevant (e.g., The Majestic Hydrafacial) treatments available. Borrowing gratuitously from other cultures, the spa offers signature Brazilian, Philippine, Mayan, and Hawai’i an “Journeys” that provide hours of relaxation in the form of herbed baths, scrubs, and massages made with genuine ingredients from each region. Spa management has a long track record of commitment to authenticity, and employs some of the only legitimately-qualified Lomi Lomi massage practitioners in the Bay Area. It has also favored the use of natural and organic products for over a decade, well before such distinctions were en vogue.

Guests who enjoy “getting lost” will love The Claremont—whether the intention is to find solitude in a quiet space, or to blend into the backdrop of one of its well-visited restaurants, a sense of flow is easily achieved within its walls. Enjoying light fare and infused-vodka cocktails at Paragon or taking in the view and the live piano music over Sunday Brunch at Jordan’s seems to visibly put guests at ease (though, this may have something to do with the three hours of complimentary childcare included as part of the resort charge…)

Recommended: The Sunburn (Paragon cocktail), the Paragon Chip-wich (my favorite dessert in the bay area), the Rebalancer (Ayurvedic spa treatment), and the (very large) lap pool at the health club

The Lafayette Park Hotel & Spa
For those seeking a more intimate getaway, the smaller and uniquely constructed Lafayette Park Hotel and Spa is a venerable retreat. Built in the style of a French chateau by the Alden family-owned Woodside Hotel Group, the Lafayette Park Hotel combines comforts that the modern traveler has come to expect while integrating the old world luxury of classic hotels. A towering strength—its success in maintaining a sense of openness throughout—is realized via especially large guest rooms and restaurants and common areas that overlook pleasing outdoor scenes, effectively bringing the outside, inside.

One need only set foot in the lobby to experience the themes that characterize the entire hotel—large spaces flooded with natural light, European artwork and furnishings, fresh flowers and live plants, and books, books, books. Inside each guest room, and in various nooks and crannies throughout the property, is a well-maintained and diverse supply of reading material to be enjoyed at guests’ pleasure. Those looking to make the most of the fresh air and east bay sunshine may be drawn to settle in with a good read in the fountain courtyard or pool patio. Those who like to curl up by the fire have several hearths to choose from, and may request a guest room that features a wood-burning fireplace.

If connecting with friends and loved ones is a top priority for your getaway, the configuration of The Spa at The Lafayette Park is ideal. Unlike many other top-notch spas that offer superb, but separate, facilities for men and women, this spa allows the pool, Jacuzzi, sauna, and relaxation room facilities to be enjoyed jointly. Also, the fact that many of these features are outdoor-accessible makes the dynamic different from that of other spas. The adjacent fire pit, as well as the poolside cocktail and bistro menu, only allow for a wider range of choices for your spa experience.

While visiting The Spa at The Lafayette Park, be sure to appreciate its fidelity to proven treatments. I was pleasantly surprised to find both cranio-sacral and lymphatic drainage massage on their menu—these are two treatments that have been effective for me, but that I have seen come and go at other spas. Also notable is its extraordinary value—the $185 Mini Spa Day offers a 50-minute massage and a 50-minute facial, and is the spa’s most popular package. And, from now through May 31, 2009, spa guests may enjoy 20% off of any unbundled treatment.

Recommended: Espresso Martini (Bistro cocktail), the Alaskan Halibut Saltimbocca and Cedar-Planked Duck Breast (Duck Club entrees), and the Lymphatic Drainage Massage (spa treatment)

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Set in a residential neighborhood one block from downtown Sonoma, the Cottage Inn & Spa, with its white stucco walls, archways and turquoise accents, evokes a Greek isle. Seven individually designed rooms intertwine with courtyards and outdoor spaces dotted with fountains, Asian goddess statues, sprays of vivid green bamboo leaves and meditative music, giving this upscale bed and breakfast a Zen vibe. It’s an ideal spot for a romantic and rejuvenating escape.

Comfort zone

A gentle rain was pattering on the roof overhead as I stretched out on one of two chaise longues in front of the fireplace in my Vineyard View suite. Behind large wooden doors was an open-air window offering views of the inn’s rooftops, surrounding homes and vineyard-covered hills in the distance. Light filled and spacious, my room included a comfortable king-size bed, a rattan dining table set for two topped with a plate of fruit and a vase of fresh flowers, a handy kitchenette with a small microwave oven, cereal, coffee, tea and a mini refrigerator stocked with complimentary bottled water, orange juice, milk and breakfast condiments.
Bath and beyond

I relished the warm swirling waters of the oversize whirlpool tub, fragranced with bath crystals and gently illuminated by a set of tea lights ensconced in petal shaped ceramic candleholders, all courtesy of the inn. Situated in the room and across from the fireplace, the tub sits next to a semi-open stone shower and a vanity area containing a pedestal sink, a hair dryer, toiletries and ample sets of fluffy, white towels.
Geared up

My room included free Wi-Fi, a CD player, a combination TV/VCR, a collection of VHS movies, a coffeemaker, an electric tea kettle, an iron and an ironing board.
Grounds for approval

Tranquil spaces include an atrium style courtyard with tropical plants and four built in-seats facing a lulling fountain, topped with a fire each evening. The Zen garden massage room offers therapeutic massages and treatments for individuals and couples.
In the vicinity

A five-minute walk takes you to the Sonoma Plaza and downtown Sonoma, where you can visit historical sites such as the Mission San Francisco de Solano, dine in restaurants including Cafe La Haye and the Girl & the Fig and peruse an engaging array of shops, boutiques and art galleries. The inn also provides a convenient locale for nature walks, bike rides and wine tasting.
Good to know

Guests receive a two-day pass for two for complimentary wine tasting at a choice of 25 wineries including the Schug Carneros Estate Winery in the Carneros appellation, Chateau St. Jean in the Sonoma Valley and Matanzas Creek Winery in the Bennett Valley.
Highs and lows

The inn’s co-proprietor, Faye, greeted me by my first name the moment I arrived, carried one of my bags to my second-floor suite and left a handwritten, personalized note for my departure. Her gracious demeanor, coupled with thoughtful gestures, such as a basket of baked goods quietly left outside my door in the morning, exemplifies the genteel character of this wonderfully inviting place to stay. An upgraded television with expanded channel choices, and a DVD player with a collection of movies on DVD, would be more in accordance with the inn’s upscale nature.

Vitals: The Cottage Inn & Spa, 310 First St. E., Sonoma. (800) 944-1490 or (707) 996-0719.  Six suites and one room (none with wheelchair access), all nonsmoking. Rates: Sunday-Thursday $205-$400, Friday-Saturday $230-$425 through Aug. 14. Two-night minimum stay on weekends April through October. Packages and massage specials available. No children and no pets. Free parking.

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Tucked away near the heart of San Francisco’s Design Area in Potrero Hill, you will find fresh and effective skincare treatments to meet your every need. Oil & Water Skincare and Brow Design offers a variety of tantalizing, results-oriented skincare and waxing services in a soothing, professional environment. The subtle scents of lavender, citrus, geranium and rosemary will greet you upon entering, an introduction to the warm and inviting experience that follows

All treatments customized to your individual needs using Yon Ka Paris, Jan Marini Skin Research and Eminence Organics

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The Harmonie European Day Spa Experience

The health spa has been around since antiquity. Aroma and massage therapies were first practiced by the ancient Greeks for their healing benefits. Romans added esthetics to their treatments. Then, in the early 1800s, the spa was reintroduced into Europe.
“I had my first facial at 14,” says Patricia Bottero, a native Parisian and founder of Harmonie European Day Spa in Saratoga, CA. “A facial is simply something a young woman in France experiences.”

Bottero, a Los Gatos resident, was trained in the European tradition of skin and body care in Paris, and she continues to go to Europe to update her knowledge. As an esthetician, she first worked in California at a full-service salon, but in 1988, a couple of years later, she created Harmonie Skin and Body Care, now called Harmonie European Day Spa.

“The day spa experience is not about lazy pampering. The day spa is about the necessity we have to honor our femininity, especially at times when everything else and everyone else in our lives seems to be so much more important. Stress alone can make a woman feel unattractive, and if she feels unattractive, she will look that way,” says Bottero.

In an atmosphere influenced by French Loire castles, Harmonie clients are indulged by estheticians in dimly lit private rooms filled with soothing music and sensuous aromas. Estheticians trained by Bottero cater to clients personally, attending to their particular skin and body-care needs.

The spa provides facials, intensive treatments for acne, brown spots and wrinkles; full-body and other massages to promote relaxation and body detoxification; depilatories, thalassotherapy body envelopes–seawater and sea botanical body wraps–to firm, tone and detoxify skin; makeup application and lessons, manicure and pedicure.

One treatment consists of combining thermal seaweed mud with reflexology technique using Chinese acupressure points on hands and feet to relieve tension and essential oils for aromatherapy and to aid circulation.

“We want women to feel beautiful not just look beautiful. A large part of the power of beauty is how a woman feels when she is confident and self-assured,” says Bottero.

The spa offers special packages for expectant mothers, brides-to-be, busy executives and teens. Men’s treatments are also available.

Harmonie was voted Best Day Spa by both the Metro Silicon Valley Magazine and Elle Magazine.)

Harmonie European Day Spa is located at 14501 Big Basin Way, Saratoga, California. For more information call (408) 741-4997

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Destination design firm WATG provided complete architectural design services for Bardessono, a 62-room boutique luxury inn and spa opening this week on a 4.9-acre site in Yountville, California, in the heart of Napa Valley.

The inn includes a spa with four treatment rooms, a 75-foot-long rooftop infinity pool, a fine-dining restaurant, and meeting space. The design reflects a blending of the Valley’s agrarian character, the high refinement associated with its wines, and the indoor/outdoor character of local living.

The project uses solar and geothermal energy, sophisticated energy management systems, sustainable building materials, and organic landscape management practices. The project is pursuing a LEED Platinum certification from the US Green Building Council.

Some of the unique elements of the inn include a lobby without a front desk – guests are greeted in the foyer by the staff; every room has its own courtyard that allows for absolute guest privacy; and spa treatments will be available in every guestroom.

“Guests will be able to take their showers outdoors, underneath the stars,” said Susan Frieson, WATG associate and lead architect on the project. “That’s just one of many experiences at Bardessono that will connect people with their environment.”

Some of the sustainable design features of the property include:

• Eighty-two 300-foot-deep geothermal wells to heat and cool guestrooms and to provide hot water.

• 940 solar panels on the buildings’ flat roofs, hidden from view by parapets that produce 200 KW of power.

• Rammed-earth sculptural walls and 100-year-old olive trees.

• Paving stones and sand for the entrance road, to allow water to seep into the soil, and valet parking, which will allow guests to walk – rather than drive – throughout the property.

• Automatically-controlled exterior Venetian blinds to let the sun and heat in early in the day and out later in the day.

• Dual-pane glass, designed to take advantage of natural light while controlling glare and heat gain.

• Fluorescent bulbs and light-emitting diodes. Everything electric in the rooms is on motion-detectors that shut them off when a guest leaves. When they return and put their key in the door, the current go back on.

• Dual-flush toilets and low-flow fixtures that save water.

• Filtered water, which takes the place of bottled water.

• Drought-resistant landscaping and underground emitters for outdoor watering.

• Re-use and treatment of gray and black water for irrigation through Yountville’s water system.

The project is managed by MTM Luxury Lodging and was developed by Phil Sherburne, who also developed Willows Lodge in the Seattle area and Inn of the Spanish Garden in Santa Barbara, CA.

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Mount View Hotel & Spa Once your car has snuggled into a spot alongside the Mount View, rest assured that you will not have to get behind the wheel again until it’s time to go home. The Mount View has had its share of reincarnations since it opened in 1917 – with its most recent renovations in 2001 mixing modern luxury with Art Deco flair – but one thing has remained constant for 92 years: a great location in the heart of chain-store-free Calistoga. Whatever your pleasure – spa, wine tasting, shopping, strolling – you won’t have to use an ounce of gas while you’re a guest at the Mount View.

Comfort zone
A red accent wall and red ceiling added a bit of drama to my cozy king with a window framed by the trees over the parking lot. The comfy, six-pillowed bed filled most of the space, but there was room for a drink cart, set with a Wine Country-worthy ice bucket (not one of those typical little deals) and two chairs alongside. (The suites, newly named after wineries, even come with a bottle of their namesake’s premium vino.) But who’d want to linger in the room with so many attractions outside – just remember to leave your key (the old-fashioned kind) at the desk so you don’t lose it in your travels.

Bath and beyond
I had a simple but huge modern bathroom with black-and-white tile that spoke of the hotel’s Art Deco past. Everything worked the way it was supposed to, and the toiletries from Aveda were better than those the chain hotels give you. I did check out a suite, and it had a vintage claw-foot tub in a sprawling bathroom set under a skylight. Adam Sandler stayed here during a recent film shoot – the suites are star-worthy, especially the ones with the big porch set above Lincoln Avenue.

Geared up
The flat-screen TV caught plenty of cable channels, and the alarm clock had a docking station. There’s free Wi-Fi and a lobby computer. The walk-in closet (!) had an iron and ironing board and fresh robes. And the hotel follows green practices, with recycling bins, CFLs and low-flow toilets and showers, among other efforts.

Grounds for approval
One would never believe from the street the oasis that exists in back. A large, heated swimming pool takes center stage in a setting of lounge chairs and a snack bar with table seating. Tucked in a serene corner is a hot tub. Some grapes were falling off their vines when we visited in November. A small but bright and well-reviewed spa offers massages and soaks at the back of the hotel; the spa director specializes in treatment of the lymph node system.

In the vicinity
Well, if it’s a beach you want, you’re out of luck. But Lincoln Avenue has some of the most specialized shopping – we’re not talking Carmel pricey or Santa Cruz tacky, but useful things at reasonable prices. You’ll find paintings, jewelry, art, wine, books and fudge, for starters. The hotel has two restaurants, JoLe and BarVino, but there are 10 or so more worthy dining destinations within blocks, plus spas, thermal pools and mud baths in walking distance.

Good to know
The continental breakfast of coffee, orange juice and a muffin was a minimal offering, though it arrived at the room at the requested time. And the hotel has a diverse range of accommodations, including four twins on the first floor and three private cottages with patio Jacuzzis out back. Of the standard rooms, queens are as big as kings, so if you want to do yoga poses in the morning, go for the smaller bed.

Highs and lows
The Mount View’s latest owners – who had their wedding reception here and then bought the place – have created warm public spaces that compensate guests for the tight quarters of the standard rooms. With a cozy fireplace in the lobby, two inviting restaurants and an Art Deco-era lounge off the spa, there’s as much bed-and-breakfast as hotel here. As for romance, well, quarters are tight and walls are thin, but there are plenty of places for hand-holding in such a charming town.

Vitals: Mount View Hotel & Spa, has eighteen standard rooms, eight deluxe suites, two luxury balcony suites and three cottages, one standard room with wheelchair access, all nonsmoking. Winter rates fluctuate with demand and are higher for holidays and special events, but standard rooms generally start as low as $139, and suites as low as $319 weekdays, and $199 and $409 weekends. AAA discount is 20 percent and AARP discount 10 percent. Through March, there’s a half-off second-night promotion. No pets. Free parking.

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Anxious about looking grumpy and stressed this holiday season, I was happy to discover Natural Graces Day Spa in Oceanside. This balm of green-inspired healing modalities offered a December Detox program to cheer your holidays.

Just walking into this spa is this side of heaven, a sight you will want to experience yourself. I was surprised to find a registered nurse at the helm; a doctor of chiropractic and a staff of therapists assist Gloria Clarke, RN.

Their focus is expanded health treatment and pain relief that assists in natural beautification. Detoxification therapy is like relaxing while someone cleans your house, but this house is your body.

The Acutron quickly became my favorite therapy and uses a micro-current to stimulate circulation and eliminate toxins. Gloria confirms my notion that it offers a combination of removing puffiness while adding definition. She asks about certain areas of my skin that look damaged, stressed or uneven. Gloria is a storehouse of healing information; to listen and ask for medical explanations alone would be worth the cost of the visit.

To set up the facelift effect, Gloria applies a relaxing and natural pumpkin mask after a face and neck massage. With the micro-current, she applies color and light to the skin, using the colors of the spectrum for different conditions.

Pain reduction is often another result of Acutron therapy. The treatment felt like a sprinkle of carbonation on my face. I could feel the cotton swabs about my cheeks, chin line and brows, and imagine an artist sculpting my face. Gloria informs me that further treatments will provide even more stable results.

Gloria handed me a mirror to see the improvement, and I couldn’t believe how smooth my face looks! The color is even, and my one droopy lid is lifted. She encourages me to touch my skin and feel its softness, made possible by the added minerals and exfoliation of dead cells.

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The InterContinental, sister of Nob Hill favorite the Mark Hopkins Hotel, pampers guests with its I-Spa. Nicely aromatic, softly lit, serenaded with New Agey space music and with a warren of treatment rooms, the I-spa offers treatments such as an 80-minute Swedish massage ($170) that my spa-loving wife pronounced excellent and a 20-minute hand and foot paraffin treatment ($65).

Guest rooms are wired to the max, with wall-mounted cell-hone chargers and other gadgetry. Our room afforded a sweeping city view, as do many aeries in this highrise, though the closet was surprisingly snug considering the welcome spaciousness of the bedroom and bath.

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