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Near Escapes
Need a little personal restoration? Here
are six exotic pampering options—some no further
away than your neighbourhood spa
By Rebecca Philps
1. Hot Hot Heat
Whistler’s Taman Sari Royal Heritage
Spa, the first North American outpost of Indonesia’s
most famous spa chain, centres its services on the tradition
of Jamu—the use of herbs and roots for both body
care and internal medicine.
Go for The Royal Balinese
treatment ($290), which begins with a 60-minute, Javanese-style
massage—an intense, deep-tissue massage in which
the therapist uses thumb and palm pressure to knead
tense muscles. This is followed by a half-hour Balinese
murut and boreh treatment: clove, tumeric, green coconut
extract, ginger root, and cinnamon, all cultivated and
harvested on Java and Bali, are ground into a powder
used first as an exfoliant (murut), then as a warming
body mask (boreh); skin is left incredibly soft and
supple. 4359 Main St., Whistler, 604-938-5982. Tamansarispa.com.
Check in The spa is located
in the serviceable Summit Lodge in lower Whistler Village,
but visit the newly opened 77-suite Nita Lake Lodge
boutique hotel at Whistler Creekside. Studios from $199.
888-755-6482. Nitalakelodge.com
2. Stone Diaries
Perched on the edge of a jagged granite cliff overlooking
the dramatic Snoqualmie Falls, the Salish Lodge is the
ultimate romantic getaway.
Go for The Heated River Rock massage
($108, 50 minutes), which uses smooth stones pulled
from the Snoqualmie River; or the Green Tea Balancing
and Detoxifying body wrap ($128, 50 minutes). Blond
wood accents and Japanese shoji screens give the treatment
rooms a bright, airy feel.
Check in The river rocks appear again
in the extraordinary dining room, where you might order
a trio of seafood, seared table-side on heated rocks.
Call ahead for the chef’s tasting menu; the affable
James Allen, director of restaurants, will pair local
wines with each course. Ask to be seated in one of the
intimate alcoves that hover directly over the falls;
later, retire to your room, which features a wood-burning
fireplace, oversized chromotherapy whirlpool tub, and
a pillow menu that offers buckwheat, lavender, or goose
feather body pillows. Order in the World of Chocolate
tasting menu, and drift off to the sound of the rushing
falls.
6501 Railroad Ave. SE, Snoqualmie, Washington, 800-272-5474.
Salish-lodge.com. Double rooms from $219.
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