Travel Agent - January 21, 2008 - (Page 62) HOTELS Bedroom in Winvian’s Log Cabin cottage MANY OF THE WORLD’S GREAT HOTELS ARE NAMED TO EVOKE THE EXPERIENCE THAT GUESTS WILL HAVE WHEN THEY SPEND TIME THERE. Think Mount Kenya Safari Club, Çirigan Palace and the Grand Hotel. But what comes to mind when you hear Winvian? Unfortunately, I associated the name with the word “minivan” and all the mundaneness that suburban vehicle represents. But I couldn’t have had a more wrong impression. First of all, there are no children allowed at this 113acre wooded luxury retreat in northwestern Connecticut. (We were told, however, that the property is considering opening to families for several weeks in 2008—one or two weeks in the summer and over Thanksgiving.) Also, there was nary a minivan on the property: One of a fleet of Mercedes GL 450s is dispatched immediately for guests who’d like a lift from, say, the spa to their cottage. Winvian (www.winvian.com), which is located in the town of Morris, gets its name from Winthrop and Vivian Smith, who bought the property in 1948. Their descendants own and manage it today. “Cottage” is another word one needs to disassociate from its usual connotation when visiting the property. Winvian’s 18 cottages aren’t musty, bare squares with creaky hinges. Instead, they are individually decorated, themed abodes, all with porches, wood-burning fireplaces, oversize Jacuzzi tubs, steam showers, radiant heat, wet bars and minibars that can be raided free of charge, as well as the latest technology such as flat-screen TVs and Bose stereo systems where you can plug in your iPod. Again, one shouldn’t be put off by the adjective “themed.” There are no champagne-glass tubs or leopard-print swings here. At Winvian, the visions of 15 architects were selected to create the truly unique and tasteful cottages. Now, guests with an affinity for, say, books—or aviation, or knights, or golf, or horses—will find the perfect retreat among the rolling hills of this sleepy New England village. Insiders tell us that the most popular residences are Woodland and Camping. In Woodland, guests won’t feel a strong division between indoors and outdoors, as the sinks are made of tree trunks and clients can meditate on the trickle of the stone waterfall as they relax in a sunken tub facing the forest landscape. Connecticut’s Winvian A DELUXE SPA RETREAT Resort has uniquely decorated cottages on 113 woodland acres 62 | TravelAgent January 21, 2008 BY ANASTASIA MILLS HEALY http://www.winvian.com
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