Inns Magazine Issue 5 Vol. 17 2013 Winter Luxury Issue | Page 30

The Adventure of

Luxury

Sometimes love is simple and kind. Other times it’s complicated and diverse. When love is wild and spicy it seeks a vacation destination begging for exploration and exhilaration. Add a dose of luxury into the picture and you’ve got one incredibly exciting getaway. When it comes to the luxury component, Relais and Chateau, a global association of the finest luxury properties worldwide will help define vacation elegance for your vacations. Come explore two Relais & Chateaux properties offering distinctly different adventures.

Discover Winvian,

Litchfield Hills, CT

Seemingly an unusual name, the property was named after the farm’s owners, Winthrop Smith, of Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner and Smith fame, and his Powers model wife, Vivian. Long after their deaths, the family decided to revive the farm by turning it into a luxury resort. More than thirty architects were invited to a symposium and given the challenge to come up with ideas and themes for the cottages. Fifteen of them submitted ideas deemed worthwhile and the Winvian we know today was born.

The adventure here is simply experiencing the cottages. Cottage is hardly the right term to describe the accommodations at Winvian. King beds with luxurious bedding, wood burning fireplaces, plasma TVs, wet bars, screened porches and patios, double showers and whirlpool tubs, are just the beginnings of the features found in every cottage. Add a large dose of whimsy and true-to-the-theme decorating, and each cottage tells a story of its own. Not only will you find stained glass windows and gingerbread exterior at the Artist cottage, you’ll discover a real artist’s studio off the living room complete with an artist’s easel and canvas to try out your own artistic prowess. The Maritime cottage features New England seaside décor, complete with a bedroom located in the base of the lighthouse. The Music cottage comes complete with its own set of bongo drums, a series of gongs easily sounded as the guest enters, plus wind chimes taking the place of vertical shades.

By Marti Mayne

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Inns E-Magazine / Winter 2013