PostRanchInn

Cocktail Hour at Post Ranch Inn in Big Sur

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels, Spirits

Some people get car sick when they drive up California's curving highway 1 on the Big Sur coast, but I'm of a hearty constitution and just got tired of not being able to properly take in all of that ridiculously beautiful view.

The decision was made: a stop at Post Ranch Inn was in order.

It's really not a resort that welcomes the road weary unless you're planning to check in. There's a guard station which monitors the road up the hill to the property, and the gentleman on duty was ready for my usual ploy "Can I just pop up, I'd like to pick up a brochure," I said, and when he smoothly handed over one, I was left flummoxed. He said something about calling ahead if we wanted to take a look around. "Is there a place we can get a drink," my travel companion wisely asked.

The truth. Why hadn't I considered that? The gates opened.

The view -- plunging cliffs, blue sky, turquoise sea -- is oft described as "drop dead", but I advise raising a toast to it instead. The view from the patio is what you see above. (Imagine it from the guest rooms on the cliff!) The cocktail menu is creative: I was tempted by the "Black Rose", which is Johnnie Walker Black, jasmine liqueur and vermouth; although I'm actually far more of a gin girl, and so the "Soul Flour", with DH Krahn gin, elderberry liqueur, grapefruit juice and absinthe was also tempting.

But there were more miles to cover before I rested, so I went with a glass of wine -- from California, of course. My pour was more generous than my friend's, since I was finishing the bottle. The bartender advised me to sip down the difference before my friend returned from the restroom, so that we might maintain cordial relations for the rest of our trip. That's the kind of barkeep I'll raise my glass to any day.

Gallery: Cocktail Hour at Post Ranch Inn, Big Sur

It's Not a Bad View, Really. (Post Ranch Inn, Big Sur)

Entrance to the Post Ranch Inn Restaurant

Post Ranch Inn Restaurant, as Seen from the Patio

Tags: bartenders, BigSur, BigSurCoastline, california, cocktails, PostRanchInn

Travel and Leisure's Top 500 Hotels

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

If you are already planning where to spend your next holiday you may want to check out Travel + Leisure magazine's list of the 500 greatest hotels in the world which will appear in the January 2007 issue. This is the fifth year of the list and features 81 new properties to check out. While California has the most hotels on the list, Chicago has the highest rated hotels. And it's no surprise that the most expensive hotels on the list are in New York City, averaging a steep $740 per night. The most affordable city in Europe is Istanbul where the hotels average $436 a night, way up from 2003 when Istanbul hotels averaged $285 a night. The photo on the right is the view from T & L's best hotel on the west coast, the Post Ranch Inn in Big Sur.

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Tags: hotels, post ranch inn, PostRanchInn, travel, travel and leisure, vacation