camelback inn

Luxist Takes the Honda CR-Z to the Camelback Inn

There's a desert to the west of Los Angeles, the dusty, scrubby kind riven by arroyos and snow-capped ranges. The city is protected from that barren terror by a kind of East Wall, a monumentally wide buffer of concrete that are actually cities and towns everyone knows about but few ever visit on purpose – places like Monrovia, Cerritos, Montebello, Pomona.

Occasionally, though, there comes a reason to cross that desert, and you want a good camel when such time comes. We found a proper mount in the Honda CR-Z, a two-seat hybrid to play miniature steel dromedary for our Bedouin sallies.

The destination was an oasis 380 miles due east tucked behind Scottsdale's Camelback Mountain, in Paradise Valley, and aptly named The Camelback Inn. Once there, having braved, well, nothing really, we would quench our thirst with some of the finest drinks ever sipped by any traveler, weary or otherwise...

Tags: arizona, camelback inn, cr-z, honda, honda cr-z, hybrid, marriott, phoenix, resort, scottsdale

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Ten Great Holiday Spa Treatments From Coast To Coast

by McLean Robbins (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels, Spas, Holiday Guides

The holiday season kicks one's stress drives into high gear. Whether you're hosting a holiday with the immediate family or a soiree for you and 250 of your closest friends. Spa treatments - even those that aren't as luxurious as the ones we've selected below, have been shown to reduce stress, boost immunity and oh yeas - get you at least a few hours of much-needed peace and quiet.

Book one of these for yourself or a loved one (or spa together for a great holiday experience!). We've selected a variety of treatments offered coast to coast. Al of the treatments listed below are available through the holiday season, and many are also bookable into the spring.

Hot Toddy for the Body at L'Auberge de Sedona
Spa in the splendor of nature at Sedona resort L'Auberge when you book their special "Hot Toddy for the Body," a spirit-lifting holiday cocktail for the whole system. The treatment begins with a cornmeal body scrub rich with clove, organic orange and cinnamon with a warming body wrap of sweet soy, calendula and orange oil. $130

Peace, Joy and Harmony at Qua Baths & Spa
We could all use a little peace, joy and harmony this holiday season, and even better when those relaxing moments come at a spa. Try Atlantic City's Qua Baths & Spa holiday treatments for whichever feeling you hope to inspire. Joy comes in the form of a European facial featuring a frangipani sugar hand exfoliation and paraffin wax treatment. Find Peace in a back and foot ritual with a Ginger, Rosemary & Lemongrass foot exfoliation preceded by a pressure reflex point massage of your feet, followed by an Arnica & Shea Butter exfoliation of your back and a relaxing Marine Oil Swedish neck, shoulder & lower back massage. If it's Harmony you're after, balance your Chakras with a stone massage and exotic milk hair mask followed by the same Marine Oil massage. $180 each.

Bindi Rebirth at The Boulders
Want to enter 2011 looking and feeling like a new person? Book The Boulders' Bindi treatment. Based on the ancient Ayurvedic arts, this herbal exfoliation, aromatherapy massage and comforting body wrap is bound to make you feel fresh and new. $205.

Tags: camelback inn, Elysian Hotel, holiday spa treatment, lauberge de sedona, olive 8, qua baths and spa, ritz carlton naples, spa montage, spa treatments, sports clubla, The Boulders, the inn at camelback mountain, the spa of colonial williamsburg

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The Camelback Inn Plans A Massive Renovation

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

Camelback Inn, the deluxe resort in Arizona is getting even more luxe with a $45 million renovation that includes a new grand lobby and ballroom, BLT Steak restaurant and organic gardens. A new entrance to the resort will have a tree-lined passageway with water and fire features leading to the hacienda-style grand lobby. The main building will be razed and rebuilt on a grander scale with more glass and a lobby bar.

There will be two new restaurants, the Southwest United States' first outpost of the Laurent Tourondel's BLT Steak and a main restaurant that offers Southwestern cuisine with Mexican influences. The guest rooms will also be upgraded with new beds, carpets, televisions and updated bathrooms. You can track the renovation's progress and view plans at the dedicated website.

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Tags: arizona, camelback inn, CamelbackInn, hotel

Makeovers For Paradise Valley Resorts

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

The Arizona Republic reports that the hotels in Paradise Valley's "resort row" are heading for some big changes. The hotels along Lincoln Drive are spending a total of almost $500 million on various projects between now and 2008. Here's a breakdown of what's going on:

--Crown Realty & Development demolished the La Posada Resort and plans to build the $230 million Montelucia Resort, Spa and Residences in its place. They are also hoping to replace the old Mountain Shadows Resort with a $200 million property.
--Camelback Inn, a Marriott Resort & Spa, will spend $40 million to update its guestrooms, overhaul its restaurants and the ballroom.
--Sanctuary on Camelback Mountain and Hermosa Inn are also updating their guest rooms

It is expected that the upgrades will lead to higher rates and also hopefully to a raised profile for Paradise Valley as a resort destination. The area is already famed for its high-end real estate which makes the building of resorts problematic since neighbors want to make sure that the resorts don't change the quality of life in the area.

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Tags: arizona, camelback inn, hermosa inn, hotels, montelucia, paradise valley, resorts, sanctuary on camelback, travel