On our way back from a summer sojourn to Nova Scotia a few weeks ago we had to seek refuge from Hurricane Bill, and wound up at a luxurious, historic seaside resort in New Brunswick that turned out to be the highlight of the trip. Built in the 1880s, the Tudor-style Fairmont Algonquin, in picturesque St. Andrews overlooking the Passamaquoddy Bay, is a veritable castle by the sea. A Canadian Maritime tradition in its second century of impeccable hospitality, the hotel has played host to many notable personages over the years including the first Prime Minister of Canada, Sir John A. Macdonald, President Theodore Roosevelt and Diana, the Princess of Wales.

The hotel was originally the enterprise of the St. Andrews Land Company, established in 1883 by wealthy American businessmen who found the town to be the ideal vacation spot; a 1902 brochure described it as '"an incomparable resting-place and retreat from the cares of business and the heat and dust and bustle of the city." During this period most guests arrived by train and so it was only fitting that the Canadian Pacific Railway Company took over ownership in 1903. The hotel was sold to local interests in 1970 and the Province of New Brunswick leased the property in 1973. The Province eventually purchased The Fairmont Algonquin along with two golf courses and a private beach in 1984, and it is now run by the Fairmont Hotels & Resorts luxury group.

The hotel now has 234 impeccably-appointed guest rooms and suites retaining the resort's classic style, updated with modern amenities. Many rooms have ocean views and look over the lush gardens, swimming pool and tennis courts. The public spaces are elegant and inviting, with fireplaces for cooler weather and plenty of spots to relax indoors and out, while the charming town of St. Andrews is only a few minutes walk. The nearby Bay of Fundy lays claim to the highest tides in the world with rising and falling water levels nearing 55 ft. in some areas twice daily. That provides the scenic backdrop for the award-winning seaside Algonquin Golf Course and Academy, home to two of the top ten golf tees in Canada, while others may choose to go on whale-watching excursions or explore the scenic surroundings.

A really great, oversized design book with beautifully-reproduced images can sometimes actually transport you to another place. Such is the case with a new volume titled New Seaside Interiors, edited by Angelika Taschen, which is anything but a mishmash of coastal clichés. Forget what you think you know about nautical décor; with examples of brilliant seaside design on all five continents, from Iceland to Chile, the architecture in this book harmonizes with the ocean in ways that go far beyond sprinkling a few seashells around the guest bath. From fashion designer Pierre Cardin's Bond villain-style floating house in St. Tropez to Dolce & Gabbana's eye-popping seaside villas in Italy, this is the né plus ultra of seaside style. See the gallery for more.

The small resort town of Seaside on the northern Oregon coast, will soon be home to a new upscale condo-hotel. Rivertide Suites is set to open on August 21. The hotel offers studios and one and two-bedroom suites which are located three blocks from the Pacific Ocean. The suites all have private balconies, full kitchens, cable HDTV with DVD player and fireplaces. Hotel amenities include complimentary breakfast, fitness center, indoor pool and a "Crow's Nest" for roof top viewing of the ocean and mountains.

The less expensive suites have mountain views while the more expensive ones face the river. The units sell from $189,000 for a mountain-facing studio to $439,000 for a two-bedroom with river views. All of the suites can also be put into the hotel's rental program. The listing of units available for sale can be found on the Rivertide real estate website. A two-bedroom suite on the river rents for around $225 per night which seems ambitious for the area currently.

[via Beach Connection]

Last week I found gilded shells, this week take a look at shells in their unadulterated state. Blooming Shells is a store in Sag Harbor, New York. They offer a wide variety of shells and coral and specialize in the kind of larger, rare shells that interior designers often choose to decorate with in beach houses. The priciest shell in their online store is the Volute Beckii, a very rare and large specimen that sells for $560.