ROSARIO RESORT, 1400 Rosaric Road,
Eastsound, WA 98245.
Tel. 360/376-2222,
Fax 360/376-3680,
Toll-free reservations 888/367-7625,
Web: www.RosarioResort.com
The $638 Avanyu Spa Package for two includes two nights accommodation and one 50-minute massage perguest. Accepts major credit cards. Orcas Island, San Juan Islands, is approximately 80 miles north of Seattle, accessible by sea and air. Seattle-Tacoma (Sea-Tac) Airport; Kenmore Air (float) from Lake Union.
The Greek Islands had Onassis and Niarchos. Here in the San Juan Islands, the big shipping magnate was Robert Moran, and at the turn of the century, his home was Rosario. A 54-room estate with extravagances such as a 2,000-pipe organ, the Moran Mansion befits a ship builder: Indian teak covers the floors; Honduran mahogany panels foot-thick walls; inch-thick plate glass fill the window frames; six tons of copper sheet the roof. Like its builder, Moran Mansion is stout and seaworthy.
Given its place here on Orcas Island, the robust architecture seems appropriate not only to the original occupant, but also to the surroundings. Offshore, orca whales make their passage; overhead, bald eagles soar in numbers unequaled anywhere in the continental U.S. Where there’s not water, there is old growth forest; 5,000 acres of it stand tall in the adjacent state park which bears the shipbuilder’s name.
Kayak the sound, bike the trails, or hike to the top of Mt. Constitution, the highest point in the 2,000-island archipel ago. Return to the spa and unwind at the hands of therapists who offer an a Ia carte lineup that’s modest but well-balanced and carefully administered. Among the more unusual treatments is the facial waxing. Sure, Robert Moran probably took care of the old scruff with a straight razor; but down at the garden level of his former digs, one brave bout with the hot paraffin and the beard’s under control for nearly a month.
Accommodations at Rosario vary in character, some suggestive of a Pacific Rim influence, others having a country elegance. Some have gas fireplaces, and all have down comforters and terry robes. Rosario reopens doors in April of 2003, after major renovations to the main mansion.
Rosario Resort Services and Options |
