Let Ideas Bloom
Author: Talia Salem
May 2009
Features
Executive retreats create the ideal breeding grounds for corporate productivity
Sponsored by L'Auberge Del Mar
The hustle and bustle of the office, the everyday distractions of managing a company or a sales team can take time and energy away from bigger projects and goals. With ringing phones, flashing Outlook reminders of deadlines, a flooding inbox and buzzing BlackBerrys, today’s executives are challenged to get through the work day, let alone focus on their long-range objectives. When critical decisions need to made, when brainstorming is needed to jump-start creativity, sometimes the familiar boardroom just doesn’t cut it. So where should your top management or board of directors meet instead?
On a retreat, of course! A retreat is the perfect way to plan for the next fiscal year, hash out departmental objectives and solve problems. But, no matter the purpose, retreats act as an idea incubator, affording your top management a targeted forum for issues to be discussed, and solutions to mature without being stifled by the office quotidian.
Whether your group prefers a backdrop of urban sophistication or mountain air, these venues are sure to get their creative juices flowing. So, have your execs pack their bags (and their thinking caps), and send them to these top destinations throughout the West. 
Exotic Oasis
One&Only Palmilla
If it’s oceanfront real estate and warm weather your group desires, consider the One&Only Palmilla. With miles of beach, average temperatures of 80 degrees and plenty of sunshine, this Baja California, Mexico resort has you covered. What started out as a 15-room luxury hideaway for a star-studded clientele now offers allure on a larger scale, with 172 rooms and suites, white-washed buildings topped with red-roof tiles and interiors that blend modern luxuries with the esthetic of Old Mexico.
The 250-acre property features a state-of-the-art 6,500-square-foot Executive Conference Center that includes a ballroom and a private boardroom, as well as oceanfront guest rooms, large suites and casitas. The four-bedroom Villa Cortès presents small groups with a 12-person theater, a private infinity pool and a dedicated culinary and household staff.
Pre- and post-meetings, your attendees can enjoy a Jack Nicklaus-designed golf course, a spa and wellness center, and Michelin-rated chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s Market restaurant. And 10 to 20 minutes away are San Jose del Cabo, the old city, or Cabo San Lucas, popularly known as “Cabo.”
Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort & Spa
Let the island breeze infuse your executive retreat at Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort and
Spa. The Four-Diamond hotel is situated on 50 acres of oceanfront property Kauai’s Keoneloa Bay, and it features the Anara Spa, a Robert Trent Jones Jr.-designed golf course, five acres of saltwater lagoons and a host of dining options, including their signature, animated luaus.
Guest rooms have private balconies with views, and many are outfitted with work stations. Suites feature dining room tables ideal for informal breakouts or brainstorming sessions. While the resort offers a number of large-scale meeting facilities, the Garden Isle meeting rooms are suited for groups of up to 16 attendees, and the Regency Boardroom provides a private location for 12.
Meeting-goers can unwind on-site while golfing, swimming, playing tennis or kayaking. Alternatively, the resort can arrange for off-site island exploration such as helicopter or catamaran tours, snorkeling and sport fishing.
Riviera Resort & Spa
In the heart of Coachella Valley, Palm Springs, Calif. is a desert oasis and the Riviera Resort & Spa, a cool drink of water. Fresh from a $70-million overhaul, this former Hollywood playground features 1960s-style posh interiors, refreshing poolside lounges, the 11,000-square-foot SpaTerre and fine dining at Circa 59.
Meeting space (all 45,000 sq. ft. of it) comes in all shapes and sizes, from outdoor gardens and poolside cabanas to the salons and the Executive Boardroom, ideally suited for retreats of 24 people or less. Mid-Century Modern décor reigns over each guest room and spills into meeting-friendly suites like the Presidential (where Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin once stayed) with an eight-person dining room table to regroup around, and an outdoor fire pit and patio to relax. Outside the hotel’s four walls, your execs will find a confluence of top-notch golf courses, boutiques and desert adventures, like Tahquitz Canyon and Jeep tours for pre- and post-recreational activities.
L’Auberge Del Mar
Just north of San Diego, Calif., L’Auberge Del Mar sits on 5.2 acres of beautifully landscaped, oceanfront property in the picturesque town of Del Mar. This 120-room, palatial resort offers meeting packages with breakfast, lunch, breaks and A/V, which includes your own “meeting concierge,” complimentary wireless Internet (in public spaces) and use of the business center.
L’Auberge has more than 15,500 sq. ft. of indoor and outdoor function space with six meeting rooms, many of which have private terraces. Your attendees will find collaboration a snap in meeting rooms like the Boardroom, and Jade and Sapphire rooms that hold up to 15, 20 and 22 guests respectively in a conference setting. Given San Diego’s mild climate, plan for your guests to have an open-air power lunch or dinner, crafted by James Beard Award Winner Paul McCabe, with the ocean as a backdrop.
Only 20 minutes from downtown San Diego and 90 minute from Los Angeles, this resort offers your high-level managers on-site relaxation with a full-service spa, championship tennis courts and two pools; plus the Pacific Ocean is only a short jaunt away on the private footpath.
Historic Style
The Joule
In the vibrant core of downtown Dallas, The Joule crowns Main Street with an imposing 20-story Gothic Revival façade. This 1920s structure was once the home of the Dallas National Bank (now listed on the National Register of Historic Places) and was reincarnated as a 129-room hotel in May 2008. The property fuses its historic past with energy-themed accents like the lobby’s rotating gear (hence the name Joule, like the unit of energy), and proximity to Dallas’ urban offerings (think Neiman Marcus’ flagship store), making this Starwood property an ideal urban retreat.
Your attendees will be pleased to know that all food and beverage (including in-room dining) is skillfully provided by the Charlie Palmer Restaurant—the renowned restaurateur’s only Texas outpost. Creative spaces designed by progressive architect Adam D. Tihany, famous for hotel and restaurant interiors, will be sure to spark imaginations during executive huddles in meeting venues like the “breezy-themed” Charlie Palmer private dining room for up to 10 guests and the Radiant Salons that accommodate up to 13 in conference-style meetings. The protruding 10th floor pool deck, which juts eight feet off the side of the building—is perfect for alfresco meetings and relaxing, especially during the evening light show. The Penthouse is also available for private events and doubles as meeting headquarters with sumptuous top-floor accommodations.
The Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge
Located in Alberta, Canada, The Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge began as eight log bungalows built by Lac Beauvert in 1922. This UNESCO World heritage site in Jasper National Park now features 56 cedar chalets and a main lodge, offering your team the splendor of the Canadian Rockies and service that is patently Fairmont.
The property sits on 700 acres and has 18 state-of-the-art function rooms, including the 20-person Thompson Room outfitted for executive meetings with a board room table, leather chairs and a fireplace. The cabins themselves, while luxurious living quarters, transition well into meeting rooms, with home-like amenities, living space and a wide veranda.
Summer at the Fairmont brings tee-offs at the top-rated Jasper Park Lodge Golf Club, lake cruises and outdoor recreation, like hiking, fishing, canoeing and white-water rafting. Winter offers exceptional skiing and snowboarding options for sports-minded groups. 
Rustic Refuge
Cedarbrook Conference Center
Formerly a private corporate retreat, Cedarbrook Conference Center was built for executive success. This six-year-old facility is located on 18 acres of natural wetlands in SeaTac, Wash., minutes from Sea-Tac International Airport and 20 minutes from downtown Seattle. This 102-room center now offers groups all-inclusive, customizable meeting packages with a dedicated meeting planner, gourmet meals and high-tech A/V, including LCD video projectors.
There is no shortage of meeting venues at Cedarbrook, with flexible spaces like the Reflections Gallery and the Copperleaf Room. Its suites and dens create a welcoming meeting hub with private living areas and accommodations for up to 14 guests. When hunger strikes during those late-night brainstorming sessions, Cedarbrook features a parlor (also available for meetings) where attendees can “raid the pantry” and fuel-up by the cozy fireplace. 
Calistoga Ranch
In a quiet canyon outside Calistoga, Calif. in vine-covered Napa Valley, Calistoga Ranch is an idyllic retreat site set in 157 acres of natural Northern California scenery. This wine-centric Auberge property (designed to emulate a vintner’s sprawling estate) features its own vineyard, bocce ball courts, miles of hiking trails, a lake, a pool and 46 free-standing lodges. These upscale cedar dwellings provide accommodations with a fireplace, an entertainment center, high-speed Internet access and private, outdoor shower gardens.
While Calistoga Ranch features many indoor and outdoor spaces for meetings, the private Creekside Clubhouse corresponds with your group’s purpose with a large outdoor patio connected to the main room, a fully equipped kitchen and two well-outfitted boardrooms complemented by large windows letting in sweeping views and natural light. Befitting a town famous for hot springs, mineral-rich mud and fine wine, the property’s Bathhouse offers treatments using grape seeds, eucalyptus-infused mud wraps and water from their own geothermal spring to fill the Healing Waters Soaking Pool.
Hotel Terra Jackson Hole
Located near the majestic Grand Teton Mountains just outside of Jackson Hole, Wyo., this new property offers top-rate amenities in a serene landscape. This July, the Hotel Terra Jackson Hole is finishing up a new building that will add a 3,000-square-foot ballroom, a 1,000-square-foot breakout room and 60 guest rooms (bringing the total to 132). The existing hotel will be connected via a sky bridge to the new building, which includes a new rooftop meeting space with an infinity pool and a fire pit for lounging amid the great outdoors.
Environmentally conscious groups will welcome the LEED-certified property’s hands-on approach to sustainability in the construction and operation of their hotel, as well as its proximity to the Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks. Hotel Terra can organize wildlife safaris (think bears, bison and Pronghorn sheep) and fly-fishing excursions, and it also has “slope-side” proximity to Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, and other snowy-weather diversions like dog sledding and cross-country skiing. 
Western Wellness
Canyon Ranch Tucson
Where cacti dot the eastern edge of the Sonoran Desert in southwestern Arizona, Canyon Ranch Tucson springs to life in the foothills of Tucson, Ariz. This resort serves up all-inclusive meetings packages with a healthy helping of wellness and accommodations that range from spacious Western-themed guest rooms to the 2,700-square-foot Casa Grande, a villa with full kitchen, dining and living areas, and a computer station.
In conjunction with its wellness philosophy, this desert retreat offers a week-long Life Enhancement Program, which focuses on common goals and can be customized for executive retreats. The 17,000-square-foot Life Enhancement Center (where the program takes place) features gyms, dining rooms, a lounge, a meditation garden and massage facilities for meetings and team-building activities; it is available for total buyouts. Groups can also take advantage of the Catalina and Cactus meeting rooms, a Golf Performance Center and a lauded spa with a Pilates studio and an aquatic center. In addition to on-site facilities, the staff can organize off-site events in the neighboring Santa Catalina Mountains.
El Monte Sagrado
A corporate awakening is sure to be found in Taos, N.M. at the El Monte Sagrado Living Resort and Spa, an award-winning resort that focuses on environmental and spiritual wellness. Once on-site, your attendees will relax and get into in a meeting state-of-mind by meditating at the Sacred Circle (available for private events) amid waterfalls, trees and a pond, enjoying the Zen-like feel.
Guest rooms pay homage to the local mix of cultures with hand-painted walls, local art from Taoseño artists and kiva fireplaces. The property offers 7,000 sq. ft. of meeting space, and the boardroom, the library and Wine Room are perfectly suited for smaller meetings. Its Living Spa proposes many unusual treatments using eco-friendly, wild-farmed ingredients with a focus on overall health. The property also promotes environmental health with a Biolarium, a structure that incorporates recycled water, plants and rock formations into a self-sustaining eco-environment, which provides both a year-round, lush tropical setting for the resort, and fruits and herbs for the kitchen.
The Kenwood Inn and Spa
With the feel of a Tuscan Villa, complete with curving archways, stucco walls and verdant courtyards, The Kenwood Inn and Spa offers your attendees a serene meeting venue in the heart of Sonoma County, Calif.’s Valley of the Moon. This top-rated Wine Country property features a 700-square-foot conference room suited for executive collaboration that opens onto a courtyard and pool.
All 29 guest rooms and suites have private entrances and promote peace of mind with featherbeds, a fireplace, luxury bathrooms and the absence of TVs. The award-wining spa reinforces the wellness of your executives with stress-relieving treatments featuring Arcona products (popular among A-list celebrities) and vinotherapy, calling on the grape’s healing powers.
Pre- and post-meeting opportunities thrive at the nearby, historic Sonoma Square, with its upscale shops, art galleries and world-famous restaurants. More than 250 Sonoma County wineries are within an easy drive, as are miles of ambling hiking trails with ocean and valley views.
Secluded Sanctuaries
Coeur d’Alene Golf & Spa Resort
Tucked away in Northern Idaho, Coeur d’Alene Golf & Spa Resort sits on waterfront property of the eponymous lake and mountains in 140 acres of Northwestern wilderness. Nature and nurture will welcome your management and sales team at this 338-room resort, featuring deluxe accommodations, a 30,000-square-foot spa and the highly lauded Beverly restaurant.
In addition to a full-service conference center, the Four-Diamond property has a congregation of boardrooms with lake and mountain views near an open-air deck. The dedicated conference service team can also arrange for a floating meeting on the lake aboard a boat from the property’s fleet.
Golf enthusiasts won’t want to pass up the Scott Miller-created golf course, dubbed “America’s Greatest Golf Experience” by Golf Digest magazine. Other recreational attractions include fly and lake fishing, river rafting, bicycling, horseback riding and skiing in season at Silver Mountain or Schweitzer Resorts.
Sonora Resort Canada
Mother nature meets the technology mother lode at this British Columbia, Canada resort. Located on the scenic straights of the Inside Passage, the Sonora Resort Canada teems with wildlife, and the experienced staff will arrange helicopter, seaplane or boat travel to and from its Sonora Island milieu. It would be hard not to work here, with its full-service business center, boardrooms, meeting rooms and workstations equipped with white boards, LCD projectors and portable screens.
Set up your group in the well-appointed, four-bedroom Eagle Rock Lodge with ocean views from each room. They’re sure to loosen up amid breathtaking surroundings and luxury digs with exposed wood paneling, complete with a personal chef and a private office, useful for head-to-heads. If your group is larger, add on the West Hampton-style Presidential Lodge or a block of suites complete with inviting common areas.
Resort staff can organize popular area activities like salmon fishing, bear watching and wilderness tours. Or, guests can visit the on-site Wellness Centre for spa treatments, take a dip in the mineral pools, or enjoy a yoga class to unwind.
Mammoth Mountain
The chaos of the office will seem miles away once your decision-makers are on California’s Mammoth Mountain. This jaw-dropping Eastern Sierra locale will inspire your attendees as they spend their days working together in meeting rooms and their nights slowing down under the impossibly starry sky.
There are many properties suitable for executive retreats, such as the Westin Monache Resort, with 230 guest rooms and three meeting spaces that accommodate up to 25 conference style. Just a gondola ride away from the mountain, the Village Lodge and its conference center add more than 200 condo-style accommodations and three meeting rooms (accommodating up to 44 in a boardroom set-up) to the mix. For a change of scenery the Mountainside Conference Center offers a handful of high-tech meeting venues with mountain views. Across from the conference center, the Mammoth Mountain Inn offers 211 guest rooms and the Fireplace Boardroom for smaller meetings.
No visit to Mammoth would be complete without a trip up the mountain, whether on skis or a snowboard, in hiking boots or on a bike. Your execs can also relax while fishing on the lake or playing a round of golf at the 18-hole Sierra Star Golf Course. 
The Inn at Langley
Off the coast of Washington on Whidbey Island is the delightful, beachside Inn at Langley. This island retreat (accessible from the mainland via ferry or via car over the Deception Pass Bridge) has received numerous accolades for its picturesque location, soothing spa, plush accommodations and Chef Matt Costello’s fine food.
Mornings start out with a complimentary breakfast of freshly baked scones, muffins and quiches paired with fresh yogurt and fruit, followed by intimate meetings (of up to 20 guests) at the in-house conference room that affords expansive views of the Saratoga Pass. Guest rooms of all sizes come complete with large porch-style balconies, wood-burning fireplaces, wireless Internet access and 180-degree waterfront views. The inn’s two 1,500-square-foot master suites work well as retreat hubs with large informal living and dining rooms and a fully stocked kitchen.
The town of Langley offers a great starting point for outdoor explorations that can include half-a-dozen state parks, beaches and trails for scenic hikes and strolls, scuba diving (octopus, sea cucumber and wolf eel are among the local fauna), seasonal farm tours and farmer’s markets, wine tastings and springtime whale watching.
