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This Week in Hotel Lust: Hastings House, British Columbia

Go To The Hotel's Web Site Where: 160 UPPER GANGES ROAD, SALT SPRING ISLAND, BC, Canada, V8K2S2
December 11, 2009 at 2:59 PM | by | Comments (0)

I don't think we're in Kansas anymore. The grounds of Hastings House.

With the Winter Olympics just around the corner, we've been thinking about our neighbors-to-the-North quite a lot. Vancouver hotels are sure to be booked solid with an influx of skaters, skiers, and curlers coming to town, which led us to wonder what lust-worthy accommodations could be found for a retreat outside of the city.

One name consistently popped up during our search for a stellar resort: Hastings House. Though it's not of the same breed as, say, Paris' Hôtel de Crillon or Dubai's Burj Al Arab, it has earned praise from luxury arbiter Andrew Harper, among others. One writer deemed it one of the "1,000 Places To See Before You Die." That's a damn bold statement if ever we've heard one. Sprawling over 22-acres of Ganges Harbor on BC's Salt Spring Island, it may be called a "Country House Hotel," but these are certainly not rinky-dink pastoral lodgings.

Given that many resorts are obscenely flashy, Hastings House is a breath of fresh air. The Deluxe and Premier Cottages are essentially private residences often booked by couples looking to get away. Decorated with unmistakably rich, traditional furniture—no gilt-edged side tables or cold, hyper-modern design—the historic mini-homes look comfortable, not alienating.

While you're pretending to have a "down home" experience (topping off at $895 per night for a Premier Suite/Cottage during summer season) amidst rolling hills, farmland, and ocean views, there are plenty of activities to remind you that Hastings House is about opulence, not agrarian living.

For instance, Uncle Bob's farm probably doesn't offer a gourmet safari, sailing charters, kayaking and a picnic on white sand beaches, luxury spa treatments, or float plane rides, but Hastings House does.

Urbanites, this might be the closest to country living you can get without getting your hands dirty. Literally, you can get a mani-pedi at the on-site "pure pampering" spa. Now that's what we call the simple life.

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