A Century of Luxury

Beloved by royalty, film stars, and sophisticated spa goers, Victoria's celebrated Fairmont Empress Hotel is about to turn 100-years-old. Built in 1908, the grand hotel is a landmark, towering above Victoria's Inner Harbour on the edge of the Pacific Northwest. A popular address for signature cocktails and curry buffets in the elegant Bengal Lounge, and a lavish afternoon tea service in the Tea Lobby, the hotel has also become a spa and wellness destination, with a creative menu of treatments available in the Willow Stream Spa. Slip past the spa's cascading waterfall, and sign up for the 120-minute Island Sense treatment, with an exfoliating salt scrub, pine hydrotherapy mineral bath, detoxifying mud wrap, and lavender massage. Or, opt for a ninety-minute Evergreen Coast Infusion with a grain body masque and exfoliation, followed by a full body massage with a blend of evergreen coastal essential oils. The ninety-minute Rose Renewal includes a dry-brush exfoliation, a bath infused with chamomile and rose petals, and a massage and wrap with Canadian Rose Hip Oil. When you're through spa-ing, area activities include whale watching to view Orca, Humpback, and Gray whales, golf, and horse-drawn carriage rides through Victoria's historic streets. For special centennial packages at the Fairmont Empress, visit www.fairmont.com/empress.

—D.B.

November/December 2007