MacArthur Place

Sonoma, California

Landscape Style Flowing ornamental grasses, flowering perennials, fountain courts, tree-shaded grottos, trellised entry portals, and sequestered seating nooks banish the outside world. The gardens may be manicured with art sculptures, but they still have a country feel, with original flagstone paths.

The Garden Path The Garden Spa incorporates plantings from the inn’s extensive gardens (amid 100 species of trees), using a “single note” fruit, flower, or herb in treatments rather than a blend. As expected in this region, lavender predominates (try the Lavender Dreams treatment), but sage, rosemary, and citrus are also used extensively.

Bouquet The trio of lavender, rosemary, and sage are evident, but one is tempted to request a massage with a velvety Lamb’s Ear or to tuck a purple Princess flower under the pillow.

Planting a Seed The olive oil soap is made with local fresh-pressed olive oil, featuring scents from the garden – rosemary with barley grass, lavender with flowers, and grapefruit with lemongrass.

Contact (707) 938-2929, www.macarthurplace.com

Rancho La Puerta Fitness Resort and Spa

Baja California, Mexico

Landscape Style The spa, gardens, and buildings are all part of a community (3,000 acres, 32 of which are landscaped) where everything is healthy and authentic. Trails go past boulders and over mountains, or you can walk through meadows of wildflowers.

The Garden Path The gardens are integral to the ranch experience. The signature Herbal Wrap was introduced by the founders in the 1950s when they noticed guests were sore after climbing in the mountains. It provides a different combination of herbs for each day – for instance, Sunday is California sage brush, with anti-inflammatory and anti-histamine properties. Visit when birds are migrating (January, April, and November) for a birdwatching class that provides a different garden perspective.

Bouquet Lavender, rosemary, sage, and jasmine hover in the air and help romance the senses and prepare guests for spa treatments.

Planting a Seed In the coming year, the on-site production of essential oils will expand to offer them for sale. In the meantime, guests’ last class of the week is called Taking the Ranch Home (it’s an inside job).

Contact (800) 443-7565, www.rancholapuerta.com

Rancho Bernardo Inn

San Diego, California

Landscape Style Outside the spa, a garden gate opens to the Spa Garden where at one end, a Roman pool and patio terrace beckon guests to idle. At the far end is the spa’s centerpiece: a tiered artisan fountain flanked by six freestanding treatment casitas. Rustic stone paths and tufts of flowering camellias and grasses lead the way to the private bungalows.

The Garden Path To enhance the spa garden experience, the spa has introduced Made Fresh Daily body therapies that incorporate fresh herbs and flowers grown on-site along with organic ingredients from local growers.

Bouquet The breezy blend of Californian and Mediterranean garden style is seasoned with the aromas of French Lavender and Tuscan Blue Rosemary that dot the outdoor oasis.

Planting a Seed As a take-home token of their Made Fresh Daily treatments, guests receive a Spa to Go card tucked with fresh herbs and printed with a chef’s seasonal recipe for an at-home spa treatment.

Contact (858) 675-8500, www.ranchobernardoinn.com

– Lisa Kasanicky

Petite Sérénité Spa

Sentidos en Rio Real, Marbella, Spain

Landscape Style The interiors of this 29-room property with a glassed-in day spa adjacent to the rooftop swimming pool are New York-chic with an Andalucian twist – a traditional Spanish garden.

The Garden Path This luxury hotel on the Costa del Sol happened to have a lavish garden growing naturally near the spa. These native Mediterranean herbs are used in body scrubs, massages, and aromatherapy.

Bouquet The garden is small but lush, with a collection of tropical and subtropical ornamental plants, including hazelnut, mandarin, and lemon trees and a spathodea with large orange flowers. Breathe in jasmine, chamomile, lavender, mint, and rosemary.

Planting a Seed Take home oils, body scrubs, exfoliates, and recipes by land, sea, or helicopter.

Contact (800) 525-4800, www.slh.com/rioreal/

K Club

County Kildare, Ireland

Landscape Style Modeled after a French chateau, the 69-room hotel (its history dates to the sixth century) is set on 700 acres. At the other end of the historical spectrum, the 20,000-square-foot spa is modern, sleek, and huge by Irish standards.

The Garden Path The Herb Garden Journey incorporates fresh lavender in the body exfoliation and includes an herbal bath with freshly picked sage, rosemary, lavender, or chamomile, depending on the desire to warm, stimulate, calm, or soothe. A country garden walk has been laid out through formal gardens, across an island to an arboretum and hidden pond.

Bouquet The herb garden is small but vital. Herbs are at nose level so they can be enjoyed while relaxing at the tables.

Planting a Seed Sprigs of fresh lavender are K Club’s trademark. In Ireland, people tend to put them in front of the car vent for the journey home.

Contact (800) 323-7500, www.kclub.com

March/April 2008

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