Lavender-Scented Luxury in the Texas Hill Country

Lavender

The JW Marriott Hill Country Resort and Spa:

My first impression of the property in San Antonio – with its thousand-plus guest rooms, 2 TPC golf courses, 265,000 sf of conference space, 7 restaurants, lazy river water feature and imposing limestone silhouette – was “it’s MASSIVE”.

Lavender

But after spending time here, “massive” is a bit of a misnomer. While it is admittedly a huge resort, it is also surprisingly intimate. Or, more accurately, it feels intimate. Much of this has to do with the design and property layout: 1) they have purposely separated the “leisure / vacation” areas from the “conference / meeting” areas and 2) they have carved out small, tucked-away seating areas, private conversation areas (and bless their hearts) all of them have a multitude of electrical outlets at-the-ready for the modern, electronically-tethered traveler.

Its geographic location also contributes to the serenity of the resort. The property is bordered by an Audubon-certified sanctuary, which serves as a greenbelt buffer between the fast growth being experienced by the north-reaching San Antonio suburbs and the resort. Even though I visited at the height of family vacation time, I still had a perfectly relaxing, tranquil and rejuvenating experience.

Also surprising for a resort of its size is its commitment to the local economy and being an eco-conscious good neighbor. Most of the food for all 7 restaurants is based on the farm-to-table concept, celebrating local crops in a 90-mile radius. The resort also has an on-site organic herb garden and a wall of blackberry bushes which go right into the kitchen. Eco-sustainability is also accomplished through unique initiatives involving recycling. Not only do they sort and recycle they use recycling to GIVE BACK. The soap slivers left in the guest rooms are gathered up and given to a charity who melts them down and makes new soaps for charity (the new soaps are sent to area shelters). Glass and plastic bottles are donated to the local charitable organization St. Vincent De Paul, which uses the proceeds to fund their charitable outreach.

Celebrating the Beauty of the Texas Hill Country.

“Hill Country” is the name given to the 25-county area of Central and South Texas featuring rugged limestone hills and brushy vegetation consisting of juniper, cedar, mesquite and oak.

The resort’s decor celebrates this uniquely-Texas terrain (think “Texas nature” not “Texas kitsch” not an oversized cowboy boot or hat to be seen, thank goodness). The area’s natural limestone, oak and river rock are showcased, bringing the beauty of the rugged landscape indoors.

The resort’s cuisine also celebrates the local flavor of hill country, an amalgamation of Czech and German settlers’ heritage mixed with Texas ranchers’ offerings and lots of south-of-the-border influences. Regional and seasonal ingredients featured on the menu during my visit include peaches, pecans, olives, lavender (more about this later), beef, blackberries and more. Also in the spotlight are wines from Becker Vineyards, an award-winning winery in the nearby Stonewall, TX. (Also, note that the Texas Hill Country was named number 3 in the “10 Best Wine Travel Destinations” in the world in 2014 by “Wine Enthusiast”.

The Lantana Spa Lavender Experience: Farm to (Treatment) Table

In the same vein, the 26,000 sf spa (the largest in Texas!) also seems surprisingly intimate and private due to the thoughtful layout of the 30 treatment rooms, where some 70 employees provide unique and custom-crafted spa treatments. Committed to eco-sustainability, 70% of the energy is supplied by wind power, and the spa uses low-flow appliances and recycled fibers in the staff uniforms.

The spa celebrates local traditions and indigenous rituals of the region through its healing-centric treatments, many of them based on the traditions of the “corranderos”, the ancient Hispanic folk healers of the area. One example is the traditional “Seven Knots Ritual” (Los Siete Nudos): upon meeting my service provider, I was given an 8-inch ribbon. I was told to tie a knot in the ribbon for every stressor, problem or care in my life. (I asked for a bigger ribbon LOL!)

Seasonal Treat: Offered May thru June, the Hill Country Lavender Experience takes its cues from the farm-to-table trend now popular in cuisine movements, only in this case, it’s farm to spa-treatment-table. The day starts with a trip by chauffeured town car for a tour of a local commercial lavender farm in Blanco, TX (next town north, about a 35-minute ride through the spectacular scenery) to Hill Country Lavender. I sat with the young owner, Tasha, under a sprawling oak tree surrounded by her acres lavender plants (4 varieties, including English, Spanish and Provence types). When the breeze blows (and “it’s always windy!” says Tasha, who pointed out that her plants actually lean sideways due to the wind, as do the trees in the area), the scent on the air is unbelievable. She shared the history and vision for her small (adorable) farm, and presented me with a bottle of lavender oil to take back to the spa with me, and I shopped in her road-side shop and bought a lovely soap and a body butter.

Lavender

At the time of my visit, the town of Blanco was preparing for the upcoming 10th Annual Lavender Festival, celebrating the lavender farms in the area. http://www.blancochamber.com/page-1649695?

Next on the agenda, after the ride back to the spa, is a delicious spa-lunch at Replenish (the dining room in the spa) showcasing — what else? Lavender! A delicious lavender-infused lemonade and a lavender granola fruit parfait began and ended the delicious meal.

Lavender

Next up, I experienced a 105-minute lavender extravaganza, the “Spirit of the Curanderos Energy Spa Journey”. This amazing body treatment began with a dry brushing, followed by a full-body scrub with mineral salts and wild-crafted lavender oils (from my new friend Tasha’s farm!). I specifically noted that my therapist spent quite a lot of time actually working the scrub onto my skin. (This is a pet spa-peeve of mine in many spas, the salt or sugar scrub is just lightly applied and then removed this is always disappointing to me, as a scrub does not just magically work by itself! It needs to be manipulated on the skin’s surface to exfoliate the dead skin cells).

After my skin was re-mineralized and tingly from the scrub, we started the second phase of the treatment: the massage. Again, the star here (after the therapist, of course) was lavender oil — its naturally healing and calming properties were put to the test on my stress-tightened muscles. Pure relaxation! I finished my day with a visit to the 175-degree dry sauna to sweat out any remaining toxins. (Another pet spa-peeve saunas that are not hot enough! This one was PERFECT!)

As I left the massage treatment room, I dropped my knotted ribbon in a beautiful silver bowl, and realized I was indeed leaving my “knots” behind, both literally and figuratively.

Lavender