Esperanza Resort in Cabo San Lucas is offering readers a stay in one of its ocean-view casitas at 25 percent off. Photograph Courtesy of Esperanza Resort.
Top Spa in Latin America
Esperanza in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, is an oceanfront resort that’s lushly landscaped and surrounded by mountains. The Romance Para Dos Package, created for Washingtonian readers, includes three nights in an ocean-view casita, private round-trip airport transfers (a $300 value), daily breakfast for two, a tequila-and-artisanal-chocolate tasting, one dinner for two at the resort’s El Restaurante, and two 60-minute massages at the spa, named by Travel & Leisure as number one in Latin America.
The package is available March through May, with rates starting at $2,805, a savings of more than 25 percent. Esperanza Resort, Cabo San Lucas, Mexico; 866-311-2226; esperanzaresort.com.
Kayak the Eastern Shore
You can explore the ocean, bays, wetlands, and salt marshes of the Delmarva Peninsula on a special two-night package at either the antique-filled Atlantic Hotel in Berlin, Maryland, or the waterfront Lighthouse Club Hotel in Ocean City.
The Weekend Outdoor Package includes two days of guided kayaking, boxed gourmet lunches for two on one day and a $20 lunch voucher for the other, two half-hour in-room massages, bike rentals, the entrance fee for Assateague National Park, a $70 dinner voucher for one of the hotels’ restaurants, and continental breakfast both mornings. Reader prices start at $197 per person, a discount of 20 percent. Atlantic Hotel, Berlin, Md., 410-641-3589, atlantichotel.com. Lighthouse Club Hotel, Ocean City, Md., 888-371-5400; fagers.com/hotel.
Easy Country Escape
Less than an hour from DC, Poplar Springs in Fauquier County, provides an easy getaway with quiet rooms, a heated pool and hot tub, fishing ponds, tennis courts, and a spa that offers botanically inspired scrubs and body wraps.
Mention The Washingtonian when booking and save more than 20 percent on rooms. Readers pay $169 a night Sunday through Thursday and $199 Friday and Saturday during March and April. Breakfast is included. Poplar Springs Inn—the Inn Spa, Casanova, Va.; 800-490-7747; poplarspringsinn.com.
Gourmet Getaway
Glen Gordon Manor in Huntly, Virginia, is a new luxury inn in horse country—and it has very good food. The owner, Dayn Smith, is also chef/owner of the acclaimed Perla in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Book the Washingtonian Readers Package for March or April and get a glass of Champagne and chocolate-dipped strawberries upon check-in plus a free wine pairing for two with dinner (a $125 value). Rooms start at $250. Glen Gordon Manor, Huntly, Va.; 540-636-6010; glengordonmanor.com.
Riverfront Rooms
To celebrate its 25th anniversary, Smithfield Station, a charming riverfront hotel in Virginia, is offering readers $25 off its best available rates in March and April, when prices start at around $109 a night.
The hotel, about three hours from DC, puts you in the midst of historic Smithfield, with its shops, restaurants, and art galleries. Rates include a substantial continental breakfast and free wi-fi, and rooms may have a fireplace, a Jacuzzi bathtub, and an LCD flat-screen. Some rooms also feature private balconies overlooking the marina. Use the promo code Washingtonian. Smithfield Station, Smithfield, Va.; 877- 703-7701; smithfieldstation.com.
Pamper and Putt
Lansdowne Resort is prized for its two good 18-hole golf courses and its family-friendly nine-hole short course. The Washingtonian Pamper and Putt Deal, which starts at $439 a night for two, saves readers 20 percent off regular rates. Included is one night’s accommodation, unlimited golf for two, two 50-minute massages (reserve when booking room), and all resort fees. This rate is available March through December. Lansdowne Resort, Leesburg; 703-729-8400; lansdowneresort.com.
Action in the Alleghenies
The historic Homestead resort in Hot Springs, Virginia, is a family favorite because of the abundant activities, from horseback riding and hiking to golf and paintball. Washingtonian readers can enjoy everything the resort has to offer by booking the Homestead Unlimited Activities Package, which starts at $315 for two. The longer you stay, the larger the discount: One night means 10 percent off, two nights 20 percent, three nights or more 30 percent. Mention the magazine when booking. The Homestead, Hot Springs, Va.; 540-839-1766; thehomestead.com.
Dine and Ride
Chef Lisa MacDougal’s bistro, Pope’s Tavern, is one of the most popular restaurants in Talbot County, Maryland. Washingtonian readers who purchase dinner at Pope’s Tavern can receive an overnight stay upstairs at the historic Oxford Inn for $100, a savings of 20 to 45 percent depending on the room. Readers also get a complimentary ride around the historic waterfront town of Oxford in the inn’s 1958 London black cab, affectionately known as the Pope’s Mobile. This offer is good for any date in March and April. Oxford Inn and Pope’s Tavern, Oxford, Md.; 410-226-5220; oxfordinn.net.
Guests at the Mark Addy Inn can enjoy three-course breakfasts and winery tours—at a big savings. Photograph by Korie Lynn Photography.
Wine Weekend
Friendly innkeepers and a resident parrot make the Mark Addy Inn a welcoming nest in the Blue Ridge Mountains. The inn has created a unique way to help visitors discover central Virginia: When you arrive, you receive a map and four clues that lead you to particular wineries. (For instance: Something that stays green throughout the winter. Answer: Wintergreen Winery.) At each winery, clues lead you to an item you’re given to bring back to the inn. Return with all four items to receive a travel-related prize.
The Washingtonian Readers Special includes a two-night stay, a three-course breakfast each morning for two, gourmet chocolates in the room, and two bottles of Virginia wine. Readers can book this package, valued from $568, for $271 and up, depending on dates. Use the code WASH when booking. The Mark Addy Inn, Nellysford, Va.; 434-361-1101; mark-addy.com.
Off-Season Outer Banks
The Sanderling Resort & Spa in Duck, North Carolina, is nestled between the Atlantic Ocean and Currituck Sound. The property has two restaurants as well as tennis, a spa, a pool, and an eco-center with trails and kayaks.
Washingtonian readers who book one night at the full rate (starting at $129) receive the second night at 50 percent off. The deal is available any date in March except the 23rd and 24th and any Sunday through Thursday during April. The Sanderling Resort & Spa, Duck, N.C.; 800-701-4111; thesanderling.com.
Historic Barbados
Perched on a cliff on Barbados’s secluded southeast coast, the Crane is a historic hotel—it dates to the late 1700s—which has blossomed into a full-service resort.
Readers who book the Escape Winter Package receive 30 percent off room rates, which start at $556 before the discount, and a complimentary airport pickup for two. Plus, the two guests each receive a spa treatment (some restrictions apply), two breakfasts in L’Azure, and two dinners at the resort’s restaurants (excluding Zen) during their stay.
This deal must be booked by March 10 for travel through April 13 (excluding April 4 through 10) and requires a five-night minimum. Contact reservations@thecrane.com and use the code WAS2012Q1. The Crane, Barbados; 866-978-5942; thecrane.com.
Eco-Friendly Caribbean
The Verandah Resort & Spa is set on 30 secluded beachfront acres, surrounded by hiking trails and hills leading to Antigua’s famed Devil’s Bridge National Park. The cove in front of the resort is a good spot for snorkeling in the crystal-clear Caribbean Sea.
Washingtonian readers receive 20 percent off regular rates plus a free room upgrade upon check-in, along with unlimited miniature golf and non-motorized water sports. Rates through April 14 typically start at $345 a person per night based on double occupancy; from April 15, rates start at $295 before the discount. Kids up to age 11 are $60 a night, all-inclusive. Travel is valid from March through May. The Verandah Resort & Spa, Antigua; 866-237-1785; verandahresortandspa.com.
This article appears in the March 2012 issue of The Washingtonian.
