Getaway Guide To Changing Weather Resorts
November is a tough month for weekend getaway seekers. The weather can swing from toe-biting cold to moderate, sunny days. The best bet is to head for an all-weather resort and plan on just dining, sipping, indoor swimming and spas. If the weather lets you get outdoors, consider it a bonus. The real bonus is that November prices are usually dramatically slashed. Here are some favorites within a 1 to 4 hour drive. -- Jay Lloyd
BEAR CREEK MOUNTAIN RESORT
Scoring one of the ground floor mountain view rooms with its rustic decor pays off with more than a stunning vista. The sliding glass doors open directly on to the slopes. Sixty of the spacious 118 rooms here, offer mountain views. Nice weather lets you hike or mountain bike in the fall splendor of the ski slopes and resort trails. But, if it's an indoor kind of day, just steps from your room, the spa or pool are tantalizingly close. Couples services top the bill of fare. Massages, a steam room, facials and pedicures can get you tuned up for a for an uncommon dinner. The Grille is pure romance at a fireside or windowside table. Our first stop is the popular bar, warmed by a fireplace. After a before-dinner drink, I head right to bacon wrapped meat loaf. Mary tilts to the Asian inspired salmon with baby bok choy. Steaks and ribs are staples. The wine list travels a range that covers most palate and wallet comfort zones.
CAMELBACK LODGE
Camelback Mountain in the Poconos has become a full blown four-season resort and is still expanding. The doors opened last year on Camelback Lodge, a 163 million dollar hotel that has been crafted around the largest indoor waterpark in the Northeast. Camelback visitors will find 453 suites for destination accommodations, 7 pools and 13 water slides in the naturally lit "Aquatopia". In better weather the Trail's End Pub & Grille is the cool spot to be with its outdoor bar, lounge and warming fire pits. Additional bars and eateries ramp up the options. Relaxing and energizing spas make it worthwhile to be indoors on a chilly November weekend. But if the weather is fair, Zip-Line action and a Tree-Top adventure course provide challenge and thrills on the mountain.
MOHONK MOUNTAIN HOUSE
Imagine a 19th century resort that keeps pace with 21st century lifestyles and tastes. That's the Mohonk Mountain House between the Hudson River and the Catskill Mountains. The clifftop view overlooking a shimmering lake is stunning. The resort appears like a Victorian castle out of the mist as a morning fog lifts across the Hudson Valley. In fair weather, the resort is honeycombed with
85 miles of hiking trails. It offers mountain biking, tennis, horseback riding, paddleboats, canoes, kayaks. But indoor amenities are a key to November Mohonk Getaways. You'll find a full service spa - even yoga and meditation classes. If you want to dine more formally (jackets for men), the main dining room provides the atmosphere and multi course elegance. Informal dining is set in a pub-like environment with lively bar and creative kitchen. And if the weather cooperates, take a sunset cocktail out to a handy veranda.
HYATT REGENCY CHESAPEAKE BAY RESORT
Getaway seekers often have to leave pets behind. But the Hyatt Resort on Maryland's scenic Choptank River is a pet pampering resort where they're more than welcome. During fair weather November days take the dogs for a walk on the resort nature trails or along the river banks. Play a round of golf on an 18 hole championship course in sight of your room or become absorbed in the neighboring town of Cambridge, a major crab picking community and a focal point of James Michener's sweeping epic, Chesapeake. But if foul weather stalks your getaway, head for the resort spa and indoor pool, the bars and the eateries where locally sourced treats are King. That means some of the finest seafood dining in a nautically themed environment. And by the way, there's even gourmet room service for pets.
SEVEN SPRINGS MOUNTAIN RESORT
Seven Springs deep in Pennsylvania's Alleghany Mountains is another resort that began life as a ski haven. Over the years it has evolved into a four season attraction that combines winter mountain sports with all-weather indoor action including bowling, ice skating, luxury spa rejuvenation, indoor pool - even a midway with arcade fun for kids on a November family weekend. Dining here spreads over a wide range of options from the fine cuisine and piano bar at Helen's to family fare, a grand buffet, pubs and mountain view mid-scale eateries, or familiar fast food temptations for the young crowd. There's live entertainment to dance the night away and tuck-away bars for intimate sips. And the resort is very close to Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater and the Flight 93 Memorial.
Enjoy!
