RSS
Home
Spa Review: Topnotch Resort & Spa (Stowe, Vermont)
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
Adults only heated outdoor pool at Topnotch Resort and Spa with Mount Mansfield in the background.
It's October and I'm visiting Stowe, Vermont for an annual girlfriend getaway spa weekend with a couple of good friends. We’ve left our spouses and kids behind; our mission is to relax and enjoy the award winning local spa scene, shopping, dining and the end of the fall foliage. Ski season hasn't started yet, which means light traffic and no crowds. Our home base for the weekend is Topnotch Resort and Spa.
Topnotch Resort and Spa is a full service resort on 120 scenic acres just a few miles from the charming village of Stowe, Vermont – home to legendary skiing at Stowe Mountain Resort. Topnotch features 68 charming guest rooms and 40 luxurious, contemporary and sophisticated resort homes that come with full resort privileges. The resort has stunning views of The Green Mountains of Vermont and Mount Mansfield.
The awards and accolades list is seemingly endless. Topnotch Resort and Spa is one of only two properties in Vermont to be a member of the distinctive Preferred Hotels & Resorts. It is a member of the Associated Luxury Hotels International for its meeting space. It holds the prestigious and all-important AAA Four Diamond Award distinction. Resortsandlodges.com has named Topnotch one of the Top 10 Romantic Resorts in Vermont. The 22nd Annual 2009 Travel + Leisure Readers Choice Award has chosen Topnotch to be among the Top 25 Hotel Spas in the Continental US and Canada and among the Top 50 Resorts in the US and Canada. Impressive and well deserving.
Every afternoon from 4 to 5, a variety of fresh-baked cookies and tea are served in the Living Room with stone walls and a huge fireplace in the center – Topnotch’s answer to a hotel lobby. On the Friday evening of our stay, guests were welcomed with a wine reception. It’s intimate touches like these that make Topnotch unique and worthy of all those awards.
It’s 19 degrees when we wake up our first morning in Stowe. A perfect day to spend a few hours tucked away into a warm and cozy spa – The Spa at Topnotch. Recently renovated, the two level Spa at Topnotch is an impressive 35,000 square feet, with 30 treatment rooms where guests can enjoy 120 pampering and relaxing treatments and services.
In the spa locker area, the lockers are blonde wood and the floor and wall tiles are enhanced with shades of moss and sage green. In the showers, the June Jacobs Spa Collection provides refreshing Grapefruit Shower Gel and Citrus Shampoo and Conditioner. A white tiled wet room area features a Jacuzzi, dry sauna and steam room. The women’s relaxation lounge is sophisticated, peaceful and tranquil, with muted earth tone colors, cozy built-in seating next to the fireplace and chaise lounges for napping after your treatment.
For refreshment, guests help themselves to dried apricots, fruit infused water, lemon wedges, cucumber slices and hot tea from Republic of Tea.
The Mount Mansfield Saucha ($170-$180, 75 minutes) was an indulgent dream; a trifecta of services in one blissful Signature Treatment. My therapist Anne started the treatment with a sea salt scrub with sage and lavender essential oils; the scrub was removed with hot towels. I was wrapped in layer upon layer of warm linens infused in herbs and more essential oils. The linens became heavy and very hot, intended to detoxify and remove impurities. Anne used cool cloths to keep me comfortable and was very attentive to my overall comfort during the wrap. The treatment concludes with a full–body aromatherapy massage.
The Essential Facial ($160-$170, 70 minutes) began with a light back massage with warm stones to set the stage for a traditional facial with generous elements of hand, arm, neck and scalp massage. Brooke, my Esthetician, had powerful hands during the refreshingly vigorous facial massage. The treatment features a double action mask, first a creamy mask to hydrate and then a natural oatmeal mask. Skincare products from Decleor and cooling eye gel pads rounded out the luxurious experience.
Treatment prices are slightly reduced Monday through Thursday.
Norma’s Restaurant serves breakfast, lunch and candlelit dinner in a casual setting with seating around the open kitchen and cuisine that is fresh, local and artistic. The décor is shades of autumn, earthy fabrics, tile and stonework, and floor-to-ceiling walls of windows. A small bar serves wine, craft beers and fun cocktail creations.
Norma’s is located poolside with doors that open to the patio and seating that extends to the outdoors on nice days.
Dinner began with trio of breads - cheesy biscuit bites, flatbread and crusty bread. An interesting evening special featured potato gnocchi with caramelized onions, locally made Vermont blue cheese and chorizo. The Norma’s Burger showcases Black Angus beef, port onions and Vermont cheddar on toasted brioche with herbed frites. A special symbol denotes healthy and flavorful spa cuisine with modified fat and calories.
We were able to resist the dessert menu, but the pastry chef sent out tiny bits of chocolate fudge for an after dinner treat.
On Friday and Saturday nights, the cozy Buttertub Bistro & Lounge serves an inventive tasting menu of creations like Asiago French Fries with Truffle Oil and Bacon Croquettes with Swiss Cheese Fondue.
Room 137, a studio suite located close to the spa, was perfect for a girlfriend spa getaway. At 450 square feet, there was abundant room to spread out. The L-shaped room had two queen size beds and a twin size day bed tucked away in a cozy nook. One of my spa girlfriends pronounced it “the best bed in the place”. Pillow top mattresses, triple sheeting, 4 bed pillows and decorative pillows; the bed was so comfortable and inviting, it was like the cliché of sleeping on a cloud.
Our room, the entire property in fact, has charm and character. Louvered interior shutters covered an entire wall of windows. An entertainment armoire housed a flat panel TV with a DVD player, snacks (“spa snacks” too), a mini bar with a lockout feature and a mini fridge. The room had a desk with chair and a reading chair with footrest for extra seating and comfort.
Housekeeping had thoughtfully stocked the room with lots of extra towels, robes for 5, slippers, extra pillows and blankets. A walk in closet was an over-packers dream – hooks, hangers, 2 luggage stands and deep shelves with loads of out-of-the-way-storage space. There was even a Keurig single-cup coffee brewing system and a microwave in the closet too.
In the shower, full size dispensers of June Jacobs Spa Collection held shampoo, conditioner and body wash, an environmentally friendly alternative to typical hotel size products. A full size bottle of citrus body lotion sat on the bathroom counter.
At evening turndown, dark chocolate from Lake Champlain Chocolates and bottles of Vermont Spring Water are left for guests to enjoy after returning from their evening activities. Music was playing, the shutters were closed and a very fun surprise was left on the bed - Topnotch baseball hats in pastel colors; just another one of those unique and intimate touches that give Topnotch so much charm.
For sports and leisure, the resort features a highly rated tennis program with indoor and outdoor courts, cross-country skiing, and downhill skiing at nearby Stowe Mountain Resort. A state-of-the-art fitness center houses an aerobics studio, a weight-training studio and cardiovascular equipment. For water enthusiasts, you’ll find an indoor family pool, an indoor Jacuzzi with cascading massage waterfall, and two outdoor pools – one of which is for adults only and is heated year-round. The indoor pool area also features a co-ed steam room and sauna.
Each evening at Topnotch, guests can enjoy a fire burning in the outdoor fire pit. Giant fire bowls line the walkway behind Norma’s Restaurant and surrounding the outdoor pools. If it’s too cold to be outdoors, you can still enjoy the fire features from the steamy warmth of the indoor pool area. We never got around to trying the heated outdoor pool and the outdoor Jacuzzi – but other guests were enjoying these amenities despite the cold nighttime temperatures.
www.topnotchresort.com
4000 Mountain Rd
Stowe, VT 05672
(800) 451-8686
As is common in the travel industry, the writer and guests were provided with discounted lodging and complimentary spa treatments for the purpose of writing this story. While it has not influenced this article, Examiner.com believes in full disclosure of all potential conflicts of interest. Thank you to Topnotch Resort and Spa for inviting the writer to experience their property and for seeing the long-term benefits of neutrality for their business and for their guests.
Related Articles:
Add a Comment
