Lumeria Maui luxury wellness retreat center

Located a quick 30 minute drive from Kahului Airport in Maui, Lumeria Maui is a luxury wellness retreat tucked away in upcountry Makawao, Hawaii. The 24 room property is truly a place to unplug and nourish the body and soul.

Upon arrival you’ll be drawn to the registration building, with its calming water feature, flanked with lush, native Hawaiian landscaping. A hot hand towel and cold glass of lemon water wait at reception.

While cell phones do work on property, there are no telephones or televisions in rooms. Besides the meditation room and three spa treatment rooms, to the right of the office, the majority of the rooms are in a horse shoe shape, surrounding a vibrant, green meditation lawn.

Owner Xorin Balbes, an architectural conservator and designer, has taken great care with the selection of building and room materials at Lumeria Maui. From the use of Hawaiian names for each bedroom, to the river rock stones in the shower, a nod is given to Hawaii’s aloha spirit at this former plantation.

Pua l’lima 2C garden room at Lumeria Maui

Hawaiian heritage

My room, Pua l’lima 2C, rented for $299 during winter season ($349 summer rates begin in May) and was one of 13 single king rooms. Additionally, there were nine rooms with double beds and two suites. As Lumeria Maui bills itself as an educational, adventure experience, there are daily yoga and meditation classes, weekly horticulture classes and aromatherapy classes where ancient healing secrets are explored.

Lumeria Maui courtyard rooms

Educational adventure experience at Lumeria Maui

In addition to water sport packages, Lumeria Maui features three treatment rooms for massage (additional fees apply.) I enjoyed a Hawaiian Lomi lomi hot stone massage. With the gentle Hawaiian breezes and recorded slack key guitar music, the hot stones, used together with long rhythmic strokes relaxed my body and soul.

What’s included at Lumeria Maui

The $25 daily retreat fee includes a light, organic breakfast, coffee, tea and fresh fruit (the apple bananas are fabulous) complimentary parking and wireless internet. The swimming pool, with hot tub, opens March 2013.

For an additional charge, guests are able to dine nightly (closed Sunday and Monday) at the on-site Harvest Café. The three-course meal consists of a soup or salad, meat, fish or poultry dish with local vegetables and sides, as well as a homemade dessert.

Lumeria Maui offers drop in yoga classes

Insider tip

Lumeria Maui welcomes drop in guests to yoga classes for $20. Hawaiian local residents pay $15. per class. Check website for current prices.

Need to know

3:00 p.m. check in

11:00 a.m. check out

For additional insider tips follow Luxury Travel Writer Nancy D. Brown on Twitter and follow Lumeria on Twitter.

If You Go:

Lumeria Maui 808) 579-8877

1813 Baldwin Avenue

Makawao, Maui, Hawaii, 96768

Article written by, video and photos courtesy of,  Travel Writer Nancy D. Brown of What a Trip, Travels from Northern California. I was a guest of Lumeria Maui and Maui Visitors and Convention Bureau.

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Family owned Little River Inn Resort on California’s Mendocino coast a hotel review.

Ask fifth generation innkeeper Cally Dym what adjectives best describe Little River Inn and you are likely to hear “friendly,” “scenic” and “unpretentious.”  And while these words all fit Little River Inn to a tee, I found strength in the word “family.”

Definition: Family, noun. A group consisting of parents and children living together in a household. Or in the case of the Little River Inn, a friendly, unpretentious group consisting of parents, grandparents, children, gardeners, chefs, cooks, bartenders, bus boys, waiters and housekeepers. Everyone at the Little River Inn, from guests to grounds keepers, is treated like a member of the family.

In fact, when you step inside the Little River Inn, you are stepping into a piece of living history. Cally’s great-great-grandfather, Silas Coombs, built the original California home in 1863. Her grandparents, Ole and Cora Hervilla, converted the house into the Inn seven decades ago and the place is still going strong.

Situated on the old Coombs homestead, Little River Inn features 66 ocean-view rooms, 2 one bedroom suites and a two bedroom suite, in addition to a restaurant and bar, 9-hole golf course, tennis courts and day spa.

Romance at Little River Inn

From decks with hot tubs to fireplace rooms, there are plenty of ways to ignite romantic sparks at the Little River Inn. I was traveling with a couple of girlfriends, so no romance this trip, but we all enjoyed our ocean view rooms, gigantic bathtubs and the camaraderie of dining together over Chef Marc Dym’s California cuisine – order the crab cakes!

Little River Inn Coombs Cottage hotel review

Coombs Cottage

I was fortunate to have landed at the Coomb’s Cottage, a one bedroom, ocean view house, off property, with a fireplace, Jacuzzi bathtub, private deck and outdoor hot tub. My room #245, rented for $329 off season and $369 in the high season. All weekend stays require a two night minimum, except Thanksgiving single Saturday. Check the website for package deals and current pricing.

All rooms come with alarm clocks, coffee maker, hair dryer, iron and ironing board, mini fridge, robes and television, as well as complimentary internet access (that actually works fast!)

Take in the ocean view of the Mendocino coast on the Coombs Cottage porch at Little River Inn.

Family-friendly and pet-friendly Little River Inn

Children under the age of 16 stay free in a shared room at Little River Inn. Child-friendly menus are offered in the dining room and via room service. There are kid-friendly activities offered on property throughout any given month – check the Little River Inn website for calendar.

Pets are allowed (and welcomed with a doggie goodie bag) at $25 per night, per pet, with a maximum of two pets per room.

BeeKind bath and body products are environmentally-friendly, as is the Little River Inn located in Northern California.

Be kind to the environment

Little River Inn offers BeeKind bath and body products from Gilchrist & Soames. The BeeKind paper bottle is a 59% reduction in packaging material and 92% reduction in waste space compared to plastic shampoo bottles. The BeeKind Collection does not contain parabens, or propylene glycol and are free of artificial dyes and colors.

What’s with the bees? Proceeds of the net sales of BeeKind support honey bee research at the University of California at Davis.

Need to know:

Check in: 4 p.m.

Check out: 12 p.m.

Insider tip

Like golf? Families staying on Mother’s Day or Father’s Day receive a free round of golf for the family.

For additional insider tips follow Luxury Travel Writer Nancy D. Brown on Twitter and follow Little River Inn on Twitter.

If You Go:

Little River Inn  (888) Inn Love

7901 N. Highway 1

Little River, California 95456

Article written by, photos and video courtesy of  Travel Writer Nancy D. Brown of What a Trip, Travels from Northern California. I was a guest of Little River Inn.

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Secrets Vallarta Bay is an all-inclusive, all suite property with ocean views of Banderas Bay in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

Are you looking to escape the cold of winter? Even in the so-called rainy season (June – October) it’s still sunny and warm in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. What makes the mountains so green? The 59  inches of rain that does fall annually in Puerto Vallarta typically happens at night, so you are good to go in the daytime.

I recently stayed at Secrets Vallarta Bay, a new Secrets Resort that opened in Mexico, April 2012. This 271 all suite, adults-only resort is dedicated to couples and singles with excellent customer service. The family-friendly Now Amber is located right next door and even shares some restaurants, offering guests more dining options on property.

All suites at Secrets Vallarta Bay

Secrets Preferred Club Jr. Suite Garden View #1223

There are six levels of pricing from the uber-lux ocean front swim out rooms (there are two) to master suites and preferred club level rooms. My room, #1223, was a preferred club junior suite, garden view with king-size bed, outside/inside jacuzzi, bathroom with separate shower and bath, bathrobe and slippers, desk, in-room safe, premium bar and Secrets amenities such as sunscreen and a shaving kit – for those of us who fly carry-on and forget these necessary items. All suites are non-smoking.

The rack rate for this Jr. Suite garden view, all inclusive (two persons) was $374. per night, November 1 – December 21 – high season. Check the website for details, as the best rates are found on-line. An ocean view suite rented for $415 per night, with the Jr. Suite Swim out priced at $442.

Secrets Vallarta Bay has multiple pools and a Jacuzzi on property, as well as beach front access to Banderas Bay.

Beach and water activities

There are four swimming pools and Jacuzzi on property with the requisite Manatees Swim-up Bar and Banderas Bay beach front access. The ocean is safe for swimming, but don’t expect to snorkel at Secrets Vallarta Bay. Instead, plan a day trip, via the concierge, to the Southern Zone, where the Sierra Madre meets the waters of Banderas Bay and The Arches.

While I’m not the golfer in the family, I should mention that Secrets Vallarta Bay offers complimentary green fees.

Secrets Spa by Pevonia

I tried the 50 minute Aromatherapy massage, $149. This fee included the water circuit, Jacuzzi, steam room, relaxation room and locker room, so be sure to arrive an hour early with your bathing suit, or save time for the water circuit after your treatment.

Secrets Vallarta Bay dining

No reservations needed to order these mushroom turnovers at Oceano restaurant, Secrets Vallarta Bay.

None of the restaurants require reservations; some have a dress code for the men – long pants required, no sleeveless shirts or flip-flops.

Bordeaux (dinner only) Like the name suggests, this is a French cuisine restaurant.  We had a set menu featuring tuna, which was very moist.

Himitsu (adults-only) on Now Amber side. Asian cuisine with miso soup, sushi, tempura and Temppanyaki. You’ll need to make reservations in advance if you want a private Temppanyaki table.

Oceano is open for lunch and dinner and specializes in seafood. I ordered the mushroom turnovers and beef, chicken and shrimp fajitas – one fajita per serving.

Make time for a treatment and the water circuit at Secrets Spa by Pevonia.

Need to know:

If you prefer VIP and club lounge access, you may want to upgrade to Preferred Club status.  This is an exclusive area providing Concierge service, a private lounge, daily continental breakfast, afternoon hot and cold hors d’oeuvres, desserts, private bar, complimentary internet access in suite and up-graded mini-bar service.

In my bar cabinet; single-serving bag of peanut M&M’s and small tin of Pringles potato chips, in addition to a small size bottle of rum, vodka and Jack Daniels. The fridge was stocked with plenty of juice, beer and water.

Check in: 3 p.m.

Check out: 12 p.m.

Insider tip

If you are staying elsewhere in Puerto Vallarta, Secrets Spa by Pevonia offers day passes ($59.) to their water circuit.

For additional insider tips follow Luxury Travel Writer Nancy D. Brown on Twitter and follow Secrets Resorts  on Twitter.

Secrets Vallarta Bay hotel review

If You Go:

Secrets Vallarta Bay +52 (322) 226-2900

Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco

Mexico 483333

Article written by and photos courtesy of  Travel Writer Nancy D. Brown of What a Trip, Travels from Northern California. I was a guest of Secrets Vallarta Bay.

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