Where the tech set unplugs.
Looking for a quick getaway? Power down at these nearby luxury hotels
From a downtown stomping ground to an oceanside haven, we’ve spotted ever-wired Silicon Valley movers and shakers actually unplugging at three nearby luxury haunts, where they trade rounds of funding for rounds of golf; make wine, not code; and subsist on much more than pizza and Twinkies.
The sybarite
Follow the Teslas as they make their way to the RitzCarlton Half Moon Bay, dramatically sited on a rugged bluff overlooking the ocean.
Here, a kilted bagpiper sounds haunting melodies at sunset, signaling Silicon Valley golfers, who have traveled 45 minutes over Highway 92 for the pleasure of playing the championship Ocean Course, to make their last swing.
The view and soundtrack of crashing waves are the main attraction, although you needn’t play 18 holes for the experience: The Coastal Trail traverses the property, and is a popular path for both walking and running.
Theoretically, the bagpipes could also be considered the Scottish version of a dinner bell, announcing the start of service at the hotel’s restaurant, Navio, recently remodeled to evoke the hull of a handsome ship. As expected, seafood, from oven-roasted branzino to octopus a la plancha to seared Caledonia prawns, is the star of the menu.
At Navio’s Sunday brunch, where $95 buys an all-youcan-eat array of meats, dim sum, hearth-made breads, cheese, crisp salads and blood-sugar-spiking desserts, guests can create their own seafood platter, topping it off with a few generous dollops of caviar for good measure.
Because it’s commonplace to overindulge in the presence of such a cornucopia, brunchers can succumb to their food comas by cocooning in fleece blankets and sinking into Adirondack chairs on the great lawn, biding their time until their spa appointments. At the hands of massage therapists, there’s nothing left to do but give in to the notion that maybe this is the glittering promised land.
Rates from $635. 1 Miramontes Point Road, Half Moon Bay, (650) 712-7000. www.ritzcarlton.com/halfmoonbay.
The city slicker
Recognizing a golden opportunity to bring San Francisco style to Silicon Valley, Joie de Vivre Hospitality, based in San Francisco, converted a dreary 1970s senior care facility in downtown Palo Alto into the new Epiphany Hotel, a modern and lively gathering spot.
Shades of the compnay’s popular S.F. Embarcadero property, Hotel Vitale, are recognizable here, mostly in the Epiphany’s signature restaurant, Lure + Till, which, like Americano, creates an inviting atmosphere with three tried-and-true ingredients: a dining room that spills onto the sidewalk, a bar that specializes in creative cocktails (the mysterious Barkeep’s Whim is described as “a bar fight of spirits laid to rest in oak for one month”) and a menu by chef Brandon Kelly, who thoughtfully gathers seasonal offerings from the land and sea to craft dishes such as heirloom carrot salad with dill-ricotta mousse and squid ink campanelle with lobster and bottarga.
Unwinding with dinner and drinks at the hotel is the main draw for locals, but out-of-towners shacking up for the night are in for a dose of modern luxury unexpected from a corporate hotel. The hospitality suites, for instance, feature lofty 15-foot ceilings, fluffy beds, superroomy bathrooms, fullheight sliding-glass doors and spacious verandas. (To avoid the caloric pitfalls of midnight snacking, minibar fiends should opt for a Fresh Fridge, stocked with farm salads, cold-pressed juices, homemade granola bars and full-biotic yogurt parfaits.) Think of downstairs at the hotel as ground zero for revelry, upstairs as a quiet retreat to recover from the merriment.
Rates from $399. 180 Hamilton Ave., Palo Alto; (650) 666-3311. www.epiphanyhotel.com.
The wine lover
When taking a break from funding startups, golf-clubwielding venture capitalists head to Rosewood CordeValle, a lavish retreat amid the Santa Clara Valley patchwork of hot and dry farmland.
The pastoral property is home to an award-winning 270-acre golf course, in which players navigate natural meadows, streams, canyons and hills to clear their 18 holes. The challenging design, masterminded by renowned golf course architect and Woodside resident Robert Trent Jones Jr., makes it a popular destination for championship contests, and in 2016, CordeValle will host the U.S. Women’s Open. (To herald this distinguished event, a women’s golf program was launched, featuring a game-enhancing curriculum that doesn’t stop at lessons on the green. TRX and yoga classes fine-tune two legitimate golfing fundamentals — body alignment and Zen.)
Because the region’s arid climate makes for happy grapevines, the on-site winery, Clos LaChance, hosts a Winemaker for a Day program in which amateur oenophiles, after a speedy course on craft, walk away with 25 cases of their own signature vintage. Needless to say, this level of imbibing requires an overnight stay at the resort, and luckily, the prospect is luxurious: The bungalows are especially charming, as they overlook the golf course’s lovely green expanses, a serene backdrop for an alfresco breakfast on the private patio. And naturally, any time crisply dressed feather-top beds and jetted tubs are part of a great escape, relaxation is a foregone conclusion. Internet? What’s that?
Rates from $400. 1 CordeValle Club Drive, San Martin; (408) 695-4500. www.rosewoodhotels. com/cordevalle.