Skip to content
Join our Newsletter

Business briefs

Westin spending $10 million on refurbishments

All 419 suites at The Westin Resort & Spa will be sporting a new look in time for the arrival of guests this winter as well as guests arriving for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

The $10 million investment includes new wall, floor and window coverings, furnishings, fixtures and the latest generation of Westin's famous Heavenly Bed, complete with white linen and the industry's first five pillows.

"It's an exciting time for us and one that we anxiously look forward to unveiling to our guests this November," said Trevor Graham, general manager of the twice-named #1 ski resort hotel in North America. "The new colours and fabrics are absolutely stunning and a beautiful complement to our mountain resort destination. There is no doubt that our guests will immediately feel the warmth and comfort when they enter the guest room."

The CHIL Design Group, based in Vancouver, was selected to undertake this refurbishment program, which in addition to all 419 guest rooms also includes the hallways on each floor.

"CHIL was the ideal interior design company to work with us on this project, not only because of their reputation as leader in the hotel and resort design arena but also because of their promotion of "green" design," said Bryce Beatty, director of operations for The Westin Resort & Spa and the hotel's "green champion."

"Their commitment to reduce the use of non-renewable resources and minimizing the impact on the environment closely aligns with our environmentally-friendly initiatives, so this project is truly a collaboration to reduce our overall carbon footprint."

The refurbishments, which are being completed floor by floor, have already started in the 192-suite East Tower with the four 1,600 sq. ft. Penthouse Mountain suites on the 11th floor being readied first. By summer, the refurbishments will begin in the 247-suite nine-floor West Tower with an overall hotel completion date of Nov. 30.  There are two mock up rooms which guests are invited to view during their stay.

Managed by O'Neill Hotels & Resorts, The Westin Resort & Spa is one of the nine celebrated brands of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.

Le Scandinave Spa breaks ground

Work is underway on Le Scandinave Spa, a day spa located in the woods above Riverside Campground.

Opening in the fall and situated on the edge of Lost Lake and Spruce Grove Parks, it's a spot that allows you to relax while overlooking the vast mountains and valleys of Whistler.

It works like this. You take a few hours out of your day to take a tour through three outdoor baths. You start by heating the body in a Norwegian steam bath with eucalyptus or a wood-burning Finnish dry sauna. That part of the process "opens pores, stimulates blood circulation and releases toxins," according to a news release.

Then you cool your body shortly after in Nordic waterfalls, cold baths or a shower to close the pores and make your immune system stronger.

For the final stage you relax in a solarium or enjoy a relaxation area with an outdoor fireplace. This helps regulate the cardiovascular system and decrease your blood circulation.

Le Scandinave will also offer Swedish massage, Thai yoga and hot volcanic stone massage to "complement the baths experience."

The facility is being put together by Gestion Riviere du Diable Inc., private Quebec investors who have already opened similar spas at Mont-Tremblant, Old Montreal and at Blue Mountain, Ontario.

The spa will be open 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day, rain or shine. A Swedish package includes access to the baths as well as a 60-minute Swedish massage. The "Ultimate Swedish Package" includes a 90-minute massage.

If you're really strong, the "Viking package" gives you access to the baths as well as a 60-minute "deep tissue" massage. It's a draining, yet stimulating process that releases tensions and muscle pain. The "Volcanic Package" gets you the baths and a 90-minute massage with hot volcanic stones.

Sea to Sky Cold Laser joins Nibbana Healing Spa

Sea to Sky Cold Laser is joining Nibbana Healing Spa in Whistler's Glacier Lodge, where it will provide the latest light therapy in skin repair and anti-age treatments.

A news release from Cold Laser reads that the technology they use helps provide "long-term improvement" of skin complexion and texture in a "non-invasive, safe and painless way."

Proprietor Janice Lee Szachury promises there is no pain associated with the treatment and she's encouraging anyone with skin concerns to seek the treatment - whether a teen with sprouting acne or anyone else, the "Blue Light" technology offered at Sea to Sky Cold Laser can help you love your skin again.

Much as plants convert sunlight through the photosynthesis process, laser wavelengths of light are used to enter skin tissue at up to 10 mm, "stimulating the cells." Aromatherapeutic gel is used as a conductor for the light.

The light can then treat acne by killing "P. acne" bacteria, resulting in faster healing and fewer breakouts. Hair reduction, too, can be treated just after you've had it waxed. Sea to Sky calls it a "painless alternative to hair reduction" as it puts follicles into a state of hibernation. Works on blonde, red or grey hair!

Squamish wood design makes waves

a|k|a Architecture and Design of Squamish has won the Canadian Wood Council, B.C. Woodworks Design Award for its Tobiano Golf Course Clubhouse, located in Kamloops.

The award recognizes designers who "push the limits" of wood design in buildings such as offices, stores, clubhouses and other spaces. Nominees show the special qualities of their wood including strength, beauty, versatility and cost-effectiveness, according to a news release from the design firm.

Looking at pictures of the clubhouse itself, it's like a pretty wooden island in the middle of nowhere.

Nestled in the midst of a vast golf course, small mountains and a river bordering it on all sides, it's got a "heavy masonry wall" that blends into its landscape, butterfly roof design lifting up and out to the rolling land and large windows that provide guests a panoramic view of the surrounding course.

"The use of wood was key in this contemporary design to keeping the building warm and giving it a sense of timeless beauty," said Andreas Kaminski, principal of a|k|a Architecture and Design.

Fairmont gets new director of group sales

The Chateau Whistler is getting a new director of group sales.

Carole Eberhard began her career at the Whistler Resort Association (now known as Tourism Whistler) as a sales coordinator. She later moved on to companies such as Tourism Vancouver, the Sundial Boutique Hotel and the Westin Resort and Spa.

She comes to the Fairmont from the Pan Pacific Whistler Mountainside and Village Centre, where she worked as director of sales and marketing.

Eberhard also holds a bachelor of arts in English literature from the University of Western Ontario.