Pamper yourself with a stay at one of these luxury hideaways within driving distance of Arlington. Keswick Hall is something special. My visit to the resort near Charlottesville was a long time coming. But life intervened. Tucked into a tree-lined enclave in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Keswick Hall has been many things since it was built in βprivate residence, country club, boutique hotelβpassing through a handful of owners, including Sir Bernard Ashley, husband of Laura Ashley yes, that Laura Ashley.
When the current proprietors, Molly and Robert Hardie, took full ownership in they also own the Hermitage Hotel in Nashville , they had a grand vision for the property.
Sparkling and pet-friendly, Keswick reopened to the public in October , reestablishing its reputation as not only an excellent home base for vineyard-hopping, but a world-class destination unto itself. I contemplated buying a caftan for post-spa pool lounging but dared not look at the price tag. I texted my family group chatβ In the spa for the next hour. Dad is in charge βdonned a fluffy robe, stashed my belongings in a locker and emerged into a vast relaxation room overlooking a field of wildflowers and its attendant butterflies, birds and deer.
There I satβamid weighted blankets and sound-therapy devices, antioxidant chlorophyll-infused water and fresh fruitβwhile I waited for my therapist, Shanise, to retrieve me. And that is the last thing I remember. And I remember the massage table, heated and bolstered in all the right spots, and how she went to work untangling the knots that had taken up residence in my muscles since the last time I treated myself to a massage, well before Covid.
But all of that became a hazy recollection, melted in a puddle of boneless-ness, swaddled in a cocoon of oblivion. The only thing I know for sure is that I unplugged myself for 60 glorious minutes, and when I opened my eyes, I did not want to go back to reality.
