Schloss Elmau: Part 1

Less than two hours south of Munich, near the enchanted Bavarian town of Garmisch, lies Schloss Elmau, the most magical hideaway I’ve encountered in recent time. I had a whirlwind visit 13 months ago, and have been raving about it ever since, and this time, accompanied by my daughter, Abby, and friends, we planned for a little more R&R time. We were invited to come and experience the Elmau Retreat, an intimate 47-suite “hotel within the hotel” which was under construction during our last stay and opened in spring, 2015, just in time to host the prestigious G7 Summit which took place last June.

I was more than a little worried gazing out of the window at the lack of snow on the German countryside on the final approach to land and worried that some of our outdoor winter pursuits would be scuppered. But those fears were temporarily forgotten as I dealt with the painful rituals of lost luggage and later allayed altogether as there was considerable more snow as we started to gain elevation and make our way into mountains (and then it proceeded to snow another 10” while we were there!). It was a spectacular winter wonderland with boughs of stately pine trees heavily laden with snow.

We were welcomed warmly by my friend, Nikoli Bloyd, an affable and handsome host who heralds from California and looks like an ex-surf star on “Baywatch.” He also happens to be a master-sommelier and an extremely capable, energetic and intuitive General Manager—one of the best I know. Abby and I were shown to “Summit Suite” #738, a capacious 125 sq meters, which would be home for the next four nights. (It also happens to be where German Chancellor, Andrea Merkel, stayed during the G7! ) Words almost fail me to describe the panoramic views – but let’s start with jaw-dropping… three walls of the bedroom are plate glass with French doors that open onto snow-covered balconies which must be wonderful in summer. The bedroom is sparsely furnished in a Frank Lloyd Wright type of way so as to not detract in any way from vistas of the alpine wilderness that surrounds the property. The oversized bathroom and separate living room had amazing views as well.

Welcome amenities on the coffee table included a beautifully presented plate of German charcuterie and cheeses, still-warm soft pretzels, some gorgeous petit fors, home made chocolates AND a bottle of sauvignon blanc (Nikolai remembered it was my favorite) from Napa’s “Dancing Crow Vineyard” whose owner, Tony Cartlidge (a self-proclaimed “over the hill benign dictator!”) was also in residence at The Retreat celebrating a birthday!

There is high speed complimentary and easy-to-use wifi EVERYWHERE in the resort (as it should be) and all sorts of high tech gadgets in the room including multiple Apple TV’s, Nespresso machine, light sensors that turn on to 30% if you got up in the night and a Toto toilet with a 14” control panel that I never managed to quite figure out but the lid automatically sensed your presence and opened and closed without touching it! Not having anything to unpack, we tucked into a Thai lunch at Tutto Mondo on the ground floor still drinking in the stunning views. Even though the mountain peaks were obscured by low-lying clouds and snow flurries, it was still spectacular.

We were introduced to a white wine grape varietal, Gruner Veltliner, which we loved and became our go-to drink in the absence of New Zealand Sav Blanc! We were in “The Tyrol” after all!! Its dry taste, golden color and slight effervescence are distinctive and the best ones come from Austria. We rushed off to much needed 4 PM “physio-relax” spa appointments, and one of Scloss Elmau’s signatures is the bold colored velour bathrobes for each guest — ours a teal blue and rosy pink. This was followed by a dip in the outdoor salt water pool (heated to 98 degrees) watching snowflakes melt on noses and eyelashes!

We ventured into the next door to the 100-room main hotel, “the schloss,” (also called “the castle”) which is about a 100-yard walk, but with the snow, and my lack of boots, we opted for the 3 minute shuttle which goes back and forth all day to go to dinner at the Kaminstrubel (Fondue) Restaurant, which was a favorite from our prior visit, and now we felt fully indoctrinated into the region with both a cheese fondue for dipping bread and a broth fondue for shrimp, beef, and veggies. After saying a silent prayer for the safe delivery of my luggage, I tucked into my down duvet, cocoon-like, and succumbed to a deep slumber.

Day 2:
In spite of the jet lag, I awoke early and like Christmas come early, my bags were there and Abby and I dressed for a 9 AM yoga class… the hotel’s tag line for their program is “yoga without dogma” which I think is great and less intimidating for anyone who has not practiced before. In addition to the seasonal yoga retreats with visiting gurus, they offer two classes daily – usually at 9 AM and 4 PM. One of my travel companions was trying yoga for the first time and our teacher, Laurie, was great. The yoga studio is one of the most inspiring indoor places I’ve ever experienced with hard wood floor, huge windows with panoramic views and this morning was particularly stunning with heavy snow falling outside.

Afterward we met up with the rest of our party for a private session in the Turkish hammam which is surely the most attractive set up I’ve seen in any hotel. A few years ago in search of an authentic experience, when in Istanbul, I’d had the hair brained idea of taking Abby to the public hammam around the corner from the Four Seasons Sultanahmet Hotel; in spite of the extra towels, soap and amenities that the hotel had sent along, the experience was semi-traumatizing and definitely not for the immodest! Sumo-wrestler sized women in ill-fitting bikini type attire were scrubbing you with a menace and the experience shared by hundreds of naked strangers! Needless to say, the Schloss Elmau experience helped exorcise those ghosts… we changed into cotton wraps that resemble a Kenyan kikoy and started with a few minutes in the steam chamber. This was followed by the “peel,” which is a wet rub down on the heated marble surface with a special loofah type of cloth, and the lather process with an air bag pillow (made of cheese cloth into which the therapist blows air) that dispenses huge doses of foam and lather…I felt like a floating island dessert!

Feeling squeaky clean, we sipped restoring cordial glasses of traditional Turkish tea and donned outdoor gear and hiking boots for our afternoon hike to the “Alm Hutte,” an uphill 90 minute ascent to an enchanting little hut where we’d enjoy an amazing lunch. Nikoli joined us and issued walking poles, which proved incredibly useful in the fresh inches of snow, in spite of the groomed trail. A sumptuous spread was laid for our arrival including gluhwien, apricot schnapps and a potato-sausage soup… warming liquids that would gird me later for getting down the mountain. The idea was that we would hike up and sled down…. something I’ve not done for decades. We had a choice of wooden runner sleds or a plastic “bob,” (both of which looked as if designed for a 10 year old) and we had 5 separate downhill sections. I started on the runner, but quickly swapped out to a bob as it was a bit easier to use the feet as brakes! It was great fun and fortunately no broken bones (although a few bruises that grew like continents on my legs!).

We got back to the hotel just as the sun set over the hill and dressed for a symphonic concert that started at 7 PM. Culture is an integral part of the Schloss Elmau and the hotel is host to over 200 events per year celebrating classical music, jazz, literature and debate. They have the perfect venue – a chapel-like hall with great acoustics; admission is complimentary for guests in the hotel. Tonight featured Jan Vogler on violin and Martin Stadtfeld on piano performing a Bach Sonata. Afterwards, we made our way downstairs for a tasting menu at the Italian restaurant, Fidelio.