My Generation August 2010 - Keep Me Current

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A rowboat in waiting: guests will catch a ride back to their windjammer after an
island excursion. Courtesy photo by Fred LeBlanc
High-end vacations: Luxury, not leisure
(Continued from Page 9)
Jane Barrett Barnes, leads nightly tastings
and discussions.
“It’s a small, intimate group, and you really
get to learn a lot about wine,” said Maiden.
The wine cruises include meals cooked on
the ship’s woodstove paired with wines. Each
night, the 20 guests sample wines from eight
bottles featuring wines from a different country.
For a six-day tour, the price per person is
$1,138.
Dedicated foodies can also spend their time
in Maine not just sampling the local cuisine,
but also taking part in its harvest and preparation.
Guests at the Inn by the Sea in Cape
Elizabeth – the only place in Maine that has
a certifi cate from Virtuoso, a high-end network
that selects the best of the best of the
best in luxury travel – can catch their own
lobsters or join the inn’s executive chef as he
selects ingredients from Portland markets.
Cruises on the Lucky Catch offer an opportunity
for guests to pull their own traps
and then purchase those same lobsters for a
private lobster bake, at one of the inn’s cottages.
Packages start at $709 per night for
four people. There is an additional $100 surcharge
for a private lobster bake.
The inn also offers a foodie package. Starting
at $755 per night, guests get some one-onone
time with Mitchell Kaldrovich, executive
chef at the inn’s Sea Glass restaurant, who
will shop with guests and then invite them
him into his kitchen, where he teaches them
how to create the evening’s repast.
“He works really hard to fi nd fresh produce
from neighborhood farms or the sea,”
said Rauni Kew, of the Inn by the Sea, who
noted that using local ingredients is important
to the chef.
“He really celebrates Maine food in a big
way. He actually puts the grower and farm
names on the menu to show people where
the food is coming from.”
Active guests can also take classes on how
to grow a garden suitable for wildlife habitat
in their own yards (the inn is surrounded by
both certifi ed wildlife habitat and butterfl y
weigh stations) or take guided canoe or kayak
tours with an Audubon guide to learn about
local wildlife on the nearby marsh.
Ready to relax yet?
Luxury doesn’t always have to mean staying
busy all the time. Guests and day trippers
alike can indulge in some leisure time at the
inn’s spa, which offers an authentically Maine
“Sea Wave” massage for $150. The 90-minute
treatment features an undulating bed that
mimics the ebb and fl ow of marine motion
and sounds of the nearby sea.
“So it’s the ultimate Maine coastal experience,”
said Kew. “You really feel as if you’re
at the beach having that massage.”
Bob Fontaine of Thos. Moser, left, partnered with customer Ted Bryant of
Richmond, Va., to build a Windward One Place in Walnut. Courtesy photo
A lobster feast, complete with corn, potatoes and all the fi xings, is the highlight of
every windjammer cruise. Courtesy photo by Jim Dugan