Kiawah Island Golf Resort, South Carolina
The arrival of an exceptional new hotel on Kiawah Island has the golf and beach resort buzzing.
By Simone Girner
While the great Kiawah outdoors beckon, the Sanctuary also offers serious pampering at the end of (or instead of) an active day. I spent a blissful afternoon at the hotel's spa—which has twelve sunny treatment rooms, a long list of facial and body therapies and a well-equipped fitness center—and not once did I worry about missing out on other activities. By the main pool, which has a bubbling fountain at its center, I overheard an athletic-looking man confessing to his companion that he was taking the day off from the links. He didn't sound one bit sorry. The beach that unfolds in front of the hotel like a silky sarong was the ideal place for an early-morning yoga session followed by a bike ride on the firm sand (ten miles of pristine shoreline wrap around the island).
The opening of the Sanctuary also expanded the island's dining options, which had previously been limited to the golf courses' clubhouses and the inn's small restaurant. The Ocean Room, the hotel's signature restaurant, may be a touch too formal for the breezy island setting—it features an abundance of dark mahogany, heavy chandeliers and a jackets-required policy—but chef Chris Brandt's New American cuisine is excellent, particularly his creative take on seafood. I personally preferred the more casual Jasmine Porch, with its exposed brick walls, humming ceiling fans and white-oak floors. Sitting on the candlelit porch with a steaming plate of Charleston shrimp and grits before me, I barely recalled that both the Sanctuary and I had just recently arrived on Kiawah.
On my final day, I wandered into the sales office of the Kiawah Island Development Partners, where I was not surprised to learn that the approximately fifty plots released for construction annually are always snapped up immediately. In the back of the office hung a detailed Kiawah time line that described how in 1782 a progressive general named Nathaniel Greene negotiated a truce with the British for the island. Kiawah, he decided, would be a place where American soldiers would rest and relax, a safe haven from the Revolution's battlefields. Driving away from the Sanctuary through the rows of replanted oak trees, I thought about how appropriate it was that this enchanting place on South Carolina's coast had been a sanctuary some two centuries before modern-day travelers discovered and reclaimed it as such. I could only imagine the stories those lofty trees might tell.
Kiawah Island Golf Resort is a forty-five-minute drive from Charleston, South Carolina. If you plan on taking day trips off the island, it's best to rent a car at the airport. The resort can also arrange for transportation. The Sanctuary: doubles, $275–$625 per night; suites, $725–$4,500 per night. 877-683-1234; thesanctuary.com. Visitors can also rent private homes, an option often preferred by families and larger groups. Always ask to see photos of the home, as properties vary greatly in their location, size and design scheme. Kiawah Resort rentals: villas, $585–$4,300 per week; premium homes, $1,860–$13,650 per week. 800-654-2924; kiawahresort.com.
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