‘Footloose in San Francisco’ Package

San Francisco’s unique neighborhoods are best explored on foot.The Washington Square Inn has a new “Footloose in San Francisco” package offering a chance to do just that.
    “Footloose in San Francisco” includes 20 percent off regular room rates at the Washington Square Inn, plus a $20 credit per couple toward any of Walk SF Tours’ escorted walks. Depending upon the date they visit, guests may choose the Chinatown & North Beach Tasting Tour with food tastings, the Beats in San Francisco Tour with entrance to the Beat Museum, or the Gold Rush Drinking Tour with cocktails and appetizers. No matter which tour they choose, guests are sure to get a guide who is well-versed in the city’s history and lore.
    With the 20 percent discount, room rates for the package range from $159.20 to $279.20, depending upon the room and date selected. (Regular rates are $199 to $349 per room.) Walk SF Tours range from $30 to $60 per person, depending upon the tour chosen; package guests apply their $20 per couple discount to those rates. “Footloose in San Francisco” is offered daily, now through April 30, holidays and special event days excluded.
    The 15-room Washington Square Inn has a prime North Beach location, San Francisco’s “Little Italy,” fronting Washington Square Park.
    Guests of the Washington Square Inn enjoy a complimentary European-style breakfast every morning, afternoon wine and hors d’oeuvres, free wireless Internet access and many other amenities. All rooms in the renovated 1910 building have private baths, and some have fireplaces, bay windows or other architectural features.
    For reservations or more information, visit the web site at wsisf.com, or call (800) 388-0220.

                                                                                    —Submitted by Sharon J. Rooney

Cliveden holds on to its storied history

The entrance to Cliveden, top, the shell fountain and the 1668 date.

Story & Photos By Stan Wawer

It was the proverbial dark and stormy night. The wind whistled across the great expanse of lawn and gardens that extended down to the River Thames. Rain battered the windows. I sipped a glass of Ruinart French champagne as I sat in front of a flickering fireplace reading Stephen King’s “Bag of Bones.”

   It was the worst storm in 12 years in the United Kingdom, and here I was with my wife at Cliveden House, a half-hour out of London, in a perfect setting to write a great mystery novel.

   The Sir Percy Blakeney suite was our second-floor sanctuary. It overlooked the gardens and the Thames. Sir Percy, the infamous Scarlet Pimpernel, was made famous in the novels created by Hungarian novelist Baroness Orczy (1865-1947). It was Sir Percy who gave his name to the hotel group, Blakeney Hotels Ltd., which once ran the Royal Crescent as well as Cliveden House and the Sloane Club London. The Relais & Chateaux resort is now privately owned.

   Cliveden House is in Taplow, Berkshire County; a stone’s throw from Windsor Castle. History prevails at Cliveden — from George Villiers, second duke of Buckingham, to Lord and Lady Astor (the former American Nancy Langhorne who died in 1964).

   Guests at Cliveden can play indoor and outdoor tennis, go boating, ride horses, hike, swim, do some clay pigeon shooting, archery, fishing, golf (two local courses are available to guests including the prestigious Lambourne Golf Club) and enjoy the complete spa experience. If you so desire, you can even learn to play polo at Ascot Polo Club. I’m persona non grata on the polo field. The sport discriminates against lefties. I could play but I would have to play right handed.

   The gorgeous outdoor pool within the Pavilion was commissioned by Lord Astor for Lady Astor to deter her from swimming in the River Thames. An indoor pool compliments it; complete spa, six treatment rooms, fully equipped gymnasium and separate men’s and ladies’ steam rooms and sauna.

   A stoic porter, who welcomes you with a tip of his bowler, greets Cliveden guests at the main entrance. Once you get passed the registration desk, you are standing in the great hall, with its grandiose fireplace, portrait of Lady Astor as a young woman, statues and portraits of other former Cliveden residents. The library also has a fireplace and a view of the gardens and Thames. It is the site of afternoon tea, a British staple.

   One of Cliveden’s main attractions is Spring Cottage. It derives its name from the nearby mineral spring that was a favorite picnic spot for Frederick Prince of Wales in the 18^th century.

   When the Duke and Duchess of Sutherland purchased Cliveden in the mid 19^th century, the Duchess added the cottage and created a riverside paradise. The Duchess was Queen Victoria’s favorite lady-in-waiting, and it was at Spring Cottage, in the small, elegant retreat, that they could talk alone. Spring Cottage sleeps six and runs from $3,057 a night. Spring Cottage, lovingly restored under the strict supervision of the National Trust, is available as a romantic hideaway. Upon arrival, guests find hampers of wine, spirits and luxurious provisions a their disposal, all included in the price.

   The Duke of Buckingham bought the Cliveden estate in 1666 and built the original house. He employed architect William Winde to design a tall house over a massive terrace platform, an arrangement that was likened at the time to villas at Frascati to the east of Rome.

   On our walk around the grounds, my wife and I came across a duelist’s sword and a date, 1668, marked with stones in Cliveden’s southeast lawn. This emblem, we later learned, commemorates the duel between the second duke of Buckingham and Lord Shrewsbury at Barn Elms, near Putney.

The Duke found Cliveden convenient for political intrigue and a life of scandal. He had a reputation of being immoral, a wit and a literary figure. The Duke also was King Charles II’s most influential minister.

   Villiers had a mistress, the Countess of Shrewsbury. On her account, or in her honor, depending on your point of view, he fought a famous duel in which he killed her husband, the Earl of Shrewsbury.

The second duke of Buckingham died in 1687. A George Villiers painting hangs in Cliveden’s great hall, on the same wall as a portrait of Lady Shrewsbury.

   Following Buckingham’s death, several leading families and Frederick, Prince of Wales, occupied Cliveden; Frederick from 1737 until his death in 1751.

On the second day of our stay, my wife’s arthritis forced us to use the elevator to our second-floor room. Hopefully, the elevator (lift) has been repaired since our stay. The tiny elevator (three’s a crowd) was slow and stopped with a jolt. By our third trip, we figured out the timing. We braced ourselves for the stop by spreading our arms and legs and putting pressure against the front and back walls of the lift. It gave us a good laugh and startled a maid when the door opened, while helping us to keep our minds off the weather.

   In 1850, the renowned Sir Charles Barry designed the existing Cliveden House for the Duke of Sutherland. Barry also created the House of Parliament and reconfigured the 1679-built Highclere Castle in Newbury. Highclere is used as the set for the popular “Downton Abbey,” which appears Sunday evenings on PBS. The Duke purchased Cliveden from the estate of Sir George Warrender the previous year but soon afterward the house was destroyed by fire.

   Barry’s rebuilding reasserted the Italianate character suggested by the 17^th-century terraces on the south side. The house is built in brick, faced with Roman cement and ornamented with terracotta capitals, balusters and finials. It is on 376 acres of parkland so incredible that the National Trust suggests it is one of the top 10 gardens in England. In 1942 Waldorf, Second Viscount Astor, presented Cliveden and its grounds to the National Trust.

   Dining at Cliveden is an elegant affair. The Boudoir and the Tote Room, just off the great hall, has enough ambiance to last a lifetime, with a view of the rear gardens and the Thames. The splendid French dining room has one of the finest examples of original examples of Madame de Pompadour 18^th century paneling outside of France. Cliveden also has Waldo’s and the Cellar Dining Room — an original house cellar — restored during the 1890s by the Astor family. It is an unusual room with great character and atmosphere.

   If you do not want to put on that coat and tie one night, you can get casual dining at Feathers, an authentic English pub a quarter-mile down the road and across the street from Cliveden. Feathers has superb fish and chips and Guinness on tap. Queen Victoria refused to eat at Feathers during her stay at Cliveden — too common. It was off limits to her staff. My wife and I loved the place.

   As you wind up the road from the main entrance, you will come upon the Shell Fountain or Fountain of Love. William Waldorf Astor commissioned the fountain in 1897 from his fellow American, the fashionable sculptor Thomas Waldo Story. Story had a studio in Rome (where Lord Astor spent many years as US minister) and executed a number of sculptures for Cliveden. According to Lord Astor, the female figures around the massive Siena marble shell are “supposed to have discovered the fountain of love and to be experiencing the effects of its wonderful elixir.”

   Long Garden is an Italianate arrangement of formal topiary and statues laid out by Lord Astor around 1900. At the end of Long Garden the ground begins to slope westward across an open glade whose focus is the Blenheim Pavilion, designed around 1727 for Lord Orkney, who had been one of the Duke of Marlborough’s generals. Its architect was the Italian immigrant Giacomo Leoni.

   Farther down the slope toward the river there survives the grass amphitheater, which seems to have provided the setting for the performance in 1740 of “The Masque of Alfred,” in which Thomas Arne’s “Rule, Britannia” was first sung.

   There’s a set of steep steps leading down to the Thames that can leave you breathless. If you do fitness infomercials, you probably can make it down and back without assistance. I tried, but I quit less than halfway up. I sat on one of the steps and refused to move until my wife called me a wimp. I do not recommend crawling up about 50 steps.

   The architect Henry Clutton added the ornate clock tower in 1861. It was based on a design by Sir Charles Barry for Trentham, the Duke of Sutherland’s house in Straffordshire. Later, the first Lord Astor had the bronze sculptural enrichments added to the clock faces.

   The south terrace remains much as it was built by the Duke of Buckingham in 1668. From the terrace you look out at the parterre and the Thames. To the west of the parterre, on the slope toward the river, the first Lord Astor laid out an Italianate sculpture garden in 1902. It had tufa walls, a mosaic pavement and numerous fragments of ancient sculpture. In 1917-18 this garden was adapted as a cemetery for those who had died in the Canadian Red Cross Hospital (which had been built on the Cliveden estate). It is now known as the War Memorial Garden.

   Lady Astor was one of England’s great hostesses. She invited a number of famous people to Cliveden, including such luminaries as Charlie Chaplin, T.S. Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia) and socialist playwright George Bernard Shaw.

   Her son Bill (William) lived at Cliveden but got involved in the 1961 Profumo scandal. Albeit Bill Astor was exonerated from any wrongdoing, the scandal took its toll on him and he died in 1966. John Profumo was England’s Secretary of War. He had an affair with Christine Keeler. Keeler and Mandy Rice Davies frequently attended parties at Spring Cottage, which were thrown by Stephen Ward, a friend of William Astor.

  Profumo’s affair took place while Keeler was seeing a Russian diplomat. The ensuing scandal led to the eventual downfall of Harold McMillan’s government.

Cliveden has a high price tag but it is a place of overwhelming charm and a fascinating history.

If you go

   Prices at Cliveden range from $415 to $2,592 a night. For information or reservations go to the website at www.clivedenhouse.co.uk/index.aspx.

   Getting there: British Airways flies from LAX to London Heathrow. Economy (lowest) fare online is $1,043 roundtrip; $6,622 business and $19,227 first class.

Virgin Atlantic from LAX to Heathrow online is $945 economy and $5,883 upper class.

   All information is accurate at the time of publication but prices, dates and other details are all subject to change. Confirm all information before making any travel arrangements. 

Arizona’s Canyon Country

The Grand Canyon, top, and Snoopy Rock in Sedona.

Story & Photos By Stan Wawer

Every time I visit the region around Flagstaff, Arizona, I go to the dictionary in search of adjectives. Unfortunately, there are no adjectives that properly describe the grandeur of the Grand Canyon, the red rock country in and around Sedona or the eclectic scenery of Oak Creek Canyon.

The Grand Canyon, the world’s most famous natural wonder, keeps the un-huddled masses coming back. This geological miracle, however, isn’t the only reason people vacation in Canyon Country.

Tourist attractions abound in this Southwestern state that time has kissed with impressive grandiosity. Among the more famous attractions in the region are Oak Creek Canyon, Sycamore Canyon, Sedona and the cliff dwellings of Flagstaff.

The mystifying Wupatki, the ruins of more than 800 rock dwellings, are 25 miles north of Flagstaff on U.S. 89. Visitors can stroll through the mists of time among the ruins on steep, paved trails. It is well worth a look at the wonder of these caves inhabited by the Wupatki thousands of years ago.

Flagstaff, the Grand Canyon, Oak Creek Canyon and Sedona can be reached by taking Highway 40 through Needles, where Snoopy’s brother Spike hangs out. From Flagstaff, you can take 180 north to the Grand Canyon and 179 south through Oak Creek Canyon and into Sedona. The area can be reached in six to 10 hours from San Gabriel Valley.

Flagstaff has excellent family accommodations and the area has many campsites. Sedona also offers excellent family accommodations and campsites.

The grand Canyon’s north rim features the virgin pine forest of Kaibab Plateau and viewpoints 1,200 feet higher than those of the better-known south rim. The north rim is not as accessible as the south rim. It can be reached from Arizona 67. It is closed in the winter.

The south rim is more popular, with easy access and incredible views and the perfect end to a 215-mile trip from rim to rim. Adventure abounds at the Grand Canyon, from hikes or donkey rides to the canyon floor to a ride on the Grand Canyon Railway, which takes visitors for a nostalgic trip from the south rim to Williams.

Oak Creek Canyon, albeit along a steep and winding highway, delights millions of visitors with its readily accessible fantasyland of red rock cliffs, carved through shady forestland by a cascading mountain stream. Oak Creek Canyon has a half-dozen national forest campgrounds and Slide Rock State Park. Slide Rock is developed around a natural water slide, smoothed in the stone creek bottom over centuries and a favorite recreational point for generations.

While Oak Creek Canyon provides the route for U.S. 89A, considered one of the nation’s eight top scenic highways, nearby Sycamore Canyon has no roads at all. Sycamore, a wildly beautiful, remote wilderness, is accessible only to hikers and horseback riders.

Known worldwide for its red-rock beauty, Sedona is 120 miles north of Phoenix and 30 miles south of Flagstaff, at an altitude of 4,500 feet. Sedona is completely surrounded by the Coconino National Forest. Western author Zane Grey put Sedona on the map.

A delightful transition between desert and mountain, Sedona’s moderate, four-season climate makes it a perfect year-round retreat.

Sedona offers the visitor a full range of resort amenities — accommodations to suit all pocketbooks, dining that ranges from casual to gourmet, unlimited recreational opportunities and the beauty of the red rocks, including such rock formations as Chimney Rock, Coffee Pot Rock, Cathedral Rock, Bell Rock, Two Nuns across from the Chapel of the Holy Cross, Elephant Rock, Snoopy Rock and Lucy Rock.

All information is accurate at the time of publication but prices, dates and other details are all subject to change. Confirm all information before making any travel arrangements. 

Sleeping Giant Ski Area Offering $20 Lift Tickets With Ski and Stay Package

Spring break skiers with big dreams and small budgets will find a bargain at Cody, Wyoming’s Sleeping Giant Ski Area. This non-profit, family-friendly ski area located west of Cody is offering a “Ski and Stay” package in partnership with several lodging properties in the Cody area.
   The package includes up to four full-day $20 lift tickets for skiers staying in a participating hotel. Hotels cover a broad spectrum of budgets and styles, including charming guest ranches, luxurious boutique inns and budget-focused, family-friendly hotels.
   Lift tickets normally cost $30 for adults ages 19-69, $24 for juniors ages 13–18, $14 for children ages 6–12. Lift tickets are free for skiers 70 or older and five years and under.
   Located 50 miles west of the town of Cody, Sleeping Giant Ski Area is operated by the non-profit Yellowstone Recreations Foundation. The mission of the foundation is to provide affordable family skiing and to offer ski education to Cody-area children. All fifth-graders in the region ski for free.
   “Spring break skiers might have sticker shock when they price lift tickets for some other Western ski resorts, and that’s exactly what Sleeping Giant Ski Area avoids,” said Claudia Wade, director of the Park County Travel Council, the marketing arm for Buffalo Bill’s Cody/Yellowstone Country. “Sleeping Giant is a community hill with skiers who care more about old-fashioned skiing fun than the newest fashions in ski attire. The ski area is as laid back as the community of Cody, and we hope to welcome many like-minded visitors to the region this winter.”
   First opened in 1936, Sleeping Giant is one of the country’s oldest ski areas. When it reopened five years ago after a multi-year closure, the ski area unveiled a much-lauded terrain park that is one of the few in the country that was constructed almost entirely of materials found on the hill.
   And when it is time to take a break from the powder, visitors to Cody will find plenty of other things to do. The region is home to world-class museums and attractions including the Buffalo Bill Center of the West, Heart Mountain WWII Interpretive Center and Tecumseh’s Old West Miniature Village and Museum as well as numerous museums and galleries. And there are a wealth of other outdoor adventures including ice-climbing, Nordic skiing, snow shoeing, snowmobiling, snowcoaching and winter wildlife-watching.
   The Park County Travel Council website (www.yellowstonecountry.org) lists information about vacation packages, special events, guide services, weather and more. Travelers wishing to arrange a vacation can also call the Park County Travel Council at (800) 393-2639.

—Submitted by Mona Mesereau

National Park Service Fee-Free Days

Some of the best things in life are free, particularly in national parks. The National Park Service knows this, and so does concessioner Xanterra Parks & Resorts.

The National Park Service is offering six opportunities in 2014 to enjoy national parks without paying an entrance fee. Those dates are Jan. 20, Martin Luther King Jr. Day; Feb. 15–17, Presidents’ Day weekend; April 19-20, National Park Week’s opening weekend; Aug. 25, National Park Service birthday; Sept. 27, National Public Lands Day; and Nov. 11, Veterans Day Weekend.

Xanterra operates lodges, restaurants, gift shops, tours and activities in Yellowstone, Death Valley, Grand Canyon, Zion, Crater Lake, Glacier, Rocky Mountain and Petrified Forest National Parks and Mount Rushmore National Memorial. Xanterra also operates Grand Canyon Railway, which provides daily train trips to the Grand Canyon.

Some national park lodges are seasonal and not open during all fee-free days. For example, in Yellowstone National Park, the two winter season lodges are open from mid-December through early March, and the nine summer season lodges open and close on a staggered schedule from mid-May to mid-October. Other summer season lodges are in Crater Lake and Glacier National Park. And in Death Valley, the Inn at Furnace Creek is open from mid-October through mid-May while the Ranch at Furnace Creek is open year-round.

Many lodges offer discounts and packages that help stretch vacation dollars even more.

Here are 10 ideas for free national park activities on fee-free weekends and throughout the year.

1. Wish on a star. Stargazing is a simple, free, safe and inspirational activity for the whole family. Because there is already minimal exterior lighting surrounding the lodges in most national parks, guests need only walk a few steps away from them to observe the night sky in relative quiet. Recently recognized by the International Dark Sky Association and among the darkest of the national parks, California’s Death Valley National Park features some of the finest stargazing this side of Mars.
2. Compare china patterns. The Bright Angel History Room in Grand Canyon’s Bright Angel Lodge includes displays of early Fred Harvey Company china patterns, crystal and sample menus. The Fred Harvey Company in partnership with the Santa Fe Railway is credited with attracting tourism to the Grand Canyon and throughout the West by offering excellent food at a good value in restaurants at stops along the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway route.
3. Aim high. Some hikers have called it one of the best short hikes in a national park. Though only five miles round trip, the hike to Angel’s Landing in Utah’s Zion National Park is a strenuous but breathtakingly beautiful hike. The view from the top of Angel’s Landing is worth the 21 steep switchbacks — called “Walter’s Wiggles” — and the final white-knuckle half mile. This is a hike for experienced trekkers who have no fear of heights. Take a deep breath at the top. And then look at the view. You won’t forget it.
4. Go low. At 282 feet below sea level, Badwater Basin in California’s Death Valley National Park is one of the lowest places in the world. The vast salt flats are typically bone-dry but can turn into a ready-made lake after a big rainstorm. Look up at a mountainside sign marking sea level posted well above the Badwater Basin viewpoint. No, up a little higher. Feeling small yet?
5. Walk in the footsteps of presidents. Six presidents — and Three Stooges — have stayed at Yellowstone’s Old Faithful Inn. It was built for $140,000 in 1904 and is one of the most famous buildings in any national park. A Xanterra historian tells travelers about the inn’s colorful history during free walking tours offered several times a day throughout the summer.
6. Make a snowball — in June. In Oregon’s remote Crater Lake National Park, winter weather appears from October through June, when the very last of the snow melts. Snow in July isn’t uncommon either. Historic Crater Lake Lodge is open mid-May through mid-October, and guests are advised to be prepared for any kind of weather.
7. Discover borax. Xanterra’s interesting and slightly quirky Borax Museum at the family-friendly Ranch at Furnace Creek in Death Valley National Park shows how a simple chemical was largely responsible for the fortunes and misfortunes of many a miner, and how it was responsible for bringing tourism to this California desert. Many ancient mining tools, antique stagecoaches and even a steam locomotive are on display.
8. Listen to music. Yellowstone guests can experience free live music on summer evenings in the elegant Lake Yellowstone Hotel, Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel and the Old Faithful Inn. The string quartet concert on many summer nights in the  sunroom of Lake Yellowstone Hotel is so popular that in-the-know visitors arrive early for the seats with the best views of the sun setting over the lake. The pianist in the Mammoth Hotel is happy to accommodate requests — and he knows nearly all of them by heart.
9. Travel to the sun. Borrowing its name from a nearby mountain, Glacier National Park’s famous Going-to-the-Sun Road inspires photographers, artists and dreamers from around the world. Take a free National Park Service shuttle and settle in to enjoy the views. 
10. Spot a rare bird. The Grand Canyon is home to around 75 free-flying California condors, one of the rarest birds in the world. While they won’t win any beauty contests in the birding world, these massive birds — the largest land-based bird in North America — are elegant as they gracefully soar over the Canyon. With a wingspan of up to 9 ½ feet and weighing up to 22 pounds, they are relatively easy to spot.