Kiwi Curated
A Very Merry Holiday Staycation
There’s no place like home for the holidays. But if home is a little too familiar this year, a hotel staycation may just be the perfect Christmas escape. Pull out all the stops like Kevin McCallister in Home Alone 2 and check yourself into a luxury five-star dressed to the nines in Yuletide cheer. You may just discover that Santa Claus does indeed visit hotels.
A Very Merry Holiday Staycation
With its snowy mountain backdrop, Edgewood Tahoe Resort has a competitive edge on Christmas vibes, but it doesn’t rely solely on Mother Nature to set the scene. They dress the place up in twinkling lights, of course, but also the sound of live guitar. There’s the letter to Santa writing workshops, holiday-inspired happy hours and a snowshoe experience to the property’s Veuve Chalet. For an unconventional memento from this unconventional year, book an appointment with the caricature artist they’re bringing in.
VIEW HOTELA Very Merry Holiday Staycation
Take the English countryside setting Cameron Diaz’s Amanda character in The Holiday enjoys with the contemporary stylings of the LA pad she leaves to Kate Winslet’s “Iris” and you have Coworth Park. While no Jude Law is guaranteed, festive spirit is. Rooms can be decorated in holiday sparkle for you, and there’s all sorts of Christmas-themed activities, including watching HM The Queen’s Christmas Broadcast, which we look forward to seeing replicated in a future episode of The Crown.
VIEW HOTELA Very Merry Holiday Staycation
How does spending the holidays in the world’s largest log cabin sound? Built with 10,000 red cedar logs all cut and placed by hand, Fairmont Le Chateau Montebello is the cabin in the woods you’ve always wanted to spend the holidays cozied up in. The five-wing hotel will play host to an array of Yuletide festivities, including dream catcher workshops and skating disco nights (BYOS – bring your own skates). Come Christmas morning, feel right at home when the main lobby plays host to a grab-and-go pajama breakfast. For the parents, swing back by a bit later for a hot chocolate and Baileys.
VIEW HOTELA Very Merry Holiday Staycation
Welcomed by lights and a familiar smell of cinnamon and cookies, Belmond Reid’s Palace will instantly get you in the holiday spirit. Lapped by the Atlantic, Christmas visitors are encouraged to relax by the pool under the balmy Madeiran sun as a local choir serenades with rousing carols and pastry chefs are on hand to help master the art of making Broas de mel, or Madeiran Christmas cookies. On the 25th, Saint Nick arrives to give out Christmas stockings and gifts in the winter sun.
VIEW HOTELA Very Merry Holiday Staycation
With the only oceanfront ice rink on the West Coast, Pasea Hotel & Spa creates a magical winter wonderland where the sand meets the snow. A Christmas in Surf City USA means cozy fire pits on the shoreline with plenty of cocoa, boozy eggnog served up in ornaments and funnel cakes. Huntington Beach also puts on a show with dazzling holiday lights strung along its Main Street. A part of the city’s ’12 Blocks of Cheer’ holiday campaign, visitors can also take part in private holiday boat tours around Huntington Harbour.
VIEW HOTELA Very Merry Holiday Staycation
The Roosevelt New Orleans pulls out all the stops for Christmas, and this year, albeit a little different, keeps that spirit alive. The lobby is as festively lit as ever—don’t even attempt counting all the lights—and its Teddy Bear Tea with Santa and Mrs. Claus carries on just with that extra space needed. Their Réveillon Dinner, a unique Louisiana tradition is another special way to dine-in.
VIEW HOTELA Very Merry Holiday Staycation
Tis the season of Aloha and in true Hawaiian fashion, Santa and his elves will arrive at Wailea Beach at Grand Wailea on a decorated Hawaiian outrigger canoe. Both guests and Maui locals can join in the fun to watch Santa paddle to shore and hand out candy canes. Come nightfall, stroll the more than eight miles of white lights strung along the monkeypod trees lining the resort’s driveway entrance.
VIEW HOTELA Very Merry Holiday Staycation
Skip the crowded house but keep all the cheer this holiday season at the newly-open Viceroy Washington DC, where a full-floor buyout may just be the perfect gift for families seeking plenty of space. Spacious rooms and suites that can be decorated with personalized holiday décor will have the whole gang relaxed and stretched out for holiday movie night. Minibars stocked with hot chocolate, cider and mini marshmallows are the secret ingredients for that just-like-home feeling.
VIEW HOTEL