Pregnancy, August 2004
Pregnancy is a great time to get packing (though your aching back and swollen feet might suggest otherwise!). Taking a vacation will allow you to pamper yourself, spend some time with your significant other, and recharge in preparation for the sleepless nights ahead. There are several resorts, both in the US and abroad, that offer spa packages and other activities especially for expectant mothers. There are of course travel considerations for pregnant women, so take a look at the tips in “Before you go” before making any plans. But once you’ve checked in with your doctor and squared everything else away, choose one of these resorts and take off for that much-needed final fling!
Family Friendly
The Breakers Palm Beach, Palm Beach, Florida
Founded in 1896, this legendary Florida hotel is set on140 acres of oceanfront property and was once the playground of famous families like the Rockefellers, Vanderbilts and Astors. The luxurious resort is a great choice if you already have a little one— the hotel provides baby-proofing for rooms as well as nannies at an additional cost of $14 to $16 per hour for one child. The new Family Entertainment Center features an arcade, children’s movie room and a toddler’s playroom and craft area surrounded by glass windows, which allows parents to keep an eye on their children while dining at the adjacent Italian Restaurant.
The spa has a long list of treatments, including the 50-minute Maternity Massage ($130), which is designed to ease back and leg pain, sciatica and other pregnancy-related conditions. The hotel also offers a host of free daily fitness activities, including yoga and water aerobics.
Guests can dine at any of the eight restaurants, including the award-winning L’Escalier, and shop at the eight on-site boutiques. Cabana rentals are available at the Mediterranean-style Beach Club, complete with private showers, fresh fruit basket, bottled water, and skin and hair products, so that you can spend a day by the sea without having to schlep all the way back to your room for necessities.
Rooms at the Breakers start at $285 a night, but the hotel constantly offers specials. The Summer Savings package, which ends in September, offers discounts based on the length of stay. For example, a standard superior room is specially priced at $219 per room per night; for a three or four night stay, the rate is reduced to $199 per room per night, for five nights or more the rate is $179 per room per night.
For rates and additional information, call (888) BREAKERS or go to Thebreakers.com.
To Sur, With Love
Post Ranch Inn, Big Sur, California
It is said that the Post Ranch Inn is where couples come to get pregnant, but the romantic hotel makes an equally ideal spot for a pre-baby getaway after the fact. The 30-room inn overlooks the Pacific in Big Sur, California. There are few distractions—no televisions or alarm clocks in the rooms, and no children allowed. The rooms are secluded in five houses; each has a view of either the mountains or ocean, along with a king-size bed, pullout massage table and slate bath with windows that open so that you feel as if you’re bathing outside.
Such luxury doesn’t come cheap—rooms start at $485. The inn also offers packages like the Sweetheart Getaway ($2950) which includes three nights in the Tree House, four spa treatments, and champagne (with a non-alcoholic beverage for the mom-to-be, of course!) and caviar on arrival.
The Post Ranch Inn spa offers a one to two-hour prenatal massage with pillows
specifically designed for the expectant mother (1 hour: $125; 1.5 hours: $180; 2 hours: $245). They also offer private yoga, meditation and guided hikes through the Santa Lucia Mountains in addition to the complimentary group activities.
The hotel’s award-winning restaurant, Sierra Mar, overlooks the Pacific Ocean and serves a four-course, prix fixe meal that changes daily and uses organic, seasonal fare. If the restaurant isn’t quite intimate enough for you, you can have the staff pack a lunch, stake out a secluded spot in the woods and enjoy a private picnic.
For reservations, call (800) 527-2200 or go to Postranchinn.com
Body and Soul
The Body Holiday at Le Sport, St. Lucia
The motto at this Caribbean resort is “Give us your body for a week and we’ll give you back your mind.” And with good reason—Le Sport allows for one spa treatment per day, as well as host of fitness classes that include everything from water aerobics to archery. The vacation packages are designed to rejuvenate, and classes like relaxing yoga, stress management and meditation are meant to relieve stress and improve your quality of life even after you’ve left the resort.
Le Sport’s list of treatments includes the Oasis Rejuvenating Facial, which uses seaweed to cleanse and tone the skin, and a hair and scalp treatment with essential oils. The Pre Natal Massage is designed for women past their fourteenth week of pregnancy—the expectant mother is first placed into a yoga pose that expands her hips and relaxes her body, and the masseuse then uses aromatherapy oils and incorporates lymphatic drainage to help alleviate back pain, pelvic stress and carpal tunnel syndrome.
Rates start at $263 per person for a double and cover everything including tips. After a reservation is made the hotel will set up a personal Web site called “Your Room,” so that you can view your room, book treatments and find out more detailed information about your holiday.
Go to lesport.com or call (800) 544-2883 for additional information.
Perennial Pampering
Wyndam Peaks Resort & Golden Door Spa, Telluride, Colorado
This Rocky Mountain resort is a perfect destination year-round; during the summer, guests can go fly fishing or horse back riding, during the winter, they have ski in/ski out access to the Telluride Ski Area. Of course many people go to The Peaks year-round to treat themselves at the hotel’s Golden Door Spa. The latest attraction is the new Mother-to-Be package ($425). Spa Director Lorraine Park helped design the five hour session while she herself was pregnant, and so it addresses any pampering need a pregnant woman might have. The package begins with a full body Maternity Massage, followed by a Tranquility Facial. Next, there’s a cooling pedicure to assist with circulation and then a manicure and hairstyling to polish off your look.
The Peaks also offers fitness classes like water aerobics, and Park says that Watsu ($130 for 50 minutes), a massage that takes place in a heated pool, is also popular with pregnant guests as it helps to take pressure off the back and hips.
Rooms start at $129 for the summer, and $165 for the winter; the hotel is closed from October 22 to November 24. The best rates can be found by booking online at Wyndham.com. Call (970) 728-6800 for additional information.
Before you Go
Dr. Peter Weiss, a Beverly Hills OBGYN who has treated several celebrity moms-to-be offers the following travel tips:
- The best time to travel is between 13 and 28 weeks. “There’s a high incidence of miscarriage during the first trimester, so you don’t want to be in a strange place, and after 28 weeks you’re not as comfortable,” says Dr. Weiss.
- Make a mental note of the hospitals closest to your hotel and take a copy of your prenatal records with you, just in case.
- Avoid traveling to third world countries; it might not sound politically correct, but many of these countries lack the same standard of health care and might also require vaccinations. If you do have to travel to one of these countries, check with the CDC as well as your physician to determine which vaccinations and medications are safe to take.
- When taking long flights or road trips, don’t sit with your legs crossed, wear support hose if possible, and walk around every hour or so to avoid getting thrombosis.
- “Pee clearly!” is one of Dr. Weiss’ mottos for pregnant moms: “If your urine is concentrated it means you’re dehydrated and that can trigger early labor.” Drink lots of fluids, especially when traveling during the summer or to hot climates.
