Fit To Be Happy
The most recent addition to The Cloister sits between the main building and the Beach Club. The U-shaped, 65,000-square-foot spa and fitness center may be the best in the country. One side offers all manner of fitness activities, from yoga and spinning classes to free weights and circuit machines. The center also includes squash as well as a stunning indoor pool.
In between the two sides, you'll find a salon, a gift shop, and a waterfall pool.
The Garden Atrium serves as the centerpiece of the spa. A burbling stream passes through the tranquil area with upstairs hallways leading to treatment rooms. Typical wellness services fill the menu as well as bathing traditions, such as the two-hour Turkish Hammam and Japanese Basu soaking bath and massage combinations.
When leaving the spa and fitness center after a few hours at spirited play and soothing care, you'll feel content--just like on any day at The Cloister.
FOR MORE INFO:
The Cloister: www.seaisland.com or 1-800-732-4752. Rates: Premium summer rates from $725 a night, from $595 in other seasons. Cottages rent from $5,000 a week and include temporary membership privileges at the Sea Island Club.
Social Hours
The Cloister evening events glow brighter than a sparkler on the Fourth of July. You can choose from casual get-togethers to formal soirees.
Families love the Friday-night Plantation Supper out on Rainbow Island. Reserve a spot on the Jeep Train to ride out to the scenic picnic area that includes a kitchen house and a large screened porch. Delight in barbecue shrimp, fried chicken, corn on the cob, and bluegrass music for dancing and sing-alongs, as well as a marshmallow roast. Kids like to hunt for the local rabbits that hide beneath the island's sea grass. (Plantation Supper starts at $45 adults and $22.50 ages 4-12).
On Tuesday and Thursday evenings, guests spiff up in their best cocktail clothes to play bingo. The tradition is so popular that the 400 reservations fill quickly. They gather in the ballroom to hear "Billy Bingo." Meanwhile, children sip drinks named Big Bird and Batman and anticipate the last dance. Guests line up for a round of the Electric Slide before doing the bunny hop out the door.
