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Over the past few years, New Yorkers have fueled a boom in rustic hotels out of the city.
From left: One of Wildflower Farms' cabins and cottages; the saltwater pool at Thistle, the resort’s spa.Credit:Courtesy of Auberge Resorts Collection
One travel editor heads to the Catskill Mountains to check out a luxurious new addition.
A stream creates a gentle soundtrack as it flows along the propertys eastern edge.
(At first, I wondered if I could hear the sound of…traffic?
The Meadow Cottage at Wildflower Farms, a new Auberge Resorts Collection property in Gardiner, New York.Courtesy of Auberge Resorts Collection
No, it was just the wind and the water.)
We wanted to give the interiors the same feeling as our own home, Kristin explained.
The finished product is a vision of rural Catskills life filtered through a luxurious lens.
From left: Beef tartare with egg yolk, shiso, and sourdough bread at Clay restaurant; chickens on the property.Courtesy of Auberge Resorts Collection
I could rise early to feed the chickens and gather eggs for my breakfast.
I could try my hand at bread baking, botanical-cocktail mixing, or decorating ceramics with dried flowers.
It was good, messy fun.
From left: Botanical decor in a seating area next to the shop; products made by Catskills artisans on sale at the shop.Courtesy of Auberge Resorts Collection
Beets do very well, I learned; carrots come out looking less than perfect.
But the farm is an evolving enterprise.
The restaurant also invites chefs, such as Michael Anthony from N.Y.C.s Gramercy Tavern, to do kitchen collaborations.
On my visit, guests seemed to be hanging out at Clay most hours of the day.
But the pull of upstate has never been stronger than it is today.
Houses were snatched up at record prices.
Airbnbs were scarce, and by 2021 hotels and resorts were doing brisk business.
During that period, several new independent properties opened across the Catskills.
There are rumors that others will follow, from Soho House and Six Senses to Montage and Andre Balazs.
You cant go hotel-hopping, as he put it.
Phillip Rapoport guesses that the increased development may actually make it harder to open resorts in the region.
Local trust is incredibly important, he said.
One hotel is enough for each of these towns.
(The resort has already welcomed guests from Turkey, Singapore, and the Philippines.)
