Tides Inn: A Chesapeake Bay tradition

Celebrate life and all the blessings that come with it. Embark on something different this weekend.  Welcome to the charming city of Charlottesville, nestled in the eastern foothills of the dramatic Blue Ridge Mountains in the Central Virginia region, where miles of preserved natural beauty, verdant vineyards, farms, orchards, quaint shops and galleries, expansive parks, historic museums and the best golf courses in the mid-Atlantic abound. After visiting the itinerary graciously suggested by the Charlottesville Tourism Bureau, my dear travelling companions physical therapist Edwin Santos who hails from Tyler Texas and NASA/National Radio Astronomy Observatory telescope engineer Tony Rodriguez from Charlottesville, planned our weekend sojourn in the enchanting Tides Inn in Carters Creek, Irvington, just a two-hour drive from the city.

The northern neck is that charming paradise where the Chesapeake Bay meanders in the green marshlands where oysters, crabs and shellfish once thrived abundantly.  The enigmatic steamboat would ply this route from end to end delivering the lifeline of this era. Today, a museum stands proud to share the secrets and stories of this bygone time. In this picturesque setting in Eastern Virginia, a fabulous resort stands witness to this nostalgic time with its tradition of loving kindness, warmth and graceful luxury.

At the Golden Eagle golf course: Gracious Tides Inn GM Gordon Slatford and NASA/NRAO engineer Tony Rodriguez, grandson of Don Filemon Rodriguez of PHINMA fame.

What is it about the Tides Inn that makes it so magical?  According to gracious Tides Inn GM Gordon Slatford, in 2009, readers of Travel+ Leisure magazine ranked the property the No. 1 resort in Virginia and it was voted the best place in the US to hold a family reunion. The elegant 106-room Tides Inn, a member of the Leading Hotels of the World, is a dream destination like no other.  Like a precious emerald on immaculate froth on Virginia’s Northern neck, bordered by the historic Chesapeake Bay to the East, the Potomac River to the North and the Rappahannock River to the South, their brand of waterfront accommodations and southern hospitality is simply unrivalled in this part of the region.

Looking out from my cozy bedroom with posh linens and warm wood furnishing, viewing the calm waters of Carters Creek, a tributary of the Chesapeake Bay, transports me back to a world of precocious memories. Reminiscent of all the simple joys of childhood like playing under a favorite tree, resting on a hammock while swinging in the wind, chasing a colorful butterfly flitting and fluttering from one flower to another. Our winsome group cruised the red Coves Creek into the inner recesses of the world’s largest estuary of water that actually connects to the sea. According to our gracious guide Captain Bill Bryant, way back in the 16th century during the steamboat era, there was even a Chesapeake bank on a boat that would collect deposits or assist in withdrawals of the enterprising fishermen. Today, we see the abandoned old market hall, the shanties where the seat of commerce of the once flourishing oyster and crab business and appreciate what had gone by to make way for what we presently have.

At the Tides Inn, farm-to-table cuisine is created by executive chef TV Flynn, who  draws inspiration from local provisions to create mouthwatering regional fare paired with Mid-Atlantic wines.

I vividly recall, while cruising, the mother ospreys sitting on their nests atop the markers and cranes protecting their offspring from the sweltering heat. We fathomed Mother Nature is truly endowed with the wonderful gift of nurturing. As we explored the watery avenues in this eco-luxury sanctuary, we admired the many lavish homes of elegance and grace with their own modern boats alongside handsomely restored vintage boats that date back almost a century.

This is the privileged life here in Chesapeake Bay. Residents or visitors come up here from all over the country and the world in their fabulous boats and spend their weekends or lengthy vacations in their homes or at the Tides Inn, a Chesapeake tradition since 1946.

I curiously inquired what is this Chesapeake tradition? Charming GM Slatford gifted me with a book entitled the Tides Inn Tradition, which I read over and over. Savoring a bowl of chocolate-covered strawberries and bubbly champagne, I imbibed the stories of yore that seemed to leap out from the pages and vicariously relived the nostalgic milestones created in this historic property. 

Today, Tides Inn remains a favorite year-round retreat, wedding or corporate destination or simply a magical place to create and recreate priceless moments to live for.  You ought to try the Inn’s delicious farm-to-table cuisine where every meal is prepared with epicurean expertise.  Executive chef TV Flynn and chef de cuisine John Lawrence draw inspiration from local provisions to create mouthwatering regional fare paired with Mid-Atlantic wines. Savor the Inn’s refreshing salad made of freshly harvested greens, candied walnuts, slivers of goat cheese, cranberries and a tangy-sweet balsamic dressing, their deliciously divine crab cakes and its signature Lancaster Lemonade spiked with limoncello, vodka, fresh lemon juice and ginger ale served over ice and garnished with lemon mint balm freshly harvested from the Inn’s own herb garden. After our delightful round of golf on its well-manicured Golden Eagle course that is actually an ecological sanctuary for animals like deer, squirrels, ducks and birds, we opted to try the Inn’s lemonade without the vodka and limoncello. It was equally refreshing.

Golfing at Golden Eagle within the vicinity of Tides Inn is an exhilarating treat.

Inevitably, dedication to the highest standards of excellence earned for the Tides Inn the highly coveted Mobile 5 Awards as it was considered the “Little Brother” to the hotel goliaths like The Greenbrier and Homestead.  They were voted in accordance to elegance, service, food, and guest attentiveness. The dream that started 65 years ago to create an inn-timate haven to simply bring happiness to each and every guest has truly paid off.

Founder E.A. Stephens wrote his lawyer many years later to say that this investment paid off handsomely because of the joy, nurturing, rest and relaxation it has brought to every guest who visited here. In retrospect, would you believe this exquisite development started when proprietors Mr. and Mrs. Stephens purchased this precious property without really knowing what they had bought?  The thickets of trees and shrubs were just so enormous that they had to hire several men to clear the property to appreciate its beauty. Stephen, armed with his vision and practicality, spearheaded the development, which was complemented by his wife Ann’s impeccable taste, as each room is adorned with unique bric-a-brac from Europe and previous trips abroad.

Eco Luxury at its finest: The Tides Inn is a favorite year-round retreat, wedding or corporate destination or simply a magical place to create and recreate priceless moments to live for.

This is, after all, the Chesapeake tradition of yesteryear that is still alive today. The Enchantment Group of Resorts, which manages high-end luxury resorts such as the Enchantment Resort in Sedona, is continuing this tradition today with flying colors. 

There is so much to see, explore and experience in this charming part of the country. Try golfing, biking, sailing and kayaking, Frisbee Golf, or set the young ones up at the Crab Net Kids Club. Plan a day visiting nearby museums and doing wine tastings at vineyards along the Chesapeake Bay. Enjoy the Inn’s clay tennis courts, and its full-service waterfront spa that offers a new exhilarating treatment aptly called the Tides of Change Signature Body Treatment. Resembling a glorious dream that takes you to peaks of gentle bliss, you feel suspended on cottony wisps of clouds as you lay on their luxurious spa bed atop warmed fragrant towels. Relaxing tranquility pervades as soothing sounds of the ocean calmly lull you to a state of inner peace and immense joy. My therapist’s loving hands kneaded my tired muscles during a soulful 60-minute massage using organic ungaria body polish replete with vitamin-rich marine seaweed. A must-try, this unforgettable treatment restores and revitalizes your body like no other.

Spot Bambi the deer resting on the golfing greens of Golden Eagle

For your next weekend, experience the Tides Inn in Chesapeake Bay. You will finally understand why they say that Virginia is for lovers. Cheers to the good life. It only gets better.

For more information on Tides Inn, call 800-843-3746 or make your reservations at tidesinn.com. Philippine Airlines flies from Manila to San Francisco daily, from San Francisco, take a connecting flight to Charlottesville Airport via local operating carriers.

E-mail the author at miladay.star@gmail.com.