By Lori Bosworth
Summer is about escape from work and worries to the call of loons on the lake and whispers of the pine trees. Many of us would love extra pampering and indulgence to treat ourselves for the year’s hardships. If the Muskoka Region is a bit too busy for you, head east for first-class luxury at the Irwin Inn in the Kawarthas. You can choose from a variety of high-end accommodations, whether you can get away for a week or just a couple of days.
Imagine your own lakeside cottage with a private pool. That’s what you’ll get if you rent the Scottford Cottage at the Irwin Inn. The two-storey cottage features a post and beam structure, two bedrooms with king and queen beds, a stone fireplace, bathroom with whirlpool, pine furnishings and best of all, your own 8′ x 14′ private heated swimming pool (open from May to October).
At high season during July and August, the Scottford Cottage will set you back $1,835 per person per week; however, those rates do include breakfast, dinner and use of most of the facilities. This price is admittedly too steep for many us, but if you scale your getaway back to three nights, you can get the cottage for $810 per person or two nights at $550 per person. Another option is to book in September when temperatures are usually still in the mid-20 Celsius range. You’ll be able to get this cottage for $1,535 per person per week, $700 per person for three nights or $475 per person for two nights.
You could skip the cottage with the pool since the Inn has its own outdoor pool and opt for the Lower East Lakeside Suite, which rents for $520 per person for two nights in July and August and includes one bedroom with a king-size bed, fireplace and sliding doors from the living room to your own hot tub where you can drink martinis on a private deck overlooking Stoney Lake.
More affordable yet still sumptuous is the Beachview East Suite, which features a living room with stone fireplace, bedroom with a queen and twin bed, bathroom with whirlpool tub and glass doors to a lakeside deck and costs $435 per person for two nights during July and August. Aren’t these stone fireplaces stunning?
You can either just sit on your deck and enjoy the crystal clean waters of Stoney Lake or you can enjoy the Inn’s activities including swimming at the sand beach, waterskiing, wakeboarding, tubing, canoeing, kayaking, tennis, sunset cruises and mountain biking. Motor boats are available to rent for $75 per day. There is a nine-hole golf course, English riding stable, supervised children’s program and fine dining in the lakeside dining room. Pretty well all you can ask for.
The Irwin Inn, Crowe’s Landing (21 kilometres north of Norwood), 1-800-461-6490
