MAYFLOWER SPA & ALLERTON HOUSE
Expanding the five-star Mayflower Inn, the project incorporates guest rooms and a destination spa facility that has been touted by both Conde Nast Traveler and Travel & Leisure Magazine as the best destination spa in the world.
Design objectives were: a familial relationship with the Mayflower Inn; absolute comfort, peace and quiet for guests; and elegant, residential character. The presence of service functions and staff were to be invisible to the extent possible. Spa guests were to enjoy total privacy.
For Allerton House, the program required 4 guestrooms and 2 guest suites, all with private porches. The Spa program included: a bath facility with indoor pool, whirlpool and Hammam (with heated walls, cool steam and color therapy); 8 treatment rooms (dry, wet and for couples); 4 exercise studios for yoga, cardiovascular, Pilates and training programs; dressing rooms and baths (convertible to accommodate varying gender proportions of Spa programs);
lounge, salon, dining and retail spaces; and administration and service.
The gross conditioned area of 33,000sf far exceeds residential scale, so building massing is modulated to a series of distinct parts. To guests, the Spa and Allerton are independent structures with distinct functional identities. To management, the buildings are one, connected below grade for ease of service and consolidation of mechanical systems. A single service access minimizes the presence of vehicles, staff and associated disturbance.
Building envelope, acoustic and mechanical systems are particularly careful due to the proportion of water-oriented program and requirements for quiet and comfort. Users are wet and undressed, requiring a wind-free environment. Program diversity and guest preferences require immediate response for temperature and humidity, while scented air is filtered, heat-recovered and returned. Special acoustical assemblies and finishes contribute to a hushed, serene interior environment.
WASHINGTON, CT
Project Team
DiSalvo Engineering Group – structural
Kohler Ronan LLC – MEP
Bouyea & Associates, Inc. – lighting
Brian E. Neff, PE – civil
Brooks Acoustics Corporation – acoustical
Donald Stickles – construction manager
Randall Ridless – furnishings
Recognition
Quintessence – “The Mayflower Inn Spa”
Town & Country – “An Intimate Spa”
Interior Design – “Full Immersion in Luxury”
Vogue – “Paradise Found”
Luxury SpaFinder – “New England’s Ultra-Luxe New Spa”
New York Magazine – “Meet the Mayflower”
Photography
Tim Lee Photography, Inc.
Mayflower Inn photos