Imagine a vacation resort so woodsy and remote, yet so breathtakingly luxurious, you’re actually tempted to leave the laptop in the closet—and maybe even toss the cell phone out the window. 

There is such a place, and you’ll quickly surrender to the elegant tradition that awaits you at The Point, ranked #2 on Condé Nast Traveler’s Worldwide “Best of the Best” list, November 2001, and #1 among “Best Small U.S. Hotels” in the same issue. Located near its sister property, Lake Placid Lodge, in Upstate New York, this elegant hideaway occupies a ten-acre wooded peninsula on Upper Saranac Lake, about five hours north of New York City. The compound of slate roof houses made of hewn logs perfectly evokes the turn-of-the-century grandeur of the Adirondack Great Camps era. 

The Point is a proud and long-standing member of Relais & Chateaux, the prestigious Paris-based hotel association. It has won numerous awards, in addition to the recent praise from Condé Nast Traveler, including the five-star award from the Mobil Travel Guide, the #1 Resort and Inn rating from Zagat, the #1 Lakeshore Resort in America, and the Best Country House Hotel four years in a row from the Best of the Best Dining Awards. 

The Point was first called Camp Wonundra when it was built in 1933 for William Avery Rockefeller, a nephew of John D. Rockefeller. Located near Whitney Point on the western shore of Upper Saranac Lake, it is the last of the three camps designed by prominent Adirondack camp architect William Distin. The camp typifies the post-World War I phase of Great Camp architecture, and signals the end of the age of Great Camp construction. Rockefeller built the camp as his private home. The buildings were constructed around boulders and rock ledges, using massive, native-cut stones for the foundation and chimneys, and halved logs of Canadian pine set horizontally. The details are impressive: expansive bay windows, wrought iron hardware, and massive chimneys made of local fieldstone and boulders. Also, the walls and ceilings are covered with wide-board pine, and animal skin and Native American rugs beckon from the depths of oversize couches and beds. 

David and Christie Garrett transformed Camp Wonundra into The Point in 1986, determined to offer a level of hospitality, tradition, and romanticism unparalleled in most inn getaways. There are 11 guestrooms in the compound, each with its own individual character and appeal. In the Main Lodge, the Mohawk, Algonquin, Iroquois, and Morningside rooms await. The Eagle’s Nest guesthouse hosts the Sentinel, Look, and Trappers rooms. The adjacent guesthouse holds the Saranac, Weatherwatch, and the Evensong rooms. Finally, the Boathouse has one large room on the upper level. 

A day at The Point begins with a soft knock on the door—one of many examples of the perfectly seamless, unobtrusive service offered there. As if by magic, your morning coffee appears, to help you slowly ease your way out from under the comforter. 

Later, you can have breakfast served in your room, or join other guests at the Great Hall for omelets, venison sausages, or the divinely inspired raspberry pancakes. After breakfast, feel free to wander the trails that wind through the conifer woods of the peninsula, or just relax on the grand stone patio overlooking the lake. Lunch can be a casual affair. Take a picnic hamper and spread out beneath a welcoming birch tree, or munch on savory barbecue on the Great Hall Terrace.