Avalon Hotel honored by Avalon Beautiful
The Avalon, Catalina's newest boutique hotel, has been receiving accolades and admiration from locals and visitors since its opening last summer. This spring, those accolades came in the form of an award of special recognition from Avalon Beautiful.
"We're honored that Avalon Beautiful has singled out the hotel," said co-owner Kathleen Gosselin. "We've worked very hard to make sure that The Avalon pleases both our visitors and local residents."
Utilizing classic Craftsman style, owners Rock and Kathleen Gosselin and Carl Lambert transformed a dilapitated boarding house into one of Avalon's premier accommodations. The Avalon Hotel is located at 124 Whittley Avenue.
Gosselin said Craftsman style was chosen because it is evocative of the golden age of California - and Catalina. "We wanted to honor the past," she said. "Visitors will discover that fact throughout the property."
The Craftsman style of the hotel is extended by many of the hotel's details, with art having become integrated into the building itself. Hand-crafted Catalina-style tile accents can be found in the rooms, the hallways and outside the building. "Pottery and tile have long been a favorite reminder of island history for many people," Gosselin said. "We honored that history by incorporating tile reminiscent of classic Catalina tile."
A street-level whimsical tile seascape, which had become a tourist attraction months before the hotel even opened, was recently upgraded by the addition of new planting. The landscaping was completed by Gosselin's parents, Gil and Ellen Provost, and their friends Norma and Ron McAfee and Kathleen Herring. The Provosts and their friends volunteer at the Quail Botanical Gardens in Encinitas and were inspired by a recent seascape garden planted there. "The new planting is a wonderful addition," Gosselin said. "It's the perfect compliment to the artistry of the tile."
The hotel's artistic touches did not stop with tile. Two magnificent stained glass art pieces and hand-crafted wood work also grace the building. "We've worked to make every detail of The Avalon pleasing to the eye as well as welcoming for our guests," Gosselin said. "Combined with the customer service we plan to offer, we know this hotel will create an ideal spot for visitors to retreat to again and again."
With a roof-top deck commanding sweeping views of Avalon, a garden courtyard with a fountain and firepit and an indoor nook for relaxing, The Avalon Hotel offers its guests an opportunity to explore the hotel's grounds and discover their own special places. "We wanted to give our guests much more than just a room," Gosselin said. "While we were building we made sure that the common areas were just as inviting as the rooms."
The roof-top deck, which was added during construction, is particularly inviting. During daylight hours guests can peruse yachts moored in the harbor or watch dolphins frolicking just outside the breakwater. At night, the deck is perfect for romantic star-gazing.
Once visitors step into the hotel, they find an environment designed for their comfort. With 350-count sheets, supple-pedic mattresses and tapestry inspired comforters, the beds are just the beginning. The Avalon Hotel's 15 rooms also feature fine-grained woods, flat-screen televisions and tile-accented bathrooms. Most of the rooms have views of Avalon Harbor and terraces for additional relaxation.
The Avalon Hotel's location has long been a spot for recreation. It began life as the Pilgrim Club, a pre-World War I gentleman's club, where drinking, cigars and a few games of cards were the order of the day. That high-end retreat was destroyed in Avalon's legendary 1915 fire, but the building rose from the ashes and has been used by visitors and residents ever since.
Lambert and the Gosselins looked through years of incarnations in their attempt to honor the past, retaining the historic wall that once was the entrance to the Pilgrim Club and adding wainscoting reminiscent of the period. "Not much is known about the Pilgrim Club," Gosselin said. "But it was one of Avalon's more decadent and indulgent businesses."
For reservations and more information visit www.TheAvalonHotel.com or call (310) 510-7070
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