Green luxury vacation? Yukon 'eco-spa' in the works
Last Updated: Thursday, February 7, 2008 | 5:07 PM CT
CBC News
A British Columbia couple wants to merge luxury with environmental sustainability in the Yukon, by marketing an alpine resort that will offer high-end teepees, spa packages and music shows to the green-minded vacationer.
Kamloops-based Mike Muller and Alana Nelson of Perfect Earth Tours plan to open their fly-in resort and spa around May 28.
The pair own property around Kluane Lake, but they are not disclosing the remote resort's location because they are negotiating with a First Nation to use its land.
"We believe that the Yukon, in its current state [and] with a little bit of help from the right people, can just very, very easily turn into a worldwide showcase for environmental sustainability and pristine vistas," Muller told CBC Radio in an interview.
The resort is being marketed as "North America's first and only five-star luxury ecologically-sustainable alpine spa resort." It shows in the price tag: a three-night stay at the resort will cost more than $6,000.
Muller said they plan to construct luxury teepees and compost toilets in the spring, then dismantle everything when the tourist season ends in the fall.
Every aspect of the spa is being advertised as being eco-friendly, with all food and building materials being organically and sustainably harvested.
"Obviously we have to make money, we have to feed the children … but more than that, it was, 'how can we showcase a business plan that from scratch to end, basically has the environment as a number one point that we have to take into consideration?'" Muller said.
"If that all fits, then we can do the other things. Otherwise we won't even touch the product, the food, the travel, the guests. We won't even go there."
The pair hope to draw both eco-tourists and music fans. They are working with various singer-songwriters to give intimate live performances at the resort, including Eric Andersen, Wyckham Porteous, Kim Carnes and Gretchen Peters.
"When you say the word 'spa' in a sentence with the word 'gig' that usually does perk up anyone's ear," said Val Denn, an agent for Nashville-based Peters.
"They're all good for a massage, and being treated like they are, you know, like a spa guest."
Denn said Peters and other artists are taking a smaller fee to play at the resort because they believe in the idea of sustainable "green" tourism.
