Whistler, BC’s tony new Scandinave Spa Whistler offers more than the usual lavender foot baths, hot-stone-whatever, plush terry robes and puffy slippers. First, there’s the spectacular setting: a series of open pools and pavilions tucked into a terraced, evergreen-covered hillside facing Mount Sproatt. Then there’s the regimen: guests repeatedly bake or chill themselves in the Finnish sauna, eucalyptus steam baths and hot baths, cold plunges, plus Nordic and thermal waterfalls before taking a breather in a relaxing pavilion and starting the routine again. There’s even a designated “shusher” to make sure the place stays quiet and tranquil.
 
But more than that, Scandinave Spa Whistler does a few good—and unusual—things we’d like to see more often. Recognizing that all this relaxation can consume a great deal of energy, Murdoch+Company Architecture, the Whistler outfit that designed the 1,858-sq-m (20,000-sq-ft) spa, took extra care to mind its impacts.
 
Some of the strategies are hidden, yet in plain sight—like dual-flush toilets, planted green roofs on each the spa’s six buildings that improve insulation value, and a passive-solar orientation that maximizes each building’s exposure to the sun’s warming rays.
 
But other equally effective green schemes are invisible to Scandinave Spa Whistler’s blissed-out clientele. For example, mechanical engineers specified high-efficiency boilers that utilize as much as 98% of the fuel’s energy for baths, water and in-floor heating.
 
Even terrycloth slippers can leave a smaller footprint, it seems.
 
Scandinave Spa Whistler is located just over a kilometre north of Whistler Village, on the edge of Lost Lake and Spruce Grove parks, next to Riverside Campground. 8010 Mons Rd, Whistler, BC. 604-935-2424, www.scandinave.com.
 
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