Custom Weekends: Leave the Kid at Home and Make Like You're Newlyweds

There is one issue I never did settle during my weekend at the luxurious new Emerson Resort and Spa: Could I or could I not wear the unbelievably cushy bathrobe from my second-floor suite to the first-floor spa without drawing (unwanted) attention to my (near) nakedness? My husband and I had already managed to answer an exhausting array of questions: Shiatsu or Swedish? (One for each of us, in a romantic, candlelit couple’s room.) Red or white from the 23-bottle in-room wine bar? (Again, one of each.) One bath in the deep, wide tub, or … three? (Duh.)

I opted, in the end, to dress for the short trip across the lobby. But it was a close call, given that we had no plans to step outside the hotel for more than a quick ogle at the surrounding Catskills foliage. After all, the all-suites Emerson had everything we needed for a romantic weekend: a huge canopy bed, a private patio overlooking a stream, New York State’s only Mobil four-star spa outside the city, a gourmet restaurant where we had our best meal in months, and, in the adult-only hotel, no small children underfoot — a relief, since we’d happily left our squeaker behind for the weekend.