Fodor's Expert Review The Point

Originally the home of William Avery Rockefeller, this ultra-exclusive retreat evokes the spirit of the great Adirondack camps. The secluded property occupies a forested peninsula on Upper Saranac Lake. Rooms, housed in four buildings, blend rustic furniture with handsome antiques and rich fabrics. Each guest room has a stone fireplace and lake views; some have pine-lined cathedral ceilings or private decks or patios. You may play billiards or darts at the intimate pub, which shares the Eagle's Nest building with three guest rooms. Overlooking the lake is the capacious Boathouse ($2,600 a night; offered from mid-April through October only), a favorite of honeymooners. Your day starts with Continental breakfast in your room or a hot meal in the dining room. Guests gather for lunch, afternoon tea, and dinner, and menus are set, but you may opt to have a lunch to go or eat in your room. Dinner is rather formal, with jacket and tie upgraded to black tie Wednesday and Saturday evenings. The deposit alone is $500, without which you don't get directions. But that's the point of exclusivity, isn't it?