Some girlfriends and I (all early 30's) are planning a weekend getaway in April. Our main goals are to enjoy relaxing time together; pamper ourselves a bit; shop; and we wouldn't mind having some activities at least nearby in case we decide to venture off grounds. We want all of this while staying w/i driving distance of our homes (we live in Wash DC and NY/NJ, respectively, so thought PA was a good central meeting location). Nemacolin seems too far, and Hershey looked good but the spa is totally booked! Someone suggested Felicita Resort in Harrisburg - per its website, it seems to fit our desires, but I have never heard anything about it. Does anyone have any pro or con thoughts on Felicita, or any other suggestions? Much thanks.

I went to college in Gettysburg, and I don't think Harrisburg has a lot to offer. It is also over a 4 hour drive from NYC and about 3-4 hours from most parts of NJ. It is in smack in the middle of the state. It is just under 2 hours from DC. If you really want to golf, then perhaps this is a good choice.

Other places to try:

Four Seasons Philadelphia. They have a spa, I have not been there, but I assume it is as wonderful as the spas in their other fine luxury hotels. They also have an indoor pool which would be useful in April. Philadelphia has a lot to offer in terms of shopping and restaurants and museums. Go to fourseasons.com. I believe they would offer fairly good rates on weekends.

Atlantic City. There are many large hotels on the boardwalk and elsewhere, and I believe several of them have spas. They probably will not show up on spafinder.com (which is where I assume you found the Felicita.) You will have to search by hotel. Of course, Atlantic City does not have a whole lot of shopping and only average restaurants. But gambling and shows might make up for it.

Hilton at Short Hills New Jersey. Great spa and indoor pool. Across the street from the Short Hills Mall with excellent (not cheap) shopping. The little town of Summit nearby has some cute shops and good restaurants. You could get into NYC by train or bus in about an hour. This is obviously convenient for the girls in NYC and NJ, maybe not so much for DC.

Ritz Carlton Pentagon City. It is of course really close for people in DC and a long drive for the NYC/NJ crowd. But they have a great spa, and usually offer good deals on weekends. DC is very close and the Pentagon City Mall is right there.

There are 2 reviews of Felicita here

ttp://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g52787-d122468-r1271843-Felicita_Golf_Resort_and_Spa-Harrisburg_Pennsylvania.html

Location wise I think Cicreone's ideas sound better.

Have a look at escapemakers.com It's a site designed for finding weekend getaways from NY, Phil. or D.C. Of course the trick for you will be deciding which of the 3 cities to plug in

Thanks! We are considering Philly, but we all live in/near NYC or DC, so were thinking a resort type place might be a more welcome getaway for each of us. But those are great suggestions, thanks again. Btw, while the Hilton in Short Hills is probably a great idea, no way are any of us going to want to go there - most of us are jersey girls and grew up w/ SH as our local mall

I've been to the Felicita spa. It's amazing. I just went for the day, but the grounds are so beautiful, full of flowers and well maintained. I had the most relaxing facial there... ahhh.
I went for a "bachelorette spa day" and the first choice was Hersheys, but they were booked. We were NOT sorry we went to Felicita. While we were there we were already planning on when we could come back! (I have plans to go bak in the spring)
Activities: Hershey park or Hershey gardens, hiking (there may be some on the Felicita grounds, but there are tons of hiking area around, you're not too far from the Appalatian trail there). For shopping, there's not too much, but there's a large outlet center in Lancaster, maybe an hour away?
As a background, I live in Philly, am not a spa regular, though I much prefered Felicita to Toppers, a popular Philly day spa.

There's a web site spafinder.com which is pretty good..you can find vacation spas by state and also by type/activities...there were several listed under pa, also there is a spa in Princeton, NJ...Doral Forrestal...I have never been but know several who have and really liked it and the town is great(I'm from jersey and it's my favorite town in the state)...historic streets, walking through small speciality shops, antiques, very upper crust and beautiful...plus the university is lovely...just a thought...also in my wonderings through the web looking for spas myself, I think I remember seeing one in Delaware or Maryland that looked wonderful but for the life of me can't seem to find it again...more likely Maryland, I think, anyway, good luck, amy

I was at the Felicita Resort about 4 years ago in the winter so I didn't get to experience anything blooming. This spa is in the middle of nowhere. There is absolutely nothing to do and I would hardly call it a resort. The spa treatments were wonderful though. This is not a fancy place if that's what you're looking for. Hotel Hershey Spa is much better than Felicita in my opinion. I had the cocoa scrub and massage and didn't want to leave!