Last Week for Festival of Tress

It's the last week for the Festival of Trees. If you haven't seen them yet, do make an effort to visit Rosario Resort & Spa and support some great Orcas Island non-profits by purchasing raffle tickets and voting for your favorite tree! All proceeds go to directly to the organizations and your voting tickets will be entered to win some great prizes, including a round trip flight for two on Kenmore Air with a two night hotel stay! Come support Kaleidoscope, The Funhouse, Orcas Island Educational Foundation, Orcas Fire and Rescue, Orcas Choral Society, Friends of Moran and OPAL Land Trust.













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Merry Christmas

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Christmas Eve

Photo by Rosario Resort neighbor Tom Maiuro.


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Rosario Gingerbread Mansion

The Rosario Gingerbread Mansion is finished and now on display with our Festival of Trees through New Year's Day in the Moran Mansion. This is a must see... what a great job by our talented kitchen staff!







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Festival of Trees

Come to Rosario and help raise funds for some great island non-profits! Vote for you favorite trees and organizations with $1 voting tickets available at the front desk. Tickets will be entered in a raffle for great prizes, including round-trip tickets for two and two night hotel stay (to Rosario for an off-island winner or to Seattle for an island winner). dinner for two at The Mansion Restaurant and a two month Spa membership. You have to come to the Moran Mansion to see the entire trees (not just small sections displayed here), on display through New Years.

Here are the Kaleidescope Pre-School kids in front of the tree they helped decorate...

OPAL Community Land Trust... Bird houses and People houses.


Orcas Island Educational Foundation... a picture is worth a thousand words!


The Funhouse...kids having fun with sea creatures!


Friends of Moran State Park... natural inside and out!


Orcas Fire and Rescue... a salute to the 10th Anniversay of 9/11.


Orcas Island Choral Society... the arts are alive on Orcas Island!



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Thanksgiving 2011

Thanksgiving is all about giving thanks... especially to those that cook the feast! Chef Dan Koommoo checks in on carvers Steven and Tyler, who we affectionately call "Team Aerosmith." Thanks to all the Rosario Staff for a great Thanksgiving!





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Rummage Sale

Rosario Resort Rummage Sale, Dec. 1-4 @ The Beachhouse (formerly The Discovery House).

We’ve cleaned out the attic, offices and guest rooms:
Furniture – Beds – Chairs - Desks – Office and Business Supplies – Clothing
Antiques – Home Décor – Thing-a-ma-jigs and Whatcha-ma-call-its!


Dec. 1 “Early Bird Thursday” $10, 8 am-3 pm Allows for rummaging all 4 days!

Dec. 2 “Sneak Peak Friday” $5, 8 am-3 pm Allows for rummaging 3 whole days!

Dec. 3 & 4 “Open to the Public”, 8 am-3 pm Saturday and Sunday


**Early Bird and Sneak Peak tickets available for purchase at door on Thursday and Friday! Cash and local checks only.

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Leaves of Gold Concert

Beautiful and talented violinist Chee-Yun and pianist Andrew Staupe performed a fabulous "Leaves of Gold" fund-raising concert for the Orcas Island Chamber Music Festival in the Music Room this past weekend. The popular festival began in this room 15 years ago! Photos courtesy of festival photographer Derk Jager.




Rosario's owner Jerry Barto welcomes art patrons and thanks Chee-Yun and Andrew Staupe for an extraordinary concert of Beethoveen, Bach and Elgar. "Robert Moran would be proud... this evening is what this room was built for" Jerry shared with guests.






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Savor the San Juans

October is "Savor the San Juans" month! Enjoy this awesome three course meal for $30 created by Chef Dan Koommoo – Penn Cove Mussels and Buck Bay Oysters, Wild King Salmon en Croute and Dark Chocolate Soup... mmmmm! Nightly through October at The Mansion Restaurant.



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Coastal Living Magazine

Rosario is featured in a full page illustration from Coastal Living Magazine's article "Haunted Hotels by the Sea," highlighting by the ghost of Alice Rheem flying out of the Moran Mansion on her motorcycle!



"Whatever your ghoulish pleasure, it’s the time of year when ghost stories and tales of the unknown cast their spells upon us. Plan a trip to these coastal haunts and you may be treated to frightful delights: floating apparitions, ghastly stories, and supernatural phenomena, all explained on lantern-lit tours. And don’t worry about that bump in the night—it was probably just the wind.

Rosario Resort
Orcas Island, Washington

Arrive by seaplane or ferry to this isolated location and you’ll find yourself ensconced in nature, with 360-degree views of the Olympic Mountains and Puget Sound—each room has a water view. The 1909 mansion contains a spa, a restaurant and lounge, and a museum full of paintings and photographs from the early 1900s. On the second floor, watch out for the specter of a woman in a red dress and heels atop a Harley—that’s Alice Rheem, audacious wife during the 1930s of the mansion’s second owner. Guests report hearing her stilettos echoing in the hallways and seeing darting shadows in brightly lit areas. Rates start at $109; 360/376-2152"


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Summer into Fall

Around the resort grounds, we can't help but notice the summer colors of our beautiful flower baskets beginning to blend in with the fall colors of the trees...


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Cascade Bay Grill Closing for Season

The grill portion of the Cascade Bay Grill & Store closes for the season after today (the store will remain open for a few more weeks)! Come enjoy some food and drink at the marina on this gorgeous afternoon!


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Sunset Magazine

Rosario was mentioned in the September issue of Sunset Magazine as one of "3 seaside escapes that put us in the mood for romance!" We'll agree with that!



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Stunning Labor Day Weekend

A stunning Labor Day Weekend Saturday Morning! Zodiac sailing by out back, British classics out front!






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Rosario Marina Montage

A Rosario Marina montage thanks to dockhand Cara!



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Breakfast at Rosario

Come enjoy Breakfast on the Veranda at Rosario! Serving 8 am-Noon, the highlight is our "T-Dock" ( T is for TOPPINGS, not to be confused with the T-Dock at the marina)! Order our Brioche French Toast, Bacon Waffle, Oh My Pancake or Creme Brulee Oatmeal and choose your own toppings, including nuts, raisins, bananas, maple syrup, whipped cream, strawberries, cherries, raspberries, jams, chocolate, peanut butter and more!

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Happy Fourth of July

A beautiful Fourth at Rosario Resort & Spa on Orcas Island!




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Ethereal

The 190-foot Royal Huisman yacht "Ethereal" made a stop at Rosario this weekend. It is one of the most environmentally friendly sailing superyachts to launch in the last few years. It features the first true hybrid engine on a sailing ship, a power source that uses motion generated under sail to recharge the yacht’s lithium-polymer batteries and run all functions on battery power for an extended length of time. Royal Huisman installed LED lighting and the latest in flooring and insulation to make the superyacht energy-efficient. Beyond the environmental technologies on board, naval architect Ron Holland engineered Ethereal’s hull and rigging specifically for performance. The boat’s sleek lines look classy with the ketch rigging, but, in fact, its wing keels and long hull have been tank-tested like America’s Cup racing boats to ensure optimum efficiency under sail.

Thanks to our Dockhand Erik for the early morning photo!

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Discovery House Remodel

We are excited to show off the new Discovery House deck and new interior paint colors!





We are excited to show off the new Discovery House deck and new interior painting!


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POPS N' SCOTCH

Bring Pops to the Mansion Restaurant this Sunday for Father's Day and he can enjoy some Hops and Scotch!


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Buck Bay Oysters

Chef Dan took our culinary team on a recent outing to visit local Orcas Island Farms, including Buck Bay Shellfish Farm. Our daily oyster menu features a variety of Northwest oysters and preparations. The Mansion Restaurant features one dollar oysters nightly!

Heading out on the tide flats of Buck Bay.

Toni Hermansen of Buck Bay Farm explains the oyster raising and harvesting process... they start by seeding the oysters in bags and placing them in the bay. After about two and a half years, they are big enough to be sorted by size. The oysters are then harvested, washed and scrubbed to remove barnacles before being sold to Rosario.

The oyster bags are in full view at low tide.

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Packard Car Club

The Northwest Packard Car Club showed off some real beauties on their recent trip to Rosario Resort & Spa and Orcas Island. Donald and Alice Rheem, owners of Rosario between 1938 and 1958 would be proud of this sight!







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