THECELEBRATEDHISTORYOFASOUTHERNCALIFORNIAICON
OjaiValleyInn&SpaEstablishedRootsinOjaiMoreThan90YearsAgo
Location
TheOjaiValleyInn&Spaislocatedon220acresintheoak-coveredOjaiValley.Ojai(pronounced“ohhi”)isa
NativeAmericannamegenerallyacceptedasmeaning“thenest,”althoughsomeexpertsalsointerpretitas“the
moon.”ThevalleywashometotheChumashNativeAmericanswhofoundsanctuaryinitscanyonsandmountains.
Duringthelate1700sOjaiwassettledbytheSpanishandMissionsocieties,followedbyDonFernandoTicowho
establishedRanchoOjaiin1837withaMexicanlandgrant.In1874,thevalley'sfirstsettlementwasnamed
Nordhoffinhonorofaneastcoastjournalistwhohadpublicizedthisspecialarea.Notuntil1917didthislittletown
becomeknownas“Ojai.”
Today,Ojaiisaninspiringretreatwithasurprisingblendofcosmopolitanstyleandsmall-towncharm.Hometoan
eclecticmixofwriters,artistsandphilosophersaswellasagriculturalgrowers,thetownalsohostsanationally
acclaimedtennistournament(“TheOjai”),andamusicfestivalofinternationalrenown.
Thetown,locatedinoneofthelastunspoiledareasinSouthernCalifornia,isjust90minutesnorthwestofLos
Angeles,and45minutessoutheastofSantaBarbara.
History&Character
ThehistoryoftheOjaiValleyInnbeganin1923,whenwealthyOhioglassmanufacturerEdwardDrummondLibbey
commissionedarchitectWallaceNefftobuildaclubhouseforhisprivategolfcourse.Thisbecamehispersonal
winterretreatinOjai.Today,theoriginalclubhouse,knownastheNeffLounge,isstillthewelcomingfocalpointof
theInn.LibbeywasalsoresponsibleforbuildingdowntownOjai’spostoffice,arcadebusinessdistrictandthepark
thatbearshisname.
Sinceitsbeginningin1923,theInnhaswelcomedgenerationsofdiscriminatingtravelerstorelaxinanatmosphere
ofcasualelegance.Manynotableguests,fromheadsofstatetomoviestars,havesoughtthepeaceandquietof
theOjaiValleyInn&Spa.NotablefrequentersofyearspastincludeClarkGable,JudyGarland,formerco-owner
LorettaYoung,WaltDisneyandmanymore.
ThelureofOjaiValley’sbeautywassocompellingthatFrankCaprausedthevalleytodepictShangri-Lainhisclassic
film,LostHorizon.UntoldstoriessteepedinHollywood’sillustriouspastliejustbeneaththesurface.Filmssuchas
SpencerTracyandKatherineHepburn’sPatandMikeandthesequeltoChinatown,TheTwoJakes,allfoundthe
perfectsettingontheproperty.
AdifferentkindofglorydistinguishedtheInnin1942,whenitwastransformedintoCampOakandusedasa
militarytrainingcenterforabattalionof1,000armytroops.In1944,theArmyturnedthebaseovertotheNavyfor
arestandrecuperationfacility.
In1946,afterWorldWarII,theInnwaspurchasedbyDonBurgeralongwithnotableHollywoodinvestors,andthe
propertywasreturnedtoprivateownershipandreopenedastheOjaiValleyInn&CountryClub.Thismarkeda
returntothegoldeneraoftheInn’sreputationasaHollywoodescape.
Afterseveralchangesofownership,theInnwaspurchasedbytheCrownfamilyofChicagoin1985.Theyundertook
amajorrenovationandexpansionofthepropertyin1986.Newroomswereadded,thegolfcoursewascompletely
redesigned,asecondswimmingpoolandfitnesscenterwereaddedandeightnewtenniscourtsopened.Atthe
sametime,a4,800squarefootconferencecenterwasbuiltandthediningroomsweremodernized.
-more-
A31,000-squarefootluxuryspaintheclassicSpanishColonialstyleopenedinDecember1997.BillMahan,an
architectinSantaBarbara,designedthe“spavillage.”Heisalsothearchitectforthemostrecentexpansionproject.
2006
NowaAAAFive-Diamondproperty,theOjaiValleyInn&Spacompleteda$90millionrenovation.Allareasofthe
propertywereupgradedandtheinfrastructurewasimproved,whilepreservingtheresort’soriginalSpanish
ColonialarchitectureanddesignbynotedCaliforniaarchitectWallaceNeff.TheInndebuted308roomsandsuites,
newrestaurantsandlounges,anewballroomandconferencecenter,renovatedgolfclubhouse,redesignedpool
andanimprovedentranceandlobby.Meetingandfunctionspacetripled,high-speedinternetaccessbecame
availableinallroomsandwirelessinternetaccessbecameavailablethroughouttheproperty.CasaElar,an
exquisiteprivateestateoverlookingthegolfcourse,wasbuilt.TheTuscanVilla-stylepropertywithmorethan
10,000sq.ft.ofindoorand44,000sq.ft.ofoutdoorspacehasbecomeafavoritespotforluxuriouscelebrity
escapes,destinationweddingsandfamilyreunions.
2013
In2013,theOjaiValleyInn&Spacelebratedits90thanniversaryandcompletionofa$5.5millionrefreshmentofall
guestrooms.Thenewlookpayshomagetotheresort’slocationintheheartofOjaiValley,theunofficial“Zen
capital”ofSouthernCalifornia.
2015
Insummer2015,thepropertyintroducedarefinedlobbydesign,chicnewadultpool,anewsignaturerestaurant
andarefreshedparlorconceptattheWallaceNeffHeritageBar.
2016
InMay2016,theInnopenedLibbey’s,afreshartisanmarket,caféandboutiqueconcept,perfectlyalignedwiththe
launchofanelegantfleetofcustomLinusbicycles.October2016markedtheopeningofDiscoverOjaiCenter,to
furtherenrichguestexperiences.
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AboutOjaiValleyInn&Spa
NestledinthebohemianenclaveofOjaiisthehistoricOjaiValleyInn&Spa,aluxuriousretreatthathasbeenone
ofCalifornia’smostrevereddestinationssinceopeningin1923.Locatedjust90minutesnorthofLosAngeles,the
resortoverlookstheunspoilednaturalbeautyofitsmountainsurroundingsandcelebratestherelaxedglamourof
California’spasttocreateanunparalleledresortexperiencethatisquintessentiallyOjai.Theresortrecentlyturned
thepagetoanewchapterwiththeunveilingofenhancementsthatfurtherelevatetheresortexperiencewhile
remainingtruetoitsauthenticspiritandinclude:thechicoutdooroasis,IndigoPool;newsignaturerestaurant
OlivellaandVine;andthethoughtfullyrefreshed,historicWallaceNeffHeritageBar.
Seton220-oakstuddedacres,resortguestscanindulgeinanabundanceofactiveandpeacefulpleasureswitha
GeorgeC.Thomasdesignedgolfcourse;soulsoothingspatherapiesatthe31,000squarefootSpaOjai;instruction
thatencouragescreativeconsciousnessintheArtistCottage;essentialoilblendingintheApothecary;multiple
poolsandmorethanfivediningoutletswithsettingsthatrangefromfast-casualtofinedining,recognizedbyWine
Spectatorwiththe2016BestofAwardofExcellence.TheIn2015,theInnwashonoredamongtheCondéNast
Traveler“Top100HotelsintheWorld”editor-selected“GoldList”andwasselectedbytheTravel+Leisurereaders
asoneofthe“500BestHotelsintheWorld,”affirmingtheInnasatreasureddestinationthatauthentically
combinestheregionsunspoiledspiritualitywith21stcenturyluxury.
Foradditionalinformationandguestbookings,pleasevisitwww.ojairesort.comorcall1-800-422-6524.
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MEDIACONTACTS:
JenniferEvansGardner|MelissaWardIChristenaBruchey
MurphyO’BrienPublicRelations
[email protected]
(310)453-2539