New Secluded Caves and Elevated Cuisine Add Lustre to Kingfisher Pacific Resort

Wellness becomes a multi-sensory experience at the new $3.5 million Healing Caves at the oceanfront Kingfisher Pacific Resort & Spa in the Comox Valley of eastern Vancouver Island.

The global feel-good virtual trip begins in the blazing heat of 82 Celsius degrees (180 Fahrenheit) designed to emulate a red rock desert, moves to a steamy El Salvador rainforest, and is followed by the minus-10 Celsius (14 Fahrenheit) chill of British Columbia’s Coast Mountains. And that’s just the first half.

With Healing Caves, Vancouver Island continues to stake its claim as a Canadian wellness and outdoor adventure destination. Designed to calm stressed minds, boost circulation and promote anti-aging, the Healing Caves experience is unique enough to be trademarked and is the only one of its kind in North America.

Most of the Healing Caves’ elements are made by British Columbia companies and creatives.

It took more than a decade of planning for resort owner Bill Brandes to realize his vision for modern wellness with Healing Caves. The ongoing project to update and modernize the five-acre, 65-room oceanfront property began when Brandes took the reins in 2005.

The central Serenity Garden, built in 2018, makes the most of its coastal forest setting with fire bowls, water features, and seating.

Starting in 2022, ocean-facing rooms, suites, and penthouses were remodelled with contemporary design elements. My beachfront Romance Suite had a kitchen and eating area, freestanding tub and fireplace in the main room, long balcony with seating. and a comfy king bed.

The resort’s Pacific Mist Spa and the adjacent 25-year-old Hydropath, where guests move through a water therapies circuit, have also been updated.

The Healing Caves experience feels bespoke from the start. How many locker rooms have you been in with black chandeliers? We shed our spa robes for a quick multi-jet shower, then an attendant led us to the first of six replica cave rooms. Groups are limited to four people and spaced 15 minutes apart as they take the 75-minute trip along a curated path that moves from relaxation to invigoration.

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The lighting is low. Illuminated signs at each cave doorway include its benefits, like relieving joint pain and stress, or aiding circulation and mood. The caves have built-in benches for sitting or lounging.

The initial steps of dry heat, steam and cold are familiar to any spa-goer. The next three environments introduce modern wellness with red-light therapy, a session in a salt cave and the thrilling Storm Cave finale. There’s also an electrolyte bar midway for a hit of hydration and antioxidants.

Sounds, scents, and visuals are part of the experience. Three caves have high-definition screens built into the walls, where drone-shot footage creates a remarkable sense of movement. I felt like I was swooping through slot canyons in the Utah desert and barrelling down churning river rapids. Another visual treat is the trippy northern lights show and celestial parade on the ceiling of the red-light therapy Astral Cave, although the fake plants on the ceiling were distracting.

Kingfisher’s marketing manager Inès le Ricque says the flow of the caves path makes it unique. The first three stops are designed to strip stress, the next three restore vigour and create a sense of wellbeing with therapeutic environments.

The spa showstopper is the Storm Cave, an infinity pool of buoyant, mineral-enriched water facing a high-def screen that’s the width of the cave. Hidden jets make the water churn for an onscreen ride over a waterfall and create splashes from whales leaping during a tranquil sunset. As a storm descends, rain falls from the ceiling, thunder rumbles and fingers of lightning scratch the grey sky.

A flute of sparkling wine or non-alcoholic bubbles is offered at the end to sip in the ocean-facing lounge.

Kingfisher’s two restaurants have undergone an impressive update with the arrival of Michelin-trained chef Jonathan Macdonald. Macdonald, who has worked in the kitchens at The Fat Duck in London and Noma in Copenhagen, joined Kingfisher last year. He’s been rolling out new menus in Ocean7 Restaurant and AQUA Bistro & Wine Bar, along with the half-dozen garden-side Sky Dome dining pods. These seat up to six guests and are open from October to mid-April.

Macdonald’s dishes are playful, creative, and elevated. Take the Modernist Cuisine Spherical Green Olives inspired by former El Bulli pastry chef Albert Adrià Acosta. Using culinary alchemy, the intense flavour of perfect green olives are transformed into bouncy rounds.

Crispy Golden Eagle sablefish is served with green tea noodles and foraged mushrooms in local kombu dashi, lifted with the bright flavours of sudachi citrus and umeboshi and topped with crunchy bubu arare. In another standout dish, Pacific salmon is cooked to an internal temperature of 49 Celsius (120 Fahrenheit) and served under a smoke-filled dome with a kiss of Northern Divine Caviar.

Julie Ferris makes signature cocktails as the resident mixologist and there’s a good representation of B.C. wines, including Alderlea and Averill Creek vineyards in the neighbouring Cowichan Valley.

Honey Grove Bakery is among the local purveyors used in the restaurants. I was so knocked out by the breads, especially the organic Red Fife and turmeric loaf, that I made it my first stop in Courtenay. I picked up a loaf of long-fermented sourdough and a fragrant, yeasty cardamom bun. The crispy-bottom Danishes packed with local fruit were divine.

Courtenay is about a 10-minute drive from the resort. With a population of about 28,000, it’s a charming place to wander and explore. So is sister town, Comox. They’re close to skiing and hiking at nearby Mount Washington as well as the village of Cumberland, which has outstanding mountain bike trails.

I wanted some cheese to go with my bread. Laliberté Cheese & Gourmet Pantry opened in Courtenay last year. Unable to decide from the huge cheese selection, I picked up a $35 “mystery bag” from the cooler and was rewarded with five cheeses from tangy Red Leicester, to oozing triple-crème from Burgundy.

Downtown stretches along Fifth Street and Cliffe Avenue have several good independent fashion shops, a bookstore and impressive places to source consignment and vintage clothes. Repeat Boutique on Duncan Street combines a hair salon with sales of pre-loved men’s and women’s clothing and a fun little record shop.

Freyja: The Croissant Story has expanded from Campbell River with a second bakery in Courtenay, selling Scandinavian-style croissants and pastry.

Nikkei Ramen-ya moved around the corner from its downtown location at the end of last year to allow more customers to enjoy noodle purist Greg Masuda’s top-notch ramen.

MORE ABOUT KINGFISHER PACIFIC RESORT & SPA

Location: 4330 Island Highway South, Courtenay, British Columbia (see map below)
Getting there: Travel by ferry from Tsawwassen to Swartz Bay and drive about 2.5 hours, or sail from Horseshoe Bay to Nanaimo and drive about an hour. Daily flights land at Comox Airport from Calgary, Edmonton, Kelowna and Vancouver, plus there is summer service from Toronto. The hotel can arrange shuttle pick up and drop off from Comox Airport to the resort for a fee.
Website: Kingfisher Pacific Resort & Spa
Healing Caves: Groups of four $195 per person. A solo session is $250.
Pacific Mist Hydropath: Groups of four $125 per person. A solo session is $175. Check the website for Pacific Mist Spa and hotel packages.