Arcana Cabins
Architect: Leckie Studio
Location: Ontario, Canada
Type: Cabin, Designer Hotel
Year: 2021
Photographs: arcana
The following description is courtesy of the architects. Co-founded by a team including Tokyo Smoke’s Alan Gertner and Felicia Snyder, arcana is a movement that bridges the gap between urban life and the wild, and offers innovative, science-backed experiences and educational content to enable people to easily access the restorative powers of nature. As part of its initial launch, arcana is offering exclusive stays in a pair of cabins in the wilderness, less than two hours north of Toronto, Canada, enhanced by unique well-being rituals to further encourage connection with nature anytime, anywhere.
The secluded, design-forward cabins will be available to pre-book starting today for August 2021 stays onwards, pending the status of stay at home orders in Ontario. Future locations to be announced soon, as arcana prepares to officially launch a number of sites across the US and Canada.
“Our need for nature has never been greater than over the past year with long lockdowns and being isolated inside for months, all contributing to a mental health crisis,” said Felicia Snyder, co-founder of arcana. “Research shows that spending as little as twenty minutes in nature can measurably reduce our stress and have an enormous positive impact on our mental health and well-being. We are building arcana to provide a much needed on-ramp to time in nature.”
We know people are eager for experiences like arcana, which can be easily incorporated into their day-to-day lives.”
Founding partners Leckie Studio (Vancouver) and Aruliden (New York), collaborated on the design of arcana, which is informed by the wild environment and features a luxurious sleeping space surrounded by windows that help blur the lines between inside and out. Presently found less than a two hour drive from Toronto, in an undisclosed location revealed only to guests, the 275-square-foot cabins are clad in reflective polished stainless steel and are virtually invisible in the surrounding deciduous forest. The minimalist design-forward interiors and amenities recall nature and prioritize well-being.
Contactless check-in allows guests to feel comfortably secluded from the moment they arrive. Through this limited launch, rates start at $299 per weeknight for up to two guests, with a two night minimum stay required.
“We think the world would be a better place if we could all get more time in nature, ” said Alan Gertner, co-founder of arcana. “With arcana, we are creating a community to help us all incorporate the natural world, and its emotional and mental benefits, into our lives. We hope that we are creating a ritual worth repeating – a long term, symbiotic relationship with nature that changes how we see the world and how we see ourselves within it.”
Guests can enjoy the full arcana experience by staying in one of its initial cabins nested in a self-directed, nature retreat. On site experiences include a private sauna, guided forest bathing and foraging on 15km of marked trails. Guests can also immerse themselves in a custom meditative sound journey, created in collaboration with NYC-based Woom Center and The Dojo Upstate.
“The meditative sound journey is a great example of the type of content arcana will continue to create and share with our community” said Jeremy Hill, co-founder of arcana. “You can think of arcana as not just a place to stay, but as a platform for how to access the benefits of the natural world. We’re partnering with amazing experts to make the science of nature and its impact on well-being digestible and accessible on our sites andor from the comfort of your home.”
