Kat Florence didn’t build another hotel amenity when she bought the 100 acres next to her property. She bought it to make sure it never got developed by anyone else, on the same land where she grew up, in the Ontario town of Elora.
That patch of the Elora Gorge is now The Kat Florence Reserve, opening Sept. 1 alongside two other additions to her Kat Florence Hotel on the Grand River, in the town National Geographic once called “Ontario’s most beautiful village.” None of it was built to add rooms or bring in more guests. It was built so the guests she already has could get closer to the land she grew up loving.
Photos from the reopening show supermodel Coco Rocha touring Imperial Jade Manor, one of the three additions opening this fall.
She’s Letting Guests Onto Land She Bought To Protect
The reserve covers 100 acres of protected forest and wildlife, plus 2,500 feet of riverbank along the Gorge. Access is invite-only, and only one couple or one suite is allowed in at a time, walked through by Kat’s own Private Reserve Guide. The hotel’s own building dates to 1848.
Here’s what’s opening alongside the reserve:
- The Kat Florence Reserve: Protected forest, wildlife and secluded river access, explored on foot with a private guide. Forest walks, wildlife spotting and riverside picnics are all part of the invite.
- Imperial Jade Manor: A restored 1870s heritage residence, once known as Rosemount Cottage and later a girls’ school, raised from limestone quarried locally, the same stone that’s shaped Elora since the 1800s. It now holds a six-figure custom stone hot bath under the stars, a 60-foot pool and its own in-residence chef, Dale Mackay, Canada’s first Top Chef winner.
- The gemstone gallery: Inside the hotel’s original 1848 limestone walls, guests can now walk past a 424.8-carat Royal Velvet Blue Tanzanite, the largest matching pair of flawless, unheated Paraiba earrings ever offered at auction and a 52.48-carat Jeremejevite set in D-flawless diamonds.
Why She’s Doing This Now
Florence has said the goal was never more guests. It’s a deeper experience for the ones she already has.
“I do not build for more guests,” she said. “I build so the guests I do have receive something that can’t be repeated anywhere else.”
Booking a room at Kat Florence Hotel is easy. Earning an invite onto the 100 acres she bought to keep off-limits is a different level of exclusive.
Jennifer Allen is a retired chef turned traveler, cookbook author and nationally syndicated journalist; she’s also a co-founder of Food Drink Life, where she shares expert travel tips, cruise insights and luxury destination guides. A recognized cruise expert with a deep passion for high-end experiences and off-the-beaten-path destinations, Jennifer explores the world with curiosity, depth and a storyteller’s perspective. Her articles are regularly featured on the Associated Press Wire, The Washington Post, Seattle Times, MSN and more.