Mendocino Coast's Sweetwater Spa & Inn

By John Fliessbach

Sweetwater Spa and Inn was born during a rainy after-noon game of Monopoly in 1982. I was helping some friends put the finishing touches on their new spa in Santa Cruz and we had taken the day off to hang out with our children. When we decided to play Monopoly we realized that there weren't enough playing pieces, so the other dad and I shared a piece. We so enjoyed "doing business" together that we decided to go into business together for real!

We built Sweetwater during 1983 and on New Year's day 1984 we opened our doors for business. We were so broke we literally did not have enough money for a till!!

Sweetwater has always been a community-oriented business with a large and involved extended family! A great many people have invested their hearts, souls and sweat into the process of growing a business AND maintaining the heart and spirit we originally envisioned. As a result of these many and wonderful efforts Sweetwater has grown from our original beginning of two hot tubs and a sauna to include a bigger spa, Sweetwater Inn (14 rooms), and some of the finest vacation rentals on the coast, including the Redwood Cottage, Ohana House and Mendocino View East, and Mendocino View West. We have also grown to become a large and highly experienced massage staff. And through all the growth and change I like to think we have maintained and adhered to our business philosophy of promoting relaxation and rejuvenation not only in business but as a philosophy for life as well.

In the spring of 2006 I undertook a remodel of the venerable Redwood Cottage (pictured) with an eye to bringing in more light, adding comfort, and modernizing amenities. All the old growth redwood used was either recycled or from logs salvaged from the bottom of the Big River. Most of the logs are remnants of the big logging push to rebuild San Francisco after the 1906 quake! Hope you like the update!