There are two types of people in the world: those who have been to the Sybaris Club Suites and those who make self-conscious, pre-adolescent jokes about the place.
Is Sybaris nothing more than a “no-tell motel,” where guests check in with no baggage (wink, wink)? Or is it, as brochures claim, a special place to enhance the romance in marriage, where guests check emotional baggage at the door?
A day in the life of a Sybaris Club may reveal all you ever wanted to know about these romantic getaway havens and why they might be fated to teeter forever on the rim of respectability.
On one hand there are people like Bill and Becky (not their real names) of Oak Forest. Said Becky of their visit to Sybaris, “We celebrated our anniversary there. It was a reward for a whole year of putting our children and our jobs first. It was fun, relaxing. We want to go back.”
On the other hand there are people like local television host Bob Sirott. When his morning show on Fox television (Channel 32) recently featured Sybaris’ founder and president Ken Knudson in one of the Northbrook suites, Sirott giggled, squirmed and stuttered through the interview.
“Bob admitted he was more than a little embarrassed,” recalled Knudson of Lake Zurich.
Knudson is accustomed to the reaction. “The idea (behind Sybaris Club Suites) is probably the most misunderstood concept in the world,” he said.
Knudson explained the notion for his unique clubs was conceived more than 20 years ago in his own bedroom. He designed a thoroughly romantic, sensuous bedroom in his home where he and his wife could retreat from the cares of daily life. Friends who saw the room were envious, he said.
“They were all married couples, like us, who needed a shot of romance in their lives,” Knudson said. “At a time in our society when marriages are falling apart, who could possibly need romance more?”
Thus, in December 1974, he opened the first Sybaris on Ogden Avenue in Downers Grove.
Subsequent Sybaris Club locations opened in Northbrook and Mequon, Wis., and on Valentine’s Day 1993 in Frankfort. But it hasn’t been easy. The stigma of a “sex motel” casts a shadow over every loan application and zoning question, according to Knudson.
The office lobby at the Frankfort Sybaris conveys nothing of a sleazy, sex motel atmosphere. It is the proverbial clean, well-lighted place. Decorated in pastel shades of green and white with peach accents, the club features an upscale ambience, with bleached oak furniture, white ceramic tile floor, mirrored wall tiles and lots of windows.
On a recent Saturday afternoon, guests who came in from the crystalline sunlight and subzero temperatures were greeted by Sybaris manager Tim Reed and his staff in a slightly formal but friendly manner.
Pam Parenty, manager of the Downers Grove Sybaris, said the desk staff is trained to act in a thoroughly professional manner. “It’s like checking into any hotel. We ask (newcomers) if they had trouble finding our location, or some other conversational question just to break the ice,” the 14-year Sybaris veteran said.
In general, only one partner came to check in at the Frankfort office that day, most often the man. Only two women handled check-in. The other partner waited in the car, some slouched with faces buried in coat collars.
There was but one couple (out of more than 20 check-ins at the Frankfort office) who both came inside. They were 30s-ish, dressed in expensive wool coats, jeans, his-and-hers Timberland boots and matching wedding bands. Repeat customers. They were openly affectionate and relaxed.
Not everyone is so at ease. A blond man who looked to be in his 40s, shuffled construction-style boots self-consciously and kept his gaze fixed on the desk clerk. He listened attentively to the brief directions and answered questions breathlessly.
Knudson emphasized that the desk staff is trained to treat guests with courtesy. “Some folks are sensitive, so staff guides them through check-in efficiently,” he said.
For those who wish to linger in the lobby there is a mini-boutique. Browsers will find Sybaris souvenirs and other handy stuff stacked on glass shelves. There are T-shirts, sweatshirts, bathrobes (also provided for use in each suite), glassware, coffee mugs and teddy bears-all with the copyrighted Sybaris logo.
In addition, the mini-boutique sells gift baskets, cellophane-wrapped and overflowing with items such as strawberry whipped cream, warming massage lotion and kissing potion. Guests may purchase champagne and microwave popcorn. For the inevitable rest periods of any Sybaris visit, or for more imaginative patrons, the boutique sells playing cards.
Patrons also can rent videos and compact discs-each suite is equipped with a VCR and stereo. Some of the movie titles available in the Frankfort lobby (aside from the inevitable romantic “Ghost” and “The Bodyguard”) included “The Last Action Hero,” “Speed” and “Ace Ventura, Pet Detective.” The music selection ranged from Dan Fogelberg and Kenny G to Mozart.
Parenty noted they do have Triple-X rated movies available, but they are discreetly placed so guests who don’t prefer them aren’t confronted with them.
Upon check-in, the desk clerk asks a few pertinent questions. Besides the mandatory driver’s license (guests must be at least 21), customers are asked the make, model and license number of their vehicle. Only couples are allowed. No visitors. No children.
Although Sybaris bills itself as a getaway haven for married couples, the staff doesn’t pry into the details of guests’ relationships, Parenty said. They do inquire about birthday and anniversary dates. Sybaris gives a free gift to special occasion celebrants.
In addition to the room rate (which starts at $50 for a weekday afternoon, and can tally up to a pricey $495 for an overnight in the Sybaris Chalet, which is a three-story cottage that includes a 10-foot water slide into a pool), guests must join the Sybaris Club. The annual membership fee starts at $25 and goes up to $150, which entitles the member to larger discounts. They have more than 60,000 members, said Knudson, who noted the membership requirement was established to set Sybaris apart from just any motel.
“Once you get to the room, the first thing you do is check out everything,” confessed Susan of Glen Ellyn. She and husband Sid looked in every closet, checked every nook and cranny. “We were like kids in a candy shop,” she said.
That’s when they found “this goofy basket thing,” Susan recalled. “There was a hook over the bed and we figured it was for the basket. We tried it. We tried everything,” she said, giggling.
What is called a Taiwan basket has been a staple of Sybaris since the club’s inception. It almost defies description, except to say it is definitely not for use by gymnastically challenged couples. “Please don’t reveal our real names and the fact that we couldn’t figure it out,” Susan pleaded.
Nick and Ginny’s experience at Sybaris was memorable for another reason. It had to do with Ginny’s attempt at a sexy entrance into the swimming pool (only some suites have swimming pools, though all have whirlpools). Their children gave the Glen Ellyn couple a Sybaris gift certificate for their 25th anniversary.
Clad in nothing more than a thin gold necklace, Ginny attempted to descend into the pool by walking down the ladder. “It helped my ego that I’m nearsighted. Without my glasses I couldn’t see how I looked in all those mirrors,” admitted this mother of five children.
“I caught my foot on the ladder step and belly-flopped,” Ginny said. She was winded and had cut her foot. Nick thought he’d have to ring the emergency bell-there are no telephones. So much for a sexy, graceful entrance.
Nonetheless, “we’re saving our money to go back,” Ginny said. “We had a great time.”
Part of that great time, Knudson contends, is the level of comfort each couple feels in a Sybaris suite. The properties are specially designed with each unit as a separate cottage, so guests don’t ever come face-to-face with other guests. Knudson believes couples need to feel safe and secluded.
Additionally, Knudson insisted, “The success of Sybaris is directly connected to the cleanliness of each suite.”
Before guests arrive, each suite is serviced by a staff of three cleaning people, Parenty said. Every surface is scoured and sanitized. Linens are changed, checked for signs of wear and laundered, she said. Each suite is then checked both by an inspector and the head housekeeper.
“One major misconception about Sybaris is that we have hot tubs,” Parenty said. Long suspected of being breeding grounds for germs and infection, hot tubs have never been in a Sybaris, she said.
Instead, each suite has a whirlpool bathtub. “It’s a bathtub like everyone’s bathtub they have at home. Except it’s big enough for two people,” Parenty said. When the suite is cleaned, the whirlpool is scoured.
Chlorine and other chemicals keep the swimming pools sanitary. “Besides, the temperature of a swimming pool is too cold for infectious viruses to survive,” Knudson said. The Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta confirms this.
“I often check the rooms personally. I want to feel that everything in that room is clean enough for me to put my mouth on,” Knudson said.
Back in the Frankfort Sybaris’ lobby, the last guest to check in for the afternoon had arrived. He was a young, professional-looking man guessed to be somewhere in his 20s. He appeared to be in somewhat of a rush. Dressed in a hip-length leather coat, creased jeans and black loafers, he shifted from one foot to the other as the clerk steered him through the office ritual.
As the young man stood at the counter, he slipped his feet in and out of the loafers in an agitated manner. A glimpse of his feet showed he was wearing what looked like black, floral-patterned lace stockings. Maybe a full-length body stocking? Maybe something else. The imagination reels.
None of the office staff noticed, or if they did, they ignored it. This was just another guest in a day full of guests at Sybaris. “Enjoy your stay, sir,” said Reed.
It’s a safe bet he did. Wink, wink.
