Frivolous Spas

From the exclusive enclaves of the travel and wellness industry to the swinging sets of the entertainment and pleasure sector, spas make the move – and not without a Caprioska or two.

At the newly opened Parker Palm Springs in California the menu reads; “While many spa retreats are designed only for monks and nuns, we do not consider a clear soup a meal. We don’t think sitting under a tree contemplating your navel is an activity you should pay for.” 

Imagine sipping beers and noshing on finger food while watching a football game – all the while receiving a footbath and pedicure. Or how about chair massages and manicures during happy hour in a New York bar; or, in Miami, a club that’s a spa by day and a bar by night?

In Asia, too, creators are breaking with tradition. In the pipeline at Per Aquum’s Seychelles property (opening 2008) is a boudoir-style spa. Says co-creator, Jane Qunn: “The spa here will be about intimate spaces, mood lighting and sensual colours and textures.”

(For those of us already living a healthy lifestyle this makes for a welcomed change. We don’t need any more information on the health benefits of yoga, Reiki and organic food. ) Expect that treatments, too, will become more fun and relaxed. At the Four Seasons Tented Camp in Chiang Mai, the ‘Mahout Recovery Massage’ is the grand finale to a elephant ride. The Aspira Spa in Wisconsin (aspiraspa.com) offers pre- and post-nuptial spa menu alongside exotic Moroccan treatments delivered with a platter of Arabian pastries. And speaking of sensual, Per Aquum’s Seychelle’s spa will offer treatments that help put the spark back into relationships – think partner-applied treatments undergone in a sensory room, followed by a Caprioska.

In an industry in danger of being all too serious, it’s refreshing to have a choice of places where we can simply let go and have a downright good time. After all, the original spas in Europe were destinations for light and languid entertainment: “taking to the waters” was complimented with massages and plenty to drink.

The re-emergence of such spa trends is timely. Recently, research conducted at Harvard University revealed humour as is one of the five essentials to a successful life. Moreover, humour has been linked to longevity; some health professionals believe laughter will be the medicine of the 21st century.

It’s no wonder, then, that other hybrid spa experiences include Dental Spas with foot reflexology and luxury condos with on-site therapists. Are we then in danger of our lives becoming one frivolous spa? I hope so!

COOL NEW SPA EXPERIENCES

• Feel like what it must have been like to cruise the Mediterranean seas with the likes of Elizabeth Taylor, John Paul Getty and Marilyn Monroe.  The new Six Senses Spa onboard the Christina O luxury yacht is the ultimate in sea-going luxury. Journey through the Greek Islands, Italy, Turkey and the Southern Coast of France with spa treatments such as the Salt and Hot Stone therapy your only distraction.

• Tee off at the first of two spas at China’s residential spa community, Mission Hills Golf Club, this spa embraces a philosophy of leisure and the good life, rather than treatments and therapies. Somewhat paradoxically, therapists train for four months in anatomy and physiology at the unique in-house spa academy, in order to ensure excellence in treatments.

• Drink up, sans hang-over, with the Red Wine Therapy Package by Sivara Spa at Amari Hotels. Well documented for its anti-oxidant properties, red wine helps the body to absorb important vitamins, particularly Vitamin C, leaving the body renewed and all a-glow. Chose from the Red Wine Body Scrub, Red Wine Body Wrap and Red Wine Therapy. Available until the end of January at Sivara Spa at Amari Hotels, Resorts & Spas: Bangkok, Koh Chang, Samui, Phuket, and Trang.       

• Surrender to the renowned Himalayan Stone Massage at the CHI Spa at Shangri-La Penang, the new hot-zone for spa-ing in Malaysia. CHI spas are famed for their monastery-like interiors with treatments inspired by healing traditions from the Chinese-Tibetan Himalayan region.

• Buddha-bar Hotels and Resorts adds spa-ing to their repetoire at Hilton d’Evian Les Bains in France, which uses the exclusive, 100% natural/petrochemical-free, Buddhattitude range blended by A.W. Lake, Singapore: Tibetan Ayurvedic Skin care line formulated for each dosha; Himalayan Healing line, and their Signature Balance line of products, soon to be available  online.

By Judy Chapman

Courtesy of lifestyleandtravel.com