Spa hotels are the ideal place to indulge in spa treatments, where you can float off to your room after a relaxing massage, a rejuvenating facial, or deep cleansing wrap and take full advantage of the ultimate “down time” experience.
But how do you know which treatment is for you? For the uninitiated, reading a hotel’s spa menu can be a confusing experience. After reading the basic overview of spa treatments, you’ll be able to book yours with confidence.
Click on one of the treatments below for more information:
Using special creams or masks, the surface layer on the face and body are “peeled” off to reveal glowing, healthy skin. Though it may sound painful, there is little discomfort, if any. However, this process is sometimes part of a more advanced dermatological spa treatment, such as microdermabrasion, which some may find painful. Some spa hotels use luxury ingredients in their body peels, like the Super Plus Caviar Treatment “La Prairie Body and Face” at the
Gran Hotel Guadalpin Marbella Spa in Spain.
Sometimes referred to as an herbal wrap, body wraps generally involve wrapping large sheets of cloth or warm blankets around the body, and are often part of a longer spa treatment. For example, at Dublin’s
Castleknock Hotel and Country Club , the Lavender Lane Spa first smoothes warmed seaweed and peppermint oil over the skin, and then wraps the body.
A facial is the deep cleansing of the face that usually begins with a surface wash, followed by a massage, steaming, a mask, a deeper cleansing which includes exfoliation, and finally moisturizing. Some facials include a similar treatment for the neck and shoulders.
There are countless variations on facials, mostly having to do with the ingredients and products used, length of the treatment, and the health or beauty goal. For example, you’ll find several different types of facials on the spa menu at the
Apex City Quay Hotel and Spa in Dundee, all based on skin type. The hotel spa’s Japanese Silk Booster Facial is for sensitive skin, the Elemis Exotic Moisture Dew is for dry skin, and the Yu Spa Deep Cleansing Facial is the ideal facial for first-timers, and those who are surrounded by pollution and impurities.
Originating in Turkey, the hammam is a public steam bath and/or steam room often used before or after spa treatments. Some spa hotels incorporate aromatherapy into the hammam for added benefits.
Similar to a body wrap, some spa hotels use the terms interchangeably. An herbal wrap spa treatment involves being wrapped up in long strips or large sheets of cloth, which have been soaked in herbal teas. Once wrapped, most spa hotels will then have clients sit in a dry sauna or steam room, which helps to sweat out toxins.
Hot stone spa treatments use smooth, heated stones on the body’s pressure points. Hot stones are often incorporated into massage treatments, such as the ScenTao Hot Stone Massage at the
Oriel House Hotel Leisure Club & Spa in County Cork, Ireland.
Massage is the therapeutic manipulation of muscles and tissue using aromatherapy oils, used to relieve stress and support healing. The most common massage treatment found at spa hotels is the classic Swedish massage, which uses a prescribed system of strokes and promotes deep relaxation. Shiatsu, another popular massage, is a Japanese method using acupressure to stimulate the body’s meridians (energy pathways).
Ayrurvedic massage, which is based on the ancient Indian medicinal principles of balancing energy, is also a common type of massage offered at spa hotels. The spa menu at the
Oriel House Hotel Leisure Club & Spa features the Abyhanga Ayrurvedic Massage, where clients choose from three aromatic oil blends.
At many spa hotels, the variations on massage are in the oils used during the treatment. For example, at the
Warwick Fiji Resort and Spa on the main island of Viti Levu, uses indigenous flowers and spices in its traditional Fijian massage.
Other variations have to do with the therapists. For example, Egypt’s Grand Rotana Resort and Spa’s signature spa treatment, the Four-Hand Massage, uses two therapists – it’s like having two massages in one!
Massages may also be offered in unique locations at the spa hotel, such as poolside, in an outdoor pagoda, or a special room just for couples. For example, at the Fujairah Rotana Resort & Spa in the United Arab Emirates, guests enjoy an aromatic massage in a tent on the beach.
Also referred to as a body scrub, this spa treatment uses coarse sea salt and aromatherapy oils to exfoliate the skin, removing dead skin cells. Salt glows and scrubs vary little in application, but widely in the scrub ingredients. At the
Warwick Ibah Luxury Villas & Spa in Bali, you will find delicious body scrubs made of chocolate, sea salt, and green tea.
Originating in Finland, the sauna is a very hot, dry room with walls made of wood. Saunas, like the one at the Nuna Cobra Life Quality Center Spa at the
Gran Estanplaza Sao Paulo hotel in Brazil, detoxify the body through perspiration.
Named for the French city of Vichy, known for its thermal spas, a vichy shower sprays water from five to seven showerheads on clients as they rest on a table or floor mat. The vichy shower is only part of a whole host of water spa treatments at the
Gran Hotel Guadalpin Marbella Spa in Spain.
A relatively new term, vinotherapy or winetherapy incorporates grape extracts indigenous to the spa hotel’s region in various spa treatments.
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