Questions to Think About When Choosing a Destination Spa

With so many wonderful luxury wellness retreats available these days, it is important to choose the right health spa to get the most value for your money and the most benefit from your experience.  Asking the right questions will help you choose the spa break that is right for you.

Here are some questions to think about when you are choosing a destination spa:

• Would you like your spa holiday to focus on a particular goal such as losing weight, detoxing, kickstarting your fitness, or developing your yoga/pilates practice? 

• Do you have medical problems that you would like to address or are you recovering from a major life event?

• Do you want a restricted meal plan or to follow a prescribed nutritional philosphy? 

• Do you want a break from alcohol, stimulants, and toxins?

• Are you looking for an outdoor exercise experience such as hiking, fitness on the beach, or rock climbing?

• Are you interested in meeting with doctors, nutritionists, trainers, and specialists to develop a personalized programme that you can practice after you return home?

• Are you looking for a setting where it is easy to meet like-minded people in a social atmosphere for a sense of camaraderie?

• Would you like to attend classes and lectures on subjects that interest you?

• Are you happy to go to a spa with a minimum stay?

If the answers to all of the questions above were YES, then a wellness retreat at a destination spa is certainly the right choice for you.

Are you looking to go on holiday with your friend or family and have some relaxing spa treatments?  If so, then a resort spa is a better choice for you.

The next step is to ask an expert for advice on selecting the right health spa and the best spa programme for you. There are a few more questions to ask yourself:

• Are the treatments available at the spa important to you?  If so, look into the a la carte treatments available at the spa and find out if you have to pre-book.

• Do you want to get away to the mountains, beach, or a foreign city?  Ask a specialist tour operator the benefits of each location and how far the actual spa is from the highlights of the area.

• How important is luxury in the accommodation and dining that you seek? Some spas offer basic accommodation on the presumption that you spend very little time in your room and the majority of your stay in the common areas.  If you prefer a higher standard of luxury in your accommodation, ask an expert about the rooms and not just the spa facilities.

Do you have other important questions to consider to help you choose the right spa?  If so, please let me know and I’ll update the blog.

MY RECOMMENDATION - 

Speak to Karen at Healing Holidays.  She loves her spa breaks and she knows her stuff!

By Spa Samurai

How to Speak “Spa Lingo”

I often get asked, “What is the difference between a spa treatment and a spa therapy?”  There is so much trendy spa-related terminology thrown about by hipsters that it is difficult to stay in the know!  I thought it would be helpful if I explained some essential “spa speak” so that you know what to ask for when you are planning your next spa break.

Treatment:  A (spa) treatment is a non-medical procedure that is intended to improve the overall health of the body.  Treatments can be performed at day spas, resort spas, destination spas, and medical spas.  Most spas offer a menu of a la carte treatments when you arrive, which cover a wide range of health, beauty/cosmetic, and pampering. 

Some of the most popular treatments include:

• Bathing in specialized, therapeutic pools such as  hot springs (e.g., Japanese onsens or Roman Thermal baths) or Thalasso (revitalizing sea water pools)
• Massages including various disciplines (e.g., Thai massage, Swedish massage, deep tissue massage, sports massage, Shiatsu)
• Body wraps including hot blankets, mud wraps, or herbal compounds
• Facials
• Saunas and steam baths
• Aromatherapy
• Facials
• Waxing
• Nail care (e.g., manicures and pedicures)

Retreat:  A (spa) retreat is a spa holiday with a purpose. Spa retreats can be either  pre-determined, set programmes or a personalized package created to help you reach your goals.  Retreats normally last between 3 – 7 nights, but some intensive programmes may last up to one month.  Spa retreats are the perfect way to see results fast, kickstart your practice, and to stay focused to achieve your objective.  Most retreats also include relaxation and pampering treatments in addition to the core programme.  Spa cuisine or specialized diets are often required to cleanse the body and provide calorie-controlled, nutrient rich, locally sourced, organic foods to contribute to detoxification, weight loss, fitness, and anti-ageing.

Some of the most popular retreats include:

• Detox
• Yoga
• Fitness
• Weight Loss
• Stress Relief
• Deep Sleep
• Stop Smoking

Bootcamp:  A (spa) bootcamp is really just a spa retreat with a quirky name. The original bootcamps were strictly regimented fitness “kickstart programmes” lead by drill sergeant-like instructors to produce quick weight loss results by  shocking the body with intensive workouts and calorie-restricted, healthy eating. While most bootcamps focus on fitness (e.g., excericise, healthy eating, weight loss), the term is now being used in reference to yoga, beauty, pampering,  and almost anything!

Therapy:  Therapy and treatment are often used interchangeably, but they are quite different.  A therapy is a clinically proven method of treatments that are performed at spas.  A therapy is more of a philosophy that comprises a programme.  Treatments are part of an overall therapy methodology. Some of the most common spa therapies include :

• Thalassotherapy - The medicinal use of sea water.
• Balneotherapy -The use of mineral baths.
• Aromatherapy – The use of essential oils.
• Hydrotherapy – The use of water.
• Climatotherapy – The use of specific climates.

Pampering:  Pampering refers to spa treatments that allow you to indulge yourself.  Pampering treatments are normally non-surgical, non-invasive procedures that focus on relaxation and beauty.  The most popular relaxation pampering treatments are massages, bathing in therapeutic pools, saunas/steam baths, body wraps, and aromatherapy. The most common pampering beauty treatments are facials, manicures, and pedicures.  Pampering treatments have crossed over into “Pampering Retreats” and “Pampering Bootcamps”, which are specialized programmes that focus on stress relief, relaxation, aesthetic beauty, and healthy eating.

Health Farm:  A health farm is a funky phrase that is gaining popularity. It is really just the new lingo for a health spa retreat, a fitness bootcamp, or a fitness farm.  Health farm is often used to replace “fat farm” with a politically correct alternative,  but don’t let it confuse you.

Holistic:  Holistic medicine  considers emotional, mental, and spiritual elements in addition to the physical aspects of a person so that the approach to healing is viewing the person as an entire system.  The aim is to target the cause of an illness, rather than just treat the symptoms.  Holistic healing is a longterm, grassroots approach to overall wellness and is a very popular philosophy in spas around the world.

Ayurveda: Ayurveda is a system of alternative medicine  that  uses diet, herbal treatments, and yogic breathing in treatments.  Hygiene, balancing the five elements, building a healthy metabolic system, and proper digestion are the emphasis of this philosophy.  Exercise, yoga, and meditation also play a key role in ayurvedic wellness.

MY RECOMMENDATION - 

I hope that these terms help you to decipher the esoteric codes of spa speak.  Please post a comment to share your favourite definitions or to let me know which vocabulary you struggle with.  You can always call the experts at Healing Holidays on 020 7843 3597 who have been patient enough to explain a lot of this terminology to me.

By Spa Samurai

Why Choose a Destination Spa?

Destination spas offer the ultimate in indulgence, pampering, and escapism.  There is no better way to take a break from the stresses of your job, your life, and your daily routine, than to sequester yourself in the comforts of an all inclusive environment where you don’t have anything or anyone to think about but yourself.  It is so rare that we take the time out of our busy lives to focus on ourselves, but it is absolutely essential for our physical and mental health, as well as our spiritual well being.  Regaining the balance in ourselves is the best way to reach a deeper clarity and improve productivity when we return to our daily lives.

Day spas offer a fleeting glimpse of self-improvement, but destination spas offer life-changing opportunities that you can only gain on holiday, away from the familiarity of your daily routine, when you learn to embrace the comforts of a foreign experience.  You come out the other side a new person, confident with the changes that you have seen in yourself during your retreat and equipped with the skills you need to maintain your progress.

A week-long retreat at a destination spa is a total immersion experience.  When you arrive, you are welcomed by staff that are there to take care of you and help you towards your goals.  You are surrounded by  like-minded people that  support you and inspire you by sharing their personal anecdotes.  An evaluation by a medical professional gives you a benchmark of where you are and what you need to do to reach your goals.  Regular meetings with dieticians arm you with the nutritional knowledge necessary to incorporate healthy eating into your daily life and cooking classes and lectures give you the delicious inspiration that may have been lacking.  To jumpstart your lifestyle change, the regimented spa cuisine takes all of the guesswork and temptation out of having to plan and cook your meals.  The food you eat is portion controlled and calorie controlled, but it is packed with nutrients, detoxifying, and absolutely gorgeous.  Top chefs painstakingly prepare beautifully presented cuisine according to strict dietary principles and present the dishes with the panache of a Michelin star restaurant.

Top practitioners in their fields offer personalized sessions in small groups with plenty of close interaction and opportunities to ask questions.  Although the workouts can be difficult, the training facilities are state of the art and the sessions are always engaging.  The scenery of the outdoor classes is so stunning that you are just grateful for having the opportunity to be in such a perfect, natural setting.

When you aren’t sweating it out to lose weight, relieve stress, detoxify yourself, or reach your fitness goals, you spend sunny afternoons lazing by the pool or treating yourself to pampering treatments such as massages and facials.  Unwinding and learning to let go is a big part of the destination spa experience. Finding quietness and learning to once again appreciate the stillness in the silence makes you realize how much constant noise there is in your daily life and how distracting it can be.  The tranquillity eventually leads to introspection, which lends itself to evaluating what is really important in your life.  After several days of detoxifying your body, concentrating on yourself, and being free of stress, you feel a sense of levity and clarity that is normally only reached through intense meditation.

If you are new to the world of spas or a seasoned spa aficionado, there is no better way to improve wellbeing and regain your inner harmony than taking a week to visit a destination spa.  There are some wonderfully unique retreats available at some sensational spas.

MY RECOMMENDATION - 

The experts at HealingHolidays can take care of your travel arrangements to the world’s best destination spas and help you choose the perfect spa retreat to help you reach your goals. Ask for Tracy - she has booked my last 2 spa retreats.

By Spa Samurai