Spas are the perfect place for you to focus on your
health and well-being, to regain balance and clarity in your life and to heal
yourself. There are many types of spas
offering unique treatments and varied outcomes, so it is important to under the
various types of spas available to ensure that you get the results you are
looking for and to make your experience at the spa as beneficial as possible.
These days, mini-spa treatments are becoming easier
to find – at the mall, at the airport, at a salon, at a health club, and even
at the Chinese medicine shop on the corner.
While most of these “express spas” offer short massages and superficial
facial treatments with varying degrees of privacy, serious spa goers choose
either destination spas or resort spas to enjoy the benefits of some of the
world’s top facilities and the best practitioners.
Day Spas offer a selection of spa treatments and often
provide salon services as well. Day spas
are a good choice for people who are too busy for an overnight stay at a spa or
simply can’t afford the full spa experience.
The main complaint with day spas is that due to limited space and high
traffic, treatment rooms can be very small and nosy. The quality of practitioners and the level of
service at day spas is not up to the same standards of resort spas or
destination spas.
Resort Spas (or Hotel Spas) are basically Day Spas located in
hotels that offer spa treatments, fitness classes, and (sometimes) spa
cuisine. Often times the resorts also
offer other activities such as golf, so a resort spa is a good choice when one
person wants to relax at the spa and the other person wants to spend their
afternoon golfing. Resort spas allow you
to enjoy spa treatments and facilities, but also have the option to eat meals
that are not part of the spa diet or drink alcohol (after all – it is still a
holiday!). Although resort spas do not
offer dedicated spa retreats, the quality of the accommodation, treatments, and
cuisine can still be top class, particularly at spas at the world’s premier
luxury hotels.
Destination Spas are the sanctuaries for the spa aficionados. In addition to offering the a la carte
treatments that resort spas feature, destination spas provide various healing
programmes that include consultations with doctors and/or specialists,
accommodation, meals, treatments, and educational classes by experts in their
fields. These programmes, often referred to as retreats, focus on a specific
purpose (detoxification, weight loss, stress relief, etc.) and are an excellent
way to make a major, long term change to improve your health and habits.
Destination spas offer personalized programmes based on your goals which often
include a tailor-made diet of healthy spa cuisine, exercise, relaxation, and
pampering. Alcohol and food outside of
the restricted menu may be allowed depending on the spa and the programme. A minimum stay of two nights is imposed by
most destination spas, although typically people go to destination spas for a 7
night programme to achieve the maximum results.
Medical Spas are a hybrid between a medical clinic and a day
spa. Medical spas are a comfortable
environment to undergo medical procedures while ensuring a high degree of
comfort and privacy. Medical spas offer
treatments that cannot be provided by traditional aestheticians. Medical
treatments such as microdermabrasion, chemical treatments (e.g., chemical
peels), injectables (e.g., Botox, fillers), and laser treatments (e.g.,
photofacials) require a doctor’s
supervision, but relaxation treatments such as massage are also available for
you to pamper yourself. Medical spas are
much more clinical than day spas, but provide a much higher degree of comfort
and luxury than hospitals. Many medical spas now offer nutritional counselling,
acupuncture, and holistic treatments as well.
MY RECOMMENDATION -
I always speak to the experts at Healing Holidays who help me choose the right type of spa to best suit my needs and they take care of all of my travel arrangements. Healing Holidays can provide first-hand advice to guide you to the world’s best resort spas, destination spas, and medical spas, but please be aware that day spas and spas in the UK are not featured. Ask for Jo, she knows her stuff!
By Spa Samurai
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