Trends in destination resort development have long been created around the logical themes of relaxation and entertainment. Now a new trend has evolved – resorts dedicated to health and wellness. Resort owners increasingly are adding programs that help guests renew mind, body and spirit, by, for example, having a medical checkup, seeing a physical therapist, or mapping out a program to prevent illness and encourage positive lifestyle changes. Guests at these health and wellness-oriented resorts search for concrete health-related benefits and the opportunity to educated themselves while they relax
A growing number of destination resorts have incorporated spas into their facilities and many have gone a step further by offering medical programs often including alternative medicine. The interest in alternative therapies that complement traditional medical practices has been growing steadily over the last 20 years. According to a recent article in the New England Journal of Medicine (January 28, 1998), one in three Americans routinely uses some form of alternative medicine and self care, spending an average of $10.3 billion Per year. This figure is in addition to the dollars spent each year on medically related rehabilitation and spa treatments, and does not include the cost of travel to destinations offering such amenities, nor the cost of resort stays.
A number of resort owners and hotel chins are creating programs that revolve around the concept of a resort as a place where guests can relax, rejuvenate, and obtain a sense of well being. Many resort patrons want to feel transformed by the resort experience, taking away a powerful and positive memory, a new outlook on life, or an improvement in a medical condition. Resorts that offer visitors these opportunities can differentiate themselves in the market.
Services that focus on the individual may include some or all of the following: § Enhanced spa facilities and new alternative treatment options; § Expanded fitness facilities, with state of the art equipment; § Medical treatments that overlap with beauty treatments, such as hydrotherapy; all forms of massage from sports and Swedish, to lymphatic drainage; dermabrasion; and laser skin resurfacing; § Medical treatments that traditionally are performed in a clinical setting, such as minor plastic surgery, physical therapy, traditional medical diagnostic tests, cardiology testing, weight management, pain, management, behavioral medicine, cosmetic dentistry, and antiaging treatments; § Alternative, such as chiropractic, homeopathic, and herbal medicine and nutritional testing; and § Spiritual exercises, including yoga, Tai Chi, mediation, and other mind/body practices.
Any or all of these elements can be woven into existing or new resort programs; however, studies should be conducted on the feasibility of and demand for each service.
The broadest definition of wellness programs includes spa services. According to the International Spa and Fitness Association, there are now 250 resort spas in the United States and 600 day spas, up from a combined total of 30 spas in 1978. At least 120 resorts in this country offer medically related and complementary therapists in addition to spa treatments. Hotels increasingly are developing spa programs or enlarging programs that already exist, according to M. Chase Burritt, national director of Ernst & Young’s hospitality services group in Miami, Florida. In a recent article in hotel Management magazine, author Barbara Worcester quoted a 1999 RMA research study that identified one class of tourist as the “new luxurion” – young, active professionals who have high levels of personal income and high expectations for personal attention. The study also mentioned that more that 60 percent of the 100 properties surveyed were adding spas and fitness centers.
In addition, the size of the hotel resort pa/wellness facilities has increased dramatically in recent years. A 6,000-square-foot space once was considered adequate for a hotel spa; now 20,000 square feet is considered the minimum. Spa/wellness elements can contribute more than ever to a resort’s bottom line and also render higher revenues for city-located hotels. “We are definitely seeing an increase in use and revenue,” comments Catherine Duke, spa manager of the Regent Spa in Hong Kong. “In the case of the Regent Spa and in other resort locations, spa/wellness activities are marketed like a day spa to non-overnight guests.” There are numerous revenue centers within resort spas, points out Caren Thornburgh, owner of the consulting group Virtual Spa, in Newton, Massachusetts, who notes that supporting professional services with retail items can contribute an additional 25 to 65 percent to a resort spa’s overall revenue. Thornburgh sees an increase in the day spa developments at existing resorts. “In the past, resort spas were designed and built as an amenity,” she explains. “Today, these existing spas are being designed and seen as potential profit centers as well as amenities that help maintain a competitive edge. According to a recent study by the International Spa and Fitness Association, 75 percent of its members has spas under construction or had plans for expansion. We are seeing a similar growth in resort spas.” Findings of a recent study of 30 resort-based spas in the United States by spa consultant Judy Singer of Health Fitness Dynamics in Pompano Beach, Florida, indicated that more than 50 percent of a spa’s gross revenues comes for a la carte services (massage, acupuncture, facials, reflexology) ranging in price from $75 to $500. Medical services are often billed this way as well, or they are rolled into a complete package, much the way spa programs alone are packaged.
Major cosmetic companies that have freestanding day spas in a variety of urban and suburban locations now are branching out into resort spas. The Elizabeth Arden Company plans to open its first resort spa this summer (2000) at the Marriott Seaview Resort in Atlantic City, New Jersey, according to Carolyn Keats, vice president of salon development, who says there is interest in introducing Elizabeth Arden as a spa/wellness service at destination resorts. “We have expanded into the nutrition area and into treatments such as microdermabrasion,” she says; such treatments once were available only in a dermatologist’s office.
The cost of wellness vacations can vary widely. Luxury properties that are adding these amenities also are raising their rates by an average of 9 percent annually. The following is a sampling of eight wellness resorts, some old, some new.
Canyon Ranch. Perhaps the best example of a wellness resort in this country, Canyon Ranch is Tucson, Arizona, was one of the first to be created. Built over 20 years ago, the main spa includes 62,000 square feet with seven gymnasiums; a yoga and meditation dome; sauna, steam, and inhalation rooms; and services such as massage, herbal therapy, and hydrotherapy. Canyon Ranch also offers a life enhancement program, housed in its own health complex, where a medical staff comprising six physicians, fifth teen nurses, and two psychologists work with clients on cardiac rehabilitation, physical therapy, longevity issues, and weight management and smoking cessation. A sister resort inn Lenox, Massachusetts, has a 100,000 square foot spa and health center. Canyon Ranch also provides spa and wellness package at the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas in its 65,000 square foot SpaClub, which includes such as physical therapy, exercise physiology, movement therapy, and nutritional analysis, The SpaClub at the Venetian operates with a long term lease, and there is a long-term equity partnership between Canyon Ranch, Crescent RE Equities – the real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns the two Canyon Ranch destination resorts – and the SpaClub.
Foxhollow Life Enrichment and Wellness Center. The Foxhollow Life Enrichment and Wellness Center in Crestwood, Kentucky, offers physical-designed programs including: antiaging and rejuvenation treatments, and therapy for those with chronic conditions. A year ago, the resort opened a new wellness clinic that features modern equipment and clinical areas for medical, dental, psychological, and nutritional assessments. The resort is linked with the Paracelsus Klinik of Lustmuhle, Switzerland, known for its leading edge research in the field of biological medicine.
The Pritikin Centers. There are two Pritikin Longevity Centers in the United States, one in Santa Monica, California, and the other in Miami Beach, Florida. Pritikin’s programs could be considered a prototype of the “medspa,” or wellness resort. The emphasis at these centers is on preventive medicine by diet control. Education is a large component of the Pritikin Program, with courses in stress management and healthy cooking.
The Arizona Biltmore Resort and Spa. The Arizona Biltmore Resort and Spa. In Phoenix first opened in 1929. It was expanded in 1970 by the addition of 319 rooms and a 39,000 square-foot conference center. In 1992, Phoenix developer the Grossman Group, Inc., purchased the resort and began a $50 million renovation. Sis years later the resort opened a state-of-the-art, 22,000 square foot spa. Spa treatments include qi jong (oriental energy medicine) as well as an array of treatments from Europe and the South Pacific.
The Aspen Club. The Aspen Club in Aspen, Colorado, is geared toward improving lifestyle habits beyond the time spent at the resort. Programs include a full range of Mind and body fitness classes as well as acupuncture, craniosacral therapy, and lymphatic drainage massage. The Aspen Club offers personal training, nutritional testing and evaluation, and a number of spa treatments, including oxygen facials. Sports medicine is a component of this program, and package programs range from women’s health and fitness programs to “explore the road to wellness for couples” and boosting the immunity for ultimate health,” according to the Aspen Club’s promotional brochures.
Marriott’s Camelback Inn. Marriott’s Camelback Inn Resort in Scottsdale, Arizona, includes a 27,000 square foot, world-class spa, offering a “personalized aerobic lifestyle system” developed by Ken Cooper, founder of the Institute for Aerobic Research and the Coop Clinic of Dallas Texas. This analysis of fitness and well-being includes computerized testing of body composition, cardiovascular endurance, flexibility, and abdominal and upperbody strength; nutritional analysis; lifestyle evaluation; and wellness assessment. Following testing is created for clients.
The Grand Wailea Maui. The Grand Wailea Maui resort has a 50,000 square foot spa designed with highend finishes such as Italian marble, mahogany millwork, Venetian chandeliers, and original artwork. The facility includes 40 treatment rooms, state-of-the-art fitness areas and instruction in stress management, goals clarification, spirituality, and transformative energetics. The hydrotherapy area is designed as a circuit with an array of water therapies from around the world. Various bath treatments include an authentic Japanese bath, a seaweed bath, and a tropical enzyme bath.
“If you’re building a spa,” Grand Wailea’s spa director David Erlich recently was quoted in Hotel Management Magazine as saying,” include something indigenous to the local. ”At Grand Wailea, one massage technique involves heating smooth stones found in the local area. Erlich notes that the majority of his customers are interested in mainstream therapies but some are interested in more esoteric therapies like Aurevedic medicine (an ancient health care philosophy from India) and light therapy. An estimated 24 percent of resort guests use the spa amenity, and a new membership program has been created to open spa services to the residents of Maui.
The Chiva Som Resort. The Chiva Som Resort in Thailand is a wellness resort that has a complete medical department as well as 21 spa treatment rooms and a full range of recreational facilities. Upon arrival, guests receive a private consultation to determine which program and activity level are appropriate for them. A team of doctors, nurses, nutritionists, and fitness staff are on hand to provide specialized guidance. Programs focus on cardiac rehabilitation, stress related illnesses, and smoking cessation. Chiva Som also has treatments aimed at improving the efficiency of the immune system and turning back the aging process. Music therapy and flotation therapy are some of the many individualized therapies available.
The concept of wellness-encompassing mind/body therapies and including contemporary Medical treatments such as laser peels, liposuction, and other cosmetic procedures-is changing traditional notions of going to a spa, which many years back was associated with older chronically ill people. Consolidation in the hotel industry should enable spas/wellness resorts to build on their branding as developers team up with destination spas across America to create branded treatments as well as home-use products.
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