54
With all the doom and gloom about the
world economy, you’d think one of the
first things to get crossed off the ‘To Do’
list would be extravagant spa-going,
but you’d be wrong - it appears that
when the going gets tough, the tough
get massages. The global spa business
is worth an estimated $255 billion and
rising fast. What was once a luxurious
treat, is now seen as an inalienable
right for millions of escapees from
the pressures of modern life.
To keep the increasingly stressed-out
and demanding clients happy and
loyal, spas are going all out to offer the
most exotic, extravagant and exciting
treatments. To enter the blissful fantasy
world of a top spa is to enter a reprieve
Mandarin Oriental
from day-to-day reality. Whether it’s in a
tent in Bhutan, a palace in India, under
New York
the sea in the Maldives or the business
class lounge at the airport, somewhere
in the world a perfect escape in the
form of a spa awaits.
The USA leads the world in
conspicuous spa consumption.
The venerable Hotel Bel Air in Los
Angeles, haunt of Hollywood legends
and studio tycoons, is launching a
brand new spa costing millions,
while the new VIP spa suite at the
Mandarin Oriental, New York (www.
mandarinoriental.com) is a Chinoiserie
fantasy that wouldn’t look out of place
in the Imperial Palace. Couples can
reserve a two-hour massage, an hour
of treatments and an hour of ‘private
relaxation’ time in the lap of luxury for a
princely $1,700. In spite of Wall Street’s
slump it has been hugely successful.
The new VIP spa suite at the Mandarin
At Veronica’s Skin and Beauty Center
in Malibu (www.veronicaskincare.com)
Oriental, New York is a Chinoiserie
California girls are happily spending $400
for the 90-minute ‘Luxe 24 Karat Gold
fantasy that wouldn’t look out of place in
Facial’ from UMO Inc. Sheets of 24 carat
gold leaf are gently massaged into the
the Imperial Palace.
customer’s skin to brighten, de-wrinkle
and firm the skin through stimulating cell
renewal. Meantime, in San Francisco,
women flock to Spa Radiance (www.
sparadiance.com) for the cult $750
‘Grand Luxe Facial’, a three-hour long
avantoure
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adrenaline rainbow
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