RESORT SPA Dual Purpose
The renown spa at the Dolder Grand in Zurich is one of the best in the industry and is serving as a destination spa for hotel guests and an urban spa for local city visitors
KATIE BARNES » MANAGING EDITOR » SPA BUSINESS T e resort dates back to 1899 and was a ‘curhaus’ focusing on health and relaxation T
here aren’t many hotel general mangers who ‘get’ spas. It’s a common challenge convincing the head of the hotel about the value a spa brings. Not so at the
Dolder Grand in Zurich, Switzerland. Man- aging director T omas Schmid says: “T e spa’s an important revenue stream, but, it’s more than that, it’s a PR tool and people are drawn to us because of the it.” He’s also a fan of treatments, albeit the less fussy ones, he says: “It’s the touch that’s important but I’m not so keen when it gets complicated.” It’s fi tting then that Schmid should head
up a resort which has one of the most renowned spas in the industry – one that’s had spa professionals and spa-goers fl ocking to it since its opening in April 2008 following a chf440m (us$481m, €366m, £297m) trans- formation of the entire property (see p60).
Curhaus roots Schmid has had a career in spa resorts, hav- ing previously worked as assistant general manager at the Bad Ragaz mineral and heal- ing spa in Switzerland. He started at the old Grand Hotel Dolder in 2003 and was keenly involved in its four-year overhaul, he says: “it was a once in a lifetime job to be involved in the closing of a hotel and the planning and reopening of a new one.”
Added in 2008, the spa was inspired by Japanese (above) and European cultures Originally opened in 1899 on a hill over-
looking the city, Grand Hotel Dolder was a ‘curhaus’ where locals escaped for rest, active leisure and the feeling of being close to nature. “T is history of health and wellness was the reason for adding a spa,” says Schmid.
“With fresh air and trees, the destination was made for this and people expect it.” With the idea that a spa would be a
major feature – not just an aſt erthought or squashed into a basement – Schmid began extensive travels to research spas from Japan, Brazil and New York to those in major Euro-
58 Read Spa Business online
spabusiness.com / digital
pean cities. Careful thought was also put into choosing US-based spa specialist Sylvia Sepielli, who owns the SPAd consultancy and has created leading spas worldwide includ- ing the Pangkor Laut Spa Village in Malaysia (see sb05/2 p108). “It was important to have someone who would be prepared to compro- mise, but who could also bring something unique and new,” says Schmid.
European and Asian infl uences Situated in one of two new wings, the beauti- ful 4,000sq m (43,055sq ſt ) Dolder Grand Spa
SPA BUSINESS 2 2012 ©Cybertrek 2012
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100