Spa centers spring into local leisure choices

Newsroom 16/07/2012 | 09:26

When our Latin forebears said “sanitas per aquam”, they knew that looking and feeling good was both an art and a science, where water plays the main role. So the ancients invented spas, where hot and cold springs were held to offer physical and spiritual purification. The same thing happens nowadays, with the difference that behind every spring transformed into a five-star resort there is a focus on financial as well as physical results.

Oana Vasiliu

Spas around the world offer promises of relaxation through traditional or contemporary herbal medicine, spiritual meditation, massage and other healing arts. Heat is an important ingredient, as saunas, steam rooms, Jacuzzis and hot rock massages make visitors relax, sweat and detoxify, and draw blood to the surface. But while heat is said to boost relaxation and detoxification, the benefits of ice therapy for better circulation and reduced inflammation of muscles and joints have been tested with success and have spread worldwide. The traditional hot and cold treatments used in spas are still firm favorites among spa goers, but new trends arrive every year.

2012 trends in the spa business, according to SpaFinder, a company that forecasts the emerging concepts set to shape the spa scene next year, should encourage spa owners to focus on healthy feet treatments, cold and ice treatments, wellness and beauty coaching, online wellness gaming, pairing fine dining and spa visits, vibration, sound, music, light and color therapies, glamour, showing the science behind the spa, the spa as a family venue and the “wow” factor. In this business, the greatest challenges spas face is the pursuit of differentiation and profitability, and these trends can make a difference in clients’ eyes. Spa goers have a lot of choice so they do not have to settle for average or ordinary experiences.

In Romania, thanks to the springs that can be found mostly in the Carpathian Mountains, the spa industry has existed since ancient times. Today, the Romanian spa industry is divided into relaxation, medical, hotel, wellness, balneo and resort branches. Although the economic crisis has laid waste to many fields of activity in Romania since 2008, the spa industry seems to be in rude health: according to desprespa.ro, a website specialized in the local spa and wellness market, the number of male clients of spas has risen to 36 percent and international luxury spa brands are willing to invest in Romania, as is evident in the opening of the Buddhabar – BuddhattitudeSPA.

Reflecting the expansion of the industry, services such as special vouchers and giftcards through the desprespa.ro website can be purchased and clients can go online to book spa visits in Romania, France, Dubai or Qatar, the countries with promotional offers on the website. Although spa services are considered an alternative form of relaxation more than of medicinal benefit, more and more offers for healing are now being promoted.

Detox makes clean sweep of market

In the wellness industry, it seems that detox diets are the new big thing worldwide. Famous Hollywood actors, public figures and businesspeople regularly attend detoxification centers to purify their bodies.

With spas so common these days and their services familiar to many, this new industry promises new ways to cleanse your body more efficiently, using plants and herbs in particular.

The technological boom this century has left the environment visibly polluted, with toxins in the air we breathe, the water we drink and the food we eat. Detox proponents say this pollution tests our natural self-cleansing process which can no longer fully eliminate the toxins from the body, depositing them in the colon. These deposits, which build up in the human body, stop people losing weight, even if they eat sensibly and exercise.

Moreover, say detox specialists, if the toxins in the colon are tolerated by the organism, they enter into the bloodstream, affecting the immune system, and may lead to diseases and accelerated ageing. This is the main reason why people should detox at least once a year, some industry players recommend.

Though there is no medical consensus, some claim that a detox diet can help prevent chronics diseases such as cancer, diabetes, fatigue and arthritis, as well as effecting visible changes: safe and fast weight loss, clearer and more radiant skin, improved energy levels, healthier digestion and improved regularity of bowel movements and brighter eyes.

oana.vasiliu@business-review.ro

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