Wellness, Beauty, Hospitality are now “very fashionable” subjects and, as such, fill the pages of paper and online magazines. Spas, above all, are no longer simply places to relax, but become the setting for photos to show to friends and post on social profiles.
As with fashion and showbiz, the world of Wellness is also characterised by experts, bloggers and, “verb horrenda”, influencers. Sooner or later we’ll make a specific post about who, if any, really influences the choices of “spa goers”.
In the meantime, we have the pleasure of having a chat with Lorenza Scalisi who has been talking about these spaces for twenty years, with professionalism and real competence.
SA – Lorenza, how and why was your “specialisation” in the hotel and wellness sector born?
LS – I started writing about hôtellerie almost by chance, in 2000. I had only been at CN Traveller for 3 months, at the time a monographic monthly magazine, when they asked me to write about Hospitality and Restaurants: I remember thinking that it was a “mare magnum” where it was easier to get lost than to find my way around, but I literally began to study the differences between the various proposals and services, and shortly afterwards I was already on the mailing lists of all the main hotel chains and major international brands.
From there, the beginning of a long and incessant wandering among hotels of all kinds and at all latitudes. I think we can count in the order of a few hundred those in which I slept, and certainly thousands of those I visited. If the monograph was on New York, I would have explored the whole of Manhattan and beyond, focusing on the top of the range, of course, and the most curious and trendy independent structures.
At the end of a week, I could have set foot in 40/50 different establishments… An expertise that then took shape every end of the year with the Hot and Gold Lists, the “rankings” of the best addresses among hotels, resorts and spas worldwide, from must see to new openings not to be missed.
Thirteen wonderful years, which taught me to appreciate all the possible nuances of the world of hospitality. There are also many editorial projects that I have meanwhile signed “extra CN Traveller”, with formats often conceived by me: guides on charming residences, on villas and buildings transformed into hotels, on Golf and Spa Resorts, which in the case of the latter always include the “tried and tested for you”, a true full immersion in the description of a treatment.
SA – Since 2000, however, hotels and wellness centres have undergone great changes…
LS – Yes, I would say that we can talk about a real revolution. In extreme synthesis, we could say that until some time ago, when we talked about Spa it was often necessary to specify that it was not a “joint-stock company”, but a place dedicated to that “Salus per Aquam” which today is not only familiar to most people but even overused.
Before, to imagine having a super-equipped Spa, perhaps hundreds of square metres, that was not inside a “traditional” spa was almost unthinkable, especially in the city. Today, on the other hand, the top urban hotels compete in the luxury and variety of the wellness proposal, offering their guests what we could call a “wellness destination” tout court.
“An example? The 2,500 square metres finished in travertine and cared for by Starpool (a Val di Fiemme company leader in the production of saunas, hammams and similar) of the A.Roma Wellness & Spa Hotel of the LDC Hotels group, a true oasis of tranquillity close to Villa Doria Pamphili, in Rome. You find yourself in a sauna and look at the green foliage of the maritime pines in the park in front of you, and you forget you are in the heart of the Eternal City!
If you then go to the leisure resort, that is, outside the city, the horizons widen even further, and you often find yourself in facilities where you can devote yourself to every type of treatment, from specific medical to aesthetic-surgical, from remise en forme to psycho-physical rebalancing and so on. The “classic” relaxing, anti-aging or slimming massages are now almost a contour, one of the thousands of beauty & wellness proposals created by Spa Managers and staff who are increasingly prepared and updated.
“THERE IS NOTHING WORSE THAN TO UNDERGO A SHIRODARA
WITHOUT KNOWING THAT YOU WILL LEAVE THE CABIN OILED FROM HEAD TO TOE”.
The A.Roma hotel SPA, Roma
SA – What are the must-haves of a Spa?
LS – The Spa world revolves more than any other around a concept: that of comfort, which must be the ultimate target of every structural and service choice. Materials, sounds, perfumes and colours must stimulate all the senses, invite you to relax, divert your attention from everyday life and let your imagination fly. Switch off with reality, in short, the problems remain outside of that muffled place that invites you to let yourself go. If then some detail gives the “wow effect”, even better!
The hospitality begins with the reception, which must provide a waiting area, even if minimal, and staff capable of giving the right and clear explanations on the various treatments. There is nothing worse than undergoing a Shirodara without knowing that you will leave the cabin oiled from head to toe. Never take even the simplest and most common of treatments for granted!
The relaxation area must be acoustically isolated and “no mobile”: here, the obligatory switch off is that of mobile phones, which all too often (alas!), are travelling companions even in the Spa…
If the destination is panoramic, let’s use it! Since spas are an increasingly important item in hotel budgets, why always build cabins at level -1 instead of facing the sea or mountains? To understand us, a real “non-sense” is a Spa in the Caribbean or the Alps that does not offer full immersion in the context, even visually. Yet…. I have rarely visited cabins that I could call panoramic!
Why not?!?!? Sometimes, all it would take is just an outdoor gazebo, to be used in the summer. Even in the hottest destinations: better the sea breeze than the air conditioning, and better the sound of the sea waves than a CD playing it (an episode that happened in Lower California!).
Acqualina Resort, Miami
SA – And what are the most common mistakes, both in design and service?
LS – First of all, the spaces must be adequate with respect to the number of rooms: if you have 200 square metres available for 70 rooms (seen with my own eyes!), it is better not to add the words “Spa” to the hotel, but simply mention the presence of a “beauty corner” available for treatments on demand. In this way you don’t risk disappointing the expectations of those who are regulars of real spas.
Often, in this race to “do and give more”, one risks making mistakes. And this happens both when we talk about small budgets and pharaonic projects. In both cases, I think that the best strategy is always the “less is more”: it is better to focus on a limited diversification of services and a better quality of services. That is to say, I eliminate the sensory shower or Kneipp and create a sauna or hammam that is larger and more suitable for the structure.
Same observation for the Spa Menu proposal: it is better to focus on a few but selected treatments, preferably rooted in the territory, than to propose exotic suggestions that one is then unable to maintain expectations. In other words, I prefer to immerse myself in hay or local essences if I am in a mountain spa rather than find myself scented with coconut for an unlikely Polynesian massage at 2,200 metres above sea level.
SA – Any memorable Spa Experience?
LS – If we speak from a design point of view, certainly La Réserve Hotel Spa & Villas in Ramatuelle, as well as Espa all’Acqualina Resort in Miami, two luxury destinations with a strong personality. The first, the highest expression of contemporary design, with personal trainers and personalised programmes to experience in the nature of the Cote Azur, the second an unexpected retreat with an Italian touch (the passion of the property, which at the entrance to the resort had marble and majolica tiles of the Amalfi Cathedral reproduced!), with the plus of the Espa wellness concept.
For the treatments, unforgettable the one with the Tibetan bells I did at the Conservatorium in Amsterdam, for the skill of the therapist (in a suggestive architectural context designed by Piero Lissoni & Partners), and the signature treatment by Guerlain at One & Only The Palm in Dubai, one of the most beautiful resorts I have ever seen.
In Italy? Exaggerated but evergreen are the golden mosaics of the Relais & Châteaux Terme Manzi in Ischia, where a session of mud is a must, and always in Ischia do not miss the thermal spring that flows inside the medieval tower of the Mezzatorre.
IN MY ITALIAN TOP 3, THERE IS THE EMBRACE OF THE LEFAY DOLOMITI, FOR THE BEAUTY OF THE SPA (AMONG THE CREATIONS OF THE APOSTOLI’ S STUDIO THAT I PREFER), AND FOR THE PLEASANTNESS OF THE TREATMENT, SOIN REMODELING THAT PROVIDES A SERIES OF STEPS FOR 180 MINUTES OF PURE RELAXATION WITH IMMEDIATELY VISIBLE EFFECTS.
To be compared to the plaster cast of Terme di Saturnia, for those 3/4 cm less on the silhouette!
On the Generis and nothing short of unique is the Spa of Nun Assisi, very well equipped and with a humid area obtained inside an archaeological excavation that includes a temple dating back to the first century AD. It is the true sublimation of the thermal tradition of Ancient Rome in a modern and super cool way.
La Reserve Ramatuelle-Hotel Spa and Villas
SA – Design in the wellness world: how important is it for the success of a spa?
LS – A lot. A lot. Because, as I said, the atmosphere and the feeling of comfort that comes from the environment to the client are an integral part of the wellness that one should receive in a Spa. Certainly, however, design should not be an end in itself, but functional. Sometimes, it happens to see Spas cost millions of Euros that are not “user friendly” or, even worse, do not have the right staff. Although the context is very important, it is still the experience of the hands acting on the client that does the rest and must bring the desired (and paid for!) result.
I’ ve got proof of this in two respectable 4-star spas: the Caesius in Bardolino, specialised in Ayurvedic with super technical staff, and Le Torri del Garda in Torri del Benaco, where, thanks to the skill of the therapists, even a relaxing massage has its reasons.
Caesius SPA, by the lake of Garda
SA – The Travel Tailorist: how was this “brand” born?
LS – I would say in an almost natural and spontaneous way, thanks to the continuous input and requests that I receive every day from “insiders”.
My journalistic activity has been flanked over time by that of hotel consultancy, for pricing policies, the evaluation of services, the creation of sites and texts for communication, as well as that of travel designer, for the creation of itineraries for high spenders.
All activities that I wanted to channel into a “brand” that I believe well represents my know-how, The Travel Tailorist (thetraveltailorist.com).
TO FOLLOW ME STEP BY STEP IN MY SIGHT INSPECTIONS, THERE IS: IG: @LORENZASCALISI, AS WELL AS @DISCOVERTHEOTHERITALY, A PROFILE WHERE I LOVE TO POST UNUSUAL PLACES IN ITALY, TO CONTINUE THE LINE I STARTED IN 2015 WITH THE TRAVELING EXHIBITION DISCOVER THE OTHER ITALY (DISCOVERTHEOTHERITALY.COM).
This is an original campaign to promote the territory, which, thanks to a collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, I had the pleasure and honour to bring abroad, to China, the United Arab Emirates, Canada and the USA. An extraordinary experience, which could soon be repeated with a second edition. Who knows…