The Spaification of Alberta

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Article Title:

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The Spaification of Alberta

Article Description:

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Picture a place where everybody cares about you. Really, really

cares about you. A place where pore-free women give you plushy

robes and tumblers of lemongrass-infused water to drink. Where

they'll rub your feet, your back, your scalp, your face – even

your psyche.

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1106 Words; formatted to 65 Characters per Line

Distribution Date and Time: 2007-03-05 10:00:00

Written By: Travel Alberta

Copyright: 2007,

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The Spaification of Alberta

Copyright © 2007 Travel Alberta,

Written by: Travel Alberta

http://www.travelalberta.com

Picture a place where everybody cares about you.

Really, really cares about you.

A place where pore-free women give you plushy robes and tumblers

of lemongrass-infused water to drink. Where they'll rub your

feet, your back, your scalp, your face – even your psyche.

Say spaaaaaaaaaaaa.

" So huge has the health spa industry become in the last decade,

people are using the word " spa " as a verb, " chuckles Dr.

Smeltzer of Calgary's Institut de Sante, the first

physician-run, medically based spa in Canada. " People now say

spaaaaaa me! "

And " spaaaaaaaa me " we can, with 1300 health spas in Canada,

about a third of which are in B.C. and Alberta. In fact,

Canada's spa industry poured nearly three-quarters of a billion

dollars into Canada's economy last year with the overall number

of health spas expected to double again in the next five years.

Much like must-have kitchen granite counter tops, new resorts

wouldn't think of designing a complex without a spa. For it's

often the health spa that's the deciding factor in choosing a

vacation destination.

Consider two of Alberta's most iconoclastic properties – the

Fairmont Banff Springs (home to Canada's largest spa, the 38,000

square foot Willow Stream) and the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise

(where six new treatment rooms open at the end of March, bumping

their total to 16 rooms). You'll also find pools of luxury in

off-the-beaten locales such as Drumheller, home of the T-Rex

Therapy Spa; the Black Cat Guest Ranch in Hinton; OraOxygen in

the Calgary International Airport; the Cactus Club Salon & Spa in

Okotoks; the Satori Day Spa in Canmore, and so forth.

Spa Vacations in the Rockies

Speaking of Canmore, take a look at one of Canada's

fastest-growing outdoor recreational hubs in Canada – an hour's

drive west of Calgary, at the gates of Banff National Park. A new

200-unit luxury resort, dubbed Solara Canmore, is slated to open

in 2006 and will brag of a health and wellness centre that offers

yoga and pilates classes, a culinary school, an adventure centre

and, of course, a spa vacation hub – where you'll find numerous

treatment rooms, a pool, and massive menu of body treatments.

Even grander is the next phase of Canmore's top-end Three

Sisters Mountain Village, which we might see as early as 2006 but

won't be totally complete for a decade. Just back from a

U.S.-based spa junket, vice president of marketing

Tomalin-Reeves, has been in ongoing negotiations with one of the

biggest spa operators on the planet, Canyon Ranch.

" Canyon Ranch is certainly interested, " says Tomalin-Reeves, " and

we will definitely decide this spring if theirs is the direction

we want to pursue. Right now, we are in the midst of creating

several key cornerstones for the resort, one of which will be

health and wellness that will feature health spa services that

will be likely holistic and medical in its approach. "

Locals say there's a logical historical connection to this area

becoming a spa vacation centre, for the Rockies have always been

linked to improving health. After all, it was the natural hot

springs at the Cave & Basin that led to the actual formation of

our country's first national park, Banff. That influence of

" miracle waters " has remained, creating Canada's biggest spa,

Willow Stream, at the ultra-luxe Fairmont Banff Springs as well

as the Pleiades at the Upper Hot Springs and the Rimrock

Resort's full-service spa. The spillover, per se, will likely

flood these new centres in Canmore, all of which offer different

spins on the word – which in Latin, solus par aqua – means health

through water.

" That's what a legitimate spa should offer . . . full body

treatments and water-related therapies, " stresses Smeltzer, also

vice-president of the Leading Spas of Canada Association, who's

concerned about spa charlatans who slap the word " spa " on to a

regular beauty salon.

Smeltzer should be concerned, being at the vanguard of the

fastest growing trend within the spa sector – that of medical

spas (there are now 600 in the States). Offering sophisticated

treatments that only trained physicians can perform such as

Botox, chemical peels, collagen and restylane fillers and

microdermabrasion – Smeltzer would like to see standards and

definitions put into place, " really, to protect the consumer. "

Spas in the Capital

For Aveda followers, Edmonton has two exclusive Aveda spa/salons

– a tiny one in West Edmonton Mall and its salon counterpart on

Whyte Avenue. The latter offers terrifically low rates as it

employs students – with all treatments being supervised by Aveda

consultants. The newest kid on Edmonton's spa scene is Perugia

Salon Spa, also in Old Strathcona. Here, you're encouraged to

take the salon and spa experience home – with a series of

lessons, offered by the pros. You'll also find a delectable

lineup of services from raspberry shortcake wrap to a chocolate

hydrotherapy bath. Also relatively new is Spa Opus, located in

the Telus Centre. Word has it that the Slimming and Firming Wrap,

loaded with menthol and camphor is uber-cool (as in, it's

actually cold!). Because they're tied into the boutique hotel,

the Union Bank Inn, lots of innovative packages have been created

that focus on spa treatments, from romance weekends to girls-only

parties.

Speaking of parties, the Ahava Day Spa in Coast Edmonton Plaza is

known for its zany themed packages. Edmonton's other two biggies

are chains – Eveline , with three locations in Edmonton,

and Spasation, with six venues.

Spa developers can count on continued growth, because " going to a

spa has become a way of life for many, " adds newcomer beth

Fayt who just opened rnr wellness in downtown Calgary in

December. " Spas are no longer just pamper palaces. And men are

finally discovering its pleasures. "

Men, a Growing Concern

While more than 70 per cent of spa-goers are women, this gender

lock is weakening. Take a look at Fayt's unique on-site spa

program, which she began a year ago while looking for the ideal

physical space for rnr – that program, present in seven downtown

hotels, almost exclusively caters to men... in fact men comprise

more than 90 per cent of her clients. If you book into the

Westin, the Eau Sheraton, the Marriott or the Coast Plaza

and book a massage it'll be a member of Fayt's fleet that turns

up – either to deliver the massage in your guest room or another

area which the hotel has set aside. Her team also takes their

vision of wellness into boardrooms offering yoga sessions,

on-site massages, motivational seminars – even delivering $20

wellness chits (redeemable for 15 minutes of spa bliss) for

all-star employees.

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