Wellness programmes are in abundance at this year’s ILTM Asia Pacific luxury travel tradeshow, with hotel and resort exhibitors presenting a range of treatments for mind, body and soul. The intense wellness focus is in line with the latest Buzz vs. Reality: APAC edition research published by ILTM, Altiant and Hyatt, which found that affluent consumers are paying rapt attention to intentional well-being retreats.
The report found that affluent travellers are opting for intentional wellness holidays, with 72 per cent of respondents preferring to dedicate four to eight nights to such getaways. Almost half of respondents have taken a specifically planned wellness holiday before, and are open to taking wellness trips with their children (54 per cent) or extended family (34 per cent).
Fifty-five per cent of respondents say wellness facilities and services are very important or essential to their choice of hotel, and the same number of respondents expressed willingness to pay more for hotels with wellness facilities, such as indoor bikes and yoga mats, in the guestrooms.
To stand out, luxury accommodation operators have crafted programmes that takes mind, body and soul into consideration.
The wellness experience at the soon-to-open InterContinental Halong Bay Resort begins with an appreciation of the surroundings. The spa is named Hidden Lagoon, inspired by a mythical place hidden deep within the spirit of Halong Bay, where the dragon’s final breath lingers and time stands still. The architecture comprises a towering limestone feature that represents the iconic landscape of Halong Bay. Guests walk through the lush and green facility and enter one of the treatment rooms under the limestone feature.
While local elements and traditions are woven into the programmes, such as facial treatments using extracts of pearl harvested from Halong Bay, the spa will also feature modern sensibilities through collaboration with Margaret Dabbs London, a luxury British beauty brand, and Sodashi, an Australian clean beauty brand.
The newly-launched 1 Hotel Melbourne offers Bamford Wellness Spa, created in partnership with Carole Bamford, a pioneer in organic, sustainable, and holistic living. The spa offers a range of all-natural treatments, as well as a wellness area with an indoor pool, sauna, steam room, and a Jacuzzi-style spa. The hotel’s Field House Gym satisfies another aspect of wellness pursuits. It is equipped with new equipment, personal trainers, and a variety of movement and mindfulness experiences.
Toni Stoeckl, chief marketing officer at Starwood Hotels, which operates 1 Hotels as well as Baccarat Hotels and Treehouse Hotels, said wellness is a big part of the 1 Hotels product and programmes across all properties are created in partnership with Bamford.
He noted that “wellness tourism is no longer about a quick massage; it is about a personalised experience”, especially one that is offered with expert partners.
So strong is the wellness tourism appetite – and its rapid evolution towards holistic realignment for longevity – that Small Luxury Hotels of the World (SLH) is preparing to launch a Well-being Collection soon.
Mark Wong, senior vice president, Asia Pacific at SLH, shared that the collection will comprise a group of hotels that have invested heavily into longevity and preventive treatments. It will enable health-conscious guests with specific wellness interest to more easily identify specialised properties.
However, not all hotels and resorts that tout a wellness edge see the need to boast high-tech solutions. At the luxurious Espacio The Hakone Geihinkan Rin-Poh-Ki-Ryu resort, tucked deep within a tranquil Japanese forest, the ultimate wellness treatment lies in doing absolutely nothing.
Keiko Morimoto, director of corporate planning office with Espacio Enterprise, told TTG Asia: “Guests who stay with us for three or four days do the same thing over and over – they wake up, enjoy a meal served right to them in their room by ladies in kimonos, get into the onsen, emerge for a drink, nap, take another bath or swim in their plunge pool, and drink again. It is a very relaxing routine.”
