What is it really? A $200 pedicure.
It takes place at La Prairie Spa at the Beverly Hills Hotel. You slip into a terry robe and slippers and sip a cup of Introspection tea, then an attendant leads you into a candle-lighted massage room. Once you've disrobed (for a foot treatment?), you stretch out on the table and await your "reflexology." La Prairie lotion is lavished on your feet, which are then given a vigorous shake. But the reflexology never comes -- just some light petting. The robe goes back on, you're led into a pedicure room -- a really nice pedicure room, with a reclining chair that makes you feel like you're floating, and a view of a gorgeous garden. The pedicure looks and feels great -- this time there's real massage -- and then you relax in the garden while the polish dries.
The "After Shopping Paradise" is just one of a growing number of crazy-expensive spa treatments at luxury hotels.
Not so long ago, hourlong massages for $60 were easy to find, even at upscale day spas. Now a regular old 60-minute Swedish massage will set you back $220 at Montage Resort & Spa's ocean-view facility in Laguna Beach.
In the spa at the Peninsula Beverly Hills, a two-hour massage costs $385 -- but the massage oil is "infused" with rubies and emeralds.
Spa directors explain that there are reasons for the astronomical prices. As hotels and even some day spas build multimillion-dollar facilities, their owners say they're pressured to make a profit.
"In the '90s, spas were thought of as an amenity that would drive room rates," says Anne McCall, general manager of spas for Fairmont Raffles Hotels International.
The spa industry doesn't have a formal rating system, explains Maureen Schumacher, director of Le Spa at Sofitel in Los Angeles. "In the eyes of the public, we are judged by the rates we charge," she says. "The more we charge, the more exclusive we seem." (Le Spa's basic massages range from $125 for a 50-minute "So Relaxing" treatment to $145 for a deep-tissue massage.)
"The massage is often the first introduction to a spa experience," says Lynne McNees, president of the International Spa Assn. "And once you have it, you're hooked
At top resort hotels across the nation and particularly on the coasts, treatment prices have shot up in sync with room rates and ever-increasing expectations. Hotels are especially adept at creating the most lavish environments, complete with prestige beauty products, marble showers, heated massage tables with silk blankets and daylong treatments. They spin the treatments as "indulgences," and charge accordingly.
Day spas also are reaching deeper into wallets as they upgrade the treatments and the trappings. The basic 50-minute massage at the 6-week-old Voda Spa in West Hollywood is already pricey at $125, and guests must also pay a $50 admission fee that allows access to a pool, saunas, steam rooms, a cafe and even a bar outfitted with Wi-Fi and flat-screen TVs.
Sparing no expense, the spa at Santa Barbara's Four Seasons Resort, the Biltmore, hired star architect Peter Marino for its recent redesign, which includes two-level, loft-like treatment rooms that overlook the ocean and a rose garden.
Someone's getting a raise IF the rising salaries of top spa personnel are any indication, there's lots of money being made inside those gilded treatment rooms. This year, spa directors are expected to see their average salaries jump at least by $10,000 to $85,000 a year, according to the International Spa Assn. and WageWatch.
Spa trade groups such as the International Spa Assn. say they are trying to address the issue of perception and value by instituting standardized business practices that will help unify the industry.
Full Article
The Best Spa Locator
It takes place at La Prairie Spa at the Beverly Hills Hotel. You slip into a terry robe and slippers and sip a cup of Introspection tea, then an attendant leads you into a candle-lighted massage room. Once you've disrobed (for a foot treatment?), you stretch out on the table and await your "reflexology." La Prairie lotion is lavished on your feet, which are then given a vigorous shake. But the reflexology never comes -- just some light petting. The robe goes back on, you're led into a pedicure room -- a really nice pedicure room, with a reclining chair that makes you feel like you're floating, and a view of a gorgeous garden. The pedicure looks and feels great -- this time there's real massage -- and then you relax in the garden while the polish dries.
The "After Shopping Paradise" is just one of a growing number of crazy-expensive spa treatments at luxury hotels.
Not so long ago, hourlong massages for $60 were easy to find, even at upscale day spas. Now a regular old 60-minute Swedish massage will set you back $220 at Montage Resort & Spa's ocean-view facility in Laguna Beach.
In the spa at the Peninsula Beverly Hills, a two-hour massage costs $385 -- but the massage oil is "infused" with rubies and emeralds.
Spa directors explain that there are reasons for the astronomical prices. As hotels and even some day spas build multimillion-dollar facilities, their owners say they're pressured to make a profit.
"In the '90s, spas were thought of as an amenity that would drive room rates," says Anne McCall, general manager of spas for Fairmont Raffles Hotels International.
The spa industry doesn't have a formal rating system, explains Maureen Schumacher, director of Le Spa at Sofitel in Los Angeles. "In the eyes of the public, we are judged by the rates we charge," she says. "The more we charge, the more exclusive we seem." (Le Spa's basic massages range from $125 for a 50-minute "So Relaxing" treatment to $145 for a deep-tissue massage.)
"The massage is often the first introduction to a spa experience," says Lynne McNees, president of the International Spa Assn. "And once you have it, you're hooked
At top resort hotels across the nation and particularly on the coasts, treatment prices have shot up in sync with room rates and ever-increasing expectations. Hotels are especially adept at creating the most lavish environments, complete with prestige beauty products, marble showers, heated massage tables with silk blankets and daylong treatments. They spin the treatments as "indulgences," and charge accordingly.
Day spas also are reaching deeper into wallets as they upgrade the treatments and the trappings. The basic 50-minute massage at the 6-week-old Voda Spa in West Hollywood is already pricey at $125, and guests must also pay a $50 admission fee that allows access to a pool, saunas, steam rooms, a cafe and even a bar outfitted with Wi-Fi and flat-screen TVs.
Sparing no expense, the spa at Santa Barbara's Four Seasons Resort, the Biltmore, hired star architect Peter Marino for its recent redesign, which includes two-level, loft-like treatment rooms that overlook the ocean and a rose garden.
Someone's getting a raise IF the rising salaries of top spa personnel are any indication, there's lots of money being made inside those gilded treatment rooms. This year, spa directors are expected to see their average salaries jump at least by $10,000 to $85,000 a year, according to the International Spa Assn. and WageWatch.
Spa trade groups such as the International Spa Assn. say they are trying to address the issue of perception and value by instituting standardized business practices that will help unify the industry.
Full Article
The Best Spa Locator
