Spa-La-La:
Spa Week October 12th – 18th Story by Ruth J. Katz
he
growth of the spa industry – not only in America, but around the
globe – has been overwhelming in the past fifteen-plus years. Today
it is impossible to build a prestigious hotel that does not have a glamorous
and well-designed spa; similarly, spas that were constructed fifteen
and twenty years ago are being transformed into more user-friendly and
up-to-date sybaritic palaces. So, wherever your travels may take you
in October, remember that a spa treatment is but a (hot) stone's throw
away – and is, for Spa
Week, affordable, as well.
Photo Courtesy of Spa Week Media
Group, Ltd
It is worth noting, also, that these spa havens of sanctum
for feeling whole and well are not only for "the fairer sex,"
but also for the Y-chromosome set – that is to say for anyone
seeking to relieve anxiety and stress, elevate self-awareness and -consciousness,
and boost performance levels. Anyone who wants to indulge in one of
life's greatest joys – an afternoon at the spa, during which time
you can be pampered and can also forget the troubles of the day –
can happily plunk down the necessary silver to achieve the goal of inner
balance and physical release: What may once have been considered a luxury
is today a necessity.
To make that goal much more achievable and certainly
more palatable on the pocketbook, Spa
Week takes a bite out of traditional spa pricing. A bi-annual event,
this season's celebration of a healthier self is scheduled for October
12th to the 18th, with hundreds of spas, wellness, and fitness facilities
around the country offering premium, full-service treatments at major
discounts! Spa Week was created in 2004 by Spa Week Media Group with
the goal of not only introducing healing and therapeutic spa treatments
to the uninitiated, but also, to make these indulgent and/or wellness
treatments available to all, at prices that aren't off-putting. By heavily
discounting costly spa and wellness services on a national scale, Spa
Week has played a major role in opening the spa world to the masses,
while dispelling the notion that spas are for the privileged only. For
the past eleven years, consumers from diverse demographics have experienced
physical and mental relief and gained tools for healthier living by
taking advantage of a plethora of spa and wellness treatments at affordable
prices.
Photo Courtesy of Spa Week Media
Group, Ltd
Many signature treatments will be offered at a special
rate of $50/treatment (normally $100-$500/treatment) at participating
day, medical, and resort spas; yoga and Pilates studios; fitness and
nutrition centers. Millions of spa-goers will look to these treatments
to enrich their personal health and well-being, rather than solely to
pamper themselves. From the most innovative massage and bodywork techniques,
to cutting-edge skincare procedures, to classes focusing on fitness,
nutrition, and mind/body, there's something for everyone on the Spa
Week menu.
Just a few of the highlights from Spa Week's selections
of treatments from disparate locations around the country, all being
offered for $50.
Ling Skin Care (New York City): Fifty-minute charcoal
facial, usually $260.
Hey Gorgeous! Spa and Wellness (San Antonio, TX):
Fifty-minute sea salt/honey-pumpkin scrub and massage, usually $135.
Advanced Laser & Skin Center (Woburn, MA): Standard
hydrafacial/ medical grade, usually $169.
Onsen Spa (Los Angeles, CA): Sixty-minute 24-karat
gold, Japanese facial, usually $245.
That is but a tiny sampling of what will be on the menu
during Spa Week, and it is also important to note that participating
spas (day, medical, and resort), yoga and Pilates studios, fitness and
nutrition centers will be offering gift cards that can ultimately be
used at over 8,000 spas and wellness locations across North America.
Millions of spa-goers will look to experience these treatments to enrich
their personal health and well-being, rather than to merely pamper themselves.
From the most modern massage and bodywork techniques, to cutting-edge
skincare procedures, to classes focusing on fitness, nutrition, and
mind/body synergy, there's something for everyone on the Spa Week menu.
Photo Courtesy of Spa Week Media
Group, Ltd
I road-tested a neighborhood spa, in prep for Spa Week
, and want to report back that I had a lovely experience, for a pittance
of the regular price. I didn't want to stray too far from my nabe, given
that the Pope was in NYC and that Obama was coming, so I chose Yin
Beauty and Arts Spa, near my home. It is a neighborhood place, with
a local clientele, not fancy (a store-front entrance), but clean and
neat and with a very dedicated staff. Julie Kilder took care of me and
was the perfect aesthetician for a deep-cleansing facial.
For the Spa Week $50 offerings, there are a few choices:
Deep-cleansing, purifying facial (normally $130,
for the record) or a Microdermbrasion Glow Facial (anywhere from $75
to $95 normally), both about an hour.
Radio Frequency skin tightening (regularly $350),
which supplies RF technology, delivering a sort of non-invasive "face
lift." It stimulates deep collagen production, and with luck,
you'll see a lifting of the eyebrows, tightening of the forehead,
the jaw line, and around the eyes, cheeks, and neck. Say goodbye to
sagging.
Lipo Cavitation (regularly $200), which is a new
and revolutionary alternative to liposuction using Ultrasound Cavitation
to help breakdown fat cells and reduce cellulite. The released fat
is then metabolized though the body's normal metabolic process. This
treatment is perfect for people with fat deposits on the abdomen,
thighs, hips, breasts, upper arms, back and chin areas.
In order to receive information on participating spa
and wellness locations and their $50 services, spa-goers should register
on
SpaWeek.com as early as possible. The complete directory launched
on September 9th will allow consumers to begin booking their desired
services. It is recommended that spa-goers sign up and book in advance
to ensure they reserve their top treatment choices – and thereby
help their minds and bodies emerge from summer's slow-speed mindset
to fall's reinvigorated energy.
Let Ruth know what you think about her traveling adventure.
* * * * *
Three Musical Pilgrimages: Mozart, Grieg and Hendrix
Johann Chrysostom Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756 - 1791)
could read and compose music, plus play the violin and piano, when he was
five years old. Born into a musical family in Salzburg, Austria (then the
Holy Roman Empire), he had a unique ability for imitating music, which first
became evident when he recited a musical piece by simply observing his father
conducting a lesson to his older sister. This led to a childhood on the
road, where the young prodigy performed before many of the royal courts
of Europe.
Treasures of Ireland: The Irish Goodbye (Dispatch
#20)
The Palladian Traveler brings to a close his 20-part
series on the Emerald Isle from an upscale restaurant in downtown Dublin
where he files his final dispatch and then quietly slips away.
Two "MUST SEE" Truly Spectacular Places
in Europe. Here's Why.
The Han Grotto and Culzean Castle. As the name
of my Traveling Boy feature is "Travel With a Difference," it's
important to me to always bring you offbeat and unusual tourist places around
the world you may not know about. These two fit that category to a T, and
they're absolutely worth a visit. One's in Scotland and one's in Belgium.
Culzean (pronounced CULLANE) Castle is located near Maybole, Carrick, on
the Ayrshire coast of Scotland.
Highway 49 Revisited: Exploring California's
Gold Country
In the 1840s, the population of California was only
14,000, but by 1850 more than 100,000 settlers and adventurers had arrived
from all over the world – and they came for one reason: gold. James
Marshall had discovered the first gold nugget at Sutter’s Mill in El
Dorado County, creating the largest gold rush in history.
Lake Charles’ Family-Size Low-Key Mardi Gras
The Southwest Louisiana Mardi Gras in Lake Charles,
the second largest in Louisiana, does not need parents there to avert their
children’s eyes. This is family entertainment and children are very
much part of it. The main office of the Lake Charles CVB has costumes from
last year’s Mardi Gras but it also has figures to fascinate little
ones from country boys fishing for their dinner to alligators who have already
fed and are rubbing their stomachs.
Puerto Vallarta: Magic and Mayhem on the Malecon
So I heard that you could spend from dawn to dusk on
the Malecon in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico and never get bored and I thought,
"Okay, I'm up for that challenge." Well, maybe not the dawn part
– I'm not a morning person – so I had no problem leaving those
early hours to the joggers and those seeking an early start to catch their
red snapper for dinner.
John January and Linda Berry Have Chemistry
Chemistry by its very definition is the spontaneous reaction
of two people to each other, especially that sense of mutual attraction
and understanding. This month John January and Linda Berry release their
new project, Chemistry 101 and together they explore a range and
depth of musical styles on both organic and physical levels. As a joint
labor of love, January says Chemistry 101 is pretty straight-forward.
Relaxing at The Inn at Laguna Beach
There is nothing like sleeping in an ocean-front room
and awakening to the sounds of waves crashing against the sand. It is
one of the finer things in life. And it is exactly what I experienced
recently on a memorable getaway to The Inn at Laguna Beach. The adventure
began when a friend I pulled off the 5 Freeway in Orange County and took
SR 133 south nine miles through winding lush hills and wilderness areas
to the ocean.
The Shortest Road Trip
The Canadian side of Niagara Falls has a 35 mile linear
park, called Niagara Park, with seemingly endless attractions stretched
along the full length of the Niagara River. I recently spent several days
driving to each, sampling fantastic wines and great food while enjoying
the rugged beauty of the Canadian side of Niagara Falls. It became one
of the shortest road trips ever. From tunnels under the falls, to zip
lines into the gorge, and from a soaking boat ride to the base of the
falls, to a challenging hike along the shore of the rapids, Niagara Park's
attractions are amazing.
Leviticus 20:13 Sent by Tom of Pasadena,
CA
It all makes sense now. Gay marriage and marijuana
was legalized in the last election. Leviticus 20:13 states
"If a man lays with another man, he should be stoned..." We've
been interpreting it wrong all these years!
Love Is Better the Second Time Around (Lake Como)
As our wedding plans came together in the summer of
2007 my fiancée Dorothy and I began to focus on the honeymoon. Hawaii?
New York? London? Paris? Rome? Both of us had travelled to these iconic
places in the past, but in our conversations we quickly realized that neither
one of us had ever had a truly romantic visit to any of these wonderful
destinations. Dot and I had both been in long-term, "complicated"
marriages, where romance had not been on the plate for many, many years.
The Last Place You’d Visit: A Few Days in Europe’s
Least Visited Country
I’m a biased traveler. Having fallen in love with
Europe on my first trip to Italy with my father as a 14 year old, it is
to this continent that my travel plans always seem to lead. I return to
somewhere in Europe now every May to see old friends and favorite cities.
But with each trip, I have a firm goal: to fit in at least one new country
every year.
Tahiti and Her Islands
Just their names (pronounce each vowel!) conjure up romantic
images: Tahiti Nui, Moorea, Bora Bora, Huahine, Ra'iatea, Taha'a. Her
people are gentle; the air, tiare-perfumed. Warm lagoons, majestic peaks,
tropical fruits from the land and bounty from the sea all tantalize the
senses. Paradise! As near as can be found on planet earth. And, in my
experience, the finest way to explore her is on a ship designed for that
single purpose.
Monte Verità: In the Footsteps of Anarchy
Just as I reach the end of a squiggling, multicolored
path, an acorn plummets from an oak tree above me. It lands at my feet,
just as the path culminates at a mandala of Venetian glass, eight feet in
diameter. On the worn-out front lawn of Monte Verità, the Mountain
of Truth, this path, Chiara's Rainbow, evolves through the colors of the
spectrum – red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and finally violet
– before arriving at the mosaic mandala where psychic energies supposedly
prevail. The falling acorn brings me to the present moment.
Remembering My Dad
My father died while I was roaming through Northern Italy.
He was 52. He passed away peacefully in his sleep in his home in Florida.
I found out about it at the American Express office in Istanbul three
weeks later when I opened a letter my brother sent me. This was 1970.
There were no computers, no smartphones, no Skype.
Japan: Bullet Trains, Monkey Shows and Whale Steaks
Last month, I went to Japan for three things... Ok,
let me back up a little bit already. The #1 reason I went to Japan was to
visit my girlfriend, Yuki, and she will kill me if I don't say that, so
there it is. Hi Yuki! Anyway, so after that, reasons number 2, 3, and 4
were the following: I wanted to ride a bullet train, go to a monkey show,
and eat a whale steak. That's right. That's right.
he
growth of the spa industry – not only in America, but around the
globe – has been overwhelming in the past fifteen-plus years. Today
it is impossible to build a prestigious hotel that does not have a glamorous
and well-designed spa; similarly, spas that were constructed fifteen
and twenty years ago are being transformed into more user-friendly and
up-to-date sybaritic palaces. So, wherever your travels may take you
in October, remember that a spa treatment is but a (hot) stone's throw
away – and is, for 
Let Ruth know what you think about her traveling adventure.
