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Spa Sessions
CHAMI JOTISALIKORN, AUTHOR OF THAILAND’S LUXURY SPAS AND SPA BOOK, REVEALS WHAT’S HOT IN THE WORLD OF WELLNESS
WELLNESS BUZZ NO PLACE LIKE HOME
A cosy alternative to corporate hotel suites are smaller day spas located in renovated old mansions. Offering the charm of homey warmth in pretty gardens amidst busy cities, they are a welcome respite after a long journey.
Divana Spa Bangkok (7 Sukhumvit Soi 25, tel +66 (0)2 661-6785, www..divana.com) is set in a roomy, elegant old house surrounded by lush gardens;
Palm Herbal Spa Bangkok (522/2 Thonglor Soi 16, Sukhumvit 55 Road, tel +66 (0)2 381-1373, www.palmherbalspa.com) offers Thai herbal specialities, including post-natal treatments for new mothers; Sareerarom Tropical Spa (117 Thonglor Soi 10, Sukhumvit 55, tel +66 (0)2 391-9919, www.sareerarom.com) has beautiful spa rooms located around a pond enclosure; Spa 1930, set in a historical heritage house dating from 1930, offers traditional old-world-style Thai massage in modern Bangkok (42 Soi Tonson, tel +66 (0)2 254-8606, www.spa1930.com).
Q&A ROUND THE MULBERRY BUSH
Move over, green tea! Thai silkworms must share their food source now that humans are catching on to mulberry tea as a new source of antioxidants. Owner and “Founding Sister” Khun Nathathai of the local Thai company Ziamese Sisters (www.ziamesesisters.com) talks about their new tea Ziamese Tea Society® and Ziamese Secrets® body products. Its “Green Mulberry Tea” has received international acclaim with the “Superior Taste Award 2006” from the International Taste & Quality Institute, Brussels, Belgium.
Why Mulberry?
Green Mulberry has vast benefits, whether consumed as tea or used as a body product. It has great antioxidant properties, and that is why we want to share the health benefits of this still “not-well-known” herb to consumers.
What inspired you to create these products?
When I was studying in America, I admired the high-quality products there. Thailand has an abundance of raw materials which I know I can develop into the same standard they have overseas. I aspire to create quality Thai products that are recognised around the world.
What’s the bestseller?
Currently, our “hottest” products are the body cleansers, both “Virgin” and “Extra”. “Virgin” is a gentle body wash with green mulberry powder that exfoliates the body naturally. “Extra” contains charcoal powder to help absorb toxins and provide gentle exfoliation as well.
Where can we find your products?
Our body products are offered as in-room amenities at the stylish JIA Hotel in Hong Kong and will be appearing in other regional boutique hotels soon. Our brand is now available throughout Thailand in Villa and Market Place Supermarkets, several five-star hotels and King Power Duty Free shops. This year, we expect the launch of two new teas – Minty Mulberry and Mulberry Fruit 
Tea.
HOT PRODUCT
Want the word on the ultimate insider’s top picks? The recently launched coffee-table book, Thailand’s Luxury Spas is the new must-have for spa junkies. This comprehensive tome features the country’s 25 top spa destinations, plus sections on traditional healing therapies, massage and herbal ingredients. Entertaining yet informative. Available in English and Japanese at leading bookstores and Amazon.com.
WHAT’S NEW
With water as its theme, the new Quan Spa (Renaissance Koh Samui Resort & Spa, 208/1 Moo 4, T. Maret, Laem Nan Beach, Lamai, Koh Samui, tel +66 (0)77 429300, marriott.com) has a sweeping view of Lamai Bay from its five thatched massage salas set on the water’s edge, with plenty of private sauna and whirlpool baths indoors.
Model radiance is the modern offering at Zense of Joy Spa (Jasmine City Building, corner of Sukhumvit Soi 23, tel +66 (0)2 261-4500) owned by top fashion model Joy Varaluck Vanichkul. This day spa has its own line of spa products and shares the floor with California Fitness.
Billed as the world’s first cultural spa, Phuket’s new five-star day spa, Sukko Spa (5/10 Chaofa (West) Road, tel +66 (0)76 263222, www.sukkospa.com) could also be the country’s biggest, offering 160 treatment beds and three different room categories. The spa offers Thai healing therapies, cuisine as well as traditional martial arts exercise regimes.
Hong Kong’s new Chuan Residences (Langham Hotel, Mongkok, tel +852 3552-3510, www.langhamhotels.com) promises total privacy and high-tech sophistication, located on the 40th floor with a discreet VIP entrance and its Infinity Suite, so-called for offering Hong Kong’s first Infinity Bath.
Check out the contemporary chic Deverana Spa at Chiang Mai’s stylish D2 Hotel (100 Chang Klan Road, tel +66 (0)53 999999, www.D2hotels.com), with five luxurious treatment rooms to unwind in after a big spree at the famed Night Market just around the corner.
SPA REVIEW THINK PINK
If you’ve fantasised about being held captive in a fortress, the pink stone Anantara Spa at Anantara Resort & Spa Samui (99/9 Bo Phut, Koh Samui, tel +66 (0)77 428300-9, www.anantara. com) will fulfil your wildest dreams.
The spa lobby floats like an island on a moat, best seen at night when torches blaze romantically over the water lilies.
A walk through a lush green lawn takes you to the majestic spa suites, each with private garden enclosures and outdoor showers, all king size (including the elephant ear ferns) for maximum visual impact.
This spa offers the exotic ayurvedic shirodara head massage in which a stream of heated medicated oil is poured on your forehead to calm the mind and put you to sleep as well. The hot stone massage is also highly recommended for easing tense and sore muscles.
SPA SPEAK MORE THAN MASSAGE
Holistic therapies are increasing their presence on spa menus alongside facial and footbaths these days. But how exactly do they help you?
Here are a few popular ones and how they offer caring with coping:
Sound Therapy – uses sound vibrations from Tibetan healing bowls or Australian digideroos to open the body’s chakras and raise energy levels. Life Coaching – one-on-one sessions with a trained coach to help you set goals in your life and coach you into achieving them.
Guided Meditation – meditation classes led by a teacher using mental exercises to achieve specific goals.
EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) – releases repressed emotions like fear and anxiety through a special technique of tapping along the body’s energy meridians. It is said to help cure smoking, insomnia, alcohol addiction, induce weight loss and more.
EVENTS
Want to to learn massage techniques? Chiva Som Academy (Modern Town Building, Sukhumvit Soi 63 (Ekamai), Bangkok, www.chivasomacademy.com), the training institute of world-renowned Chiva Som Health Resort offers quality professional-level courses in various spa therapies and topics, including theory and practice.
Many spas send their staff for training here, but courses are open to everyone. Registration is online. All participants receive a certificate after course completion. Among the many offerings this month:
• 17 Jul-11 Aug – Thai Massage, Reflexology
• 15 Aug-15 Sep – Aromatherapy
• 28 Aug-22 Sep – Facial Treatments
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