Not Your Ordinary Manicure, Pedicure and Massage, Rather this Spa is a Jewel Box.

Susie Ellis, SpaFinder Insider

Last Friday I had a chance to visit my first Sense Spa. Rosewood introduced this brand quite recently – I believe within the past year or two. Three months ago the Carlyle, A Rosewood Hotel opened Sense, A Rosewood Spa™. From what I understand, the correct name for the spa is, ‘Sense, A Rosewood Spa’ since that is the name they trademarked.

The name took me a bit by surprise for a couple of reasons – there already is a spa brand out there named Six Senses and the name Sense, A Rosewood Spa™ isn’t exactly an easy name to say, repeat, or remember.

On the other hand Rosewood has a fantastic reputation and I was certainly looking forward to what this sophisticated brand might present as their spa product. I understand that their portfolio of Sense Spas (although I think I am supposed to say portfolio of Sense, A Rosewood Spa™) looks like this at the moment:

Currently opened:
Rosewood Mayakoba, Mexico
Rosewood Little Dix Bay, Caribbean
CordeValle, A Rosewood Resort, CA
The Carlyle, A Rosewood Hotel, New York

Opening in 2009 or 2010:
Rosewood Dubai
Rosewood Sand Hill, CA
Rosewood San Miguel de Allende, Mexico
Rosewood Telluride, CO
Rosewood Costa Carmel, Costa Rica

I had a very positive spa experience on Friday evening – the Hammam treatment ($280) was a nice combination of a scrub, wrap, shower deluge with color therapy and massage. Here are some of the thoughts that went through my mind while I was there:

• The spa feels intimate – from the moment I opened the iron door into the reception area, to the sparkling locker room, relaxation lounge and treatment rooms
• It has a sophisticated décor with just the right touch of glamour for my taste
• The $75,000 worth of shimmering gold tile that lines the stairway to the lower floor is especially effective
• Donna Creagh, who was the consultant on this project, knows what gives a spa a heartbeat. She also created the very successful Great Jones Spa here in Manhattan. It seems that she gets the nuances right.
• A small spa space with five treatments rooms may turn out to be a very smart spa-build given the current economy
• Everything has a luxurious and sophisticated feel to it – even the packet with the shower cap – and the shower cap itself!
• Getting the talented hairstylist Yves Durif and his team to be “the” boutique salon in the spa was a stroke of genius

And finally of particular interest to me, I noticed that despite all of the talk about doom and gloom in the economy, this spa was actually busy! More about that in the next blog.

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