Am currently attending the ISPA conference in Orlando, Florida. It was an honor to be named their 2012 Visionary Award recipient. While I didn’t have a lot of time to prepare remarks since my trip to India ended on Saturday and ISPA began on Sunday, I did jot down some thoughts and shared them with the audience. It was my first time using a teleprompter (thumbs up on that) and in order to do so I had to write out my remarks. So thought I would share them with you – plus a photo snapped by Sallie Fraenkel right afterward. Here then were my words…. Continue reading
Tag Archives: Deborah Szekely
Top 10 Sexiest Spas
Top Ten Sexiest Spas
By Susie Ellis, SpaFinder Insider
Well, there are lists of sexiest bathrooms, beaches and hotels, so why not sexiest spas? I decided to ask my editor friends and a few spa experts around the world which spas they thought were the sexiest. Then we selected the spas with the most votes to give you the top ten. Here are the results in no particular order.
By the way one spa was mentioned by almost every editor. Care to guess which one?
(I will let you know in the next blog post.)
The Dolder Grand Hotel in Zurich, Switzerland
If your idea of sexy is cool, sleek and mysterious, check out the uber-contemporary Dolder Grand. Think floating in a luxurious dark glass mosaic tiled pool with exotic light effects; relaxing in a bed of warm pebbles; seeing the city come to life as fog rises off the outdoor vitality pool; and watching gorgeous European men (in tiny swimsuits). Bound to get the libido going.
Bikini Bootcamp at the Amansala in Tulum, Mexico
For many, there is nothing sexier than a healthy body – especially when you are the person showing it off. Bikini Boot Camp is designed to help you discover your own body-beautiful while exploring Mayan ruins and private lagoons. It’s back to nature at its best flavored with great workouts and healthy dining (all while wearing a bikini, of course).
Como Shambhala Retreat in Bali, Indonesia
Sexy can be an ultimate escape to a sacred place of bliss…a time and place to unwind and reconnect in one of the most beautiful natural settings on earth. Imagine being in Bali’s spiritual heartland known for its healing waters, having a massage on a bed overhanging a spectacular canyon in the forest or swimming nude in natural spring water lagoons, surrounded by the sounds of birds with waterfalls and more waterfalls. You’ll feel more relaxed and beautiful than you ever thought possible – and that is a very special kind of sexy.
Fantasy, beauty, indulgence – Las Vegas brings the ‘wow’ factor to sexy and the stunning, opulence that greets you at the Spa at Encore adds a new level of glamour to this favorite couples getaway. Think glass chandeliers, brass mirrors, romantic candles, Swarovski crystal drapes, garden villas and heated lounge chairs. And speaking of couples… check out the Encore’ s four-hand massages – or get really sexy with an eight-hand massage for two people. (Adding to Encore’s reputation as the new hip, hot spot on the strip!)
Four Seasons Hotel in Istanbul at the Bosphorus
The romance and mystique of the historic Turkish hammam, famous since Ottoman times, and luxurious Western hospitality come together at the Four Season’s unique spa in Istanbul at the Bosphorus. Traditional rituals leave you with a feeling of harmony and bliss and the breathtaking sky lit indoor pool is the perfect setting for what comes after.
If you think sexy includes make believe, Winvian is your place. Set on 113 lush acres, this is a luxurious fantasyland where you can use your imagination to create your ultimate sexy escape. Fifteen architects designed Winvian’s eighteen magical cottages, so you can choose to cozy up in the Log Cabin or escape in the Helicopter Cottage, nestle in the Treehouse or hide away in The Secret Society. (Be sure to treat yourself to a spa experience with your partner in the Forty Winks Suite with its circular wood-burning fireplace.) There is a bit of sophisticated whimsy throughout this romantic spa…setting the stage for a bit of make-believe at night.
Vinotherapie Spas by Caudalie in France, Spain and New York City at The Plaza
The Vinotherapie Spa brand received so many rave reviews from our spa experts that we decided to include three of their locations in our top 10 list. Each is in a breathtaking setting and has outstanding décor, but the wine theme makes these spas truly unique. After treatments guests are invited to relax in the wine lounge and sip a glass of wine from their vineyards – all while still in their bathrobes – very relaxing and very sexy.
Chi ‘The Spa at Shangri-La’ in the Shangri-La Hotel in Bangkok, Thailand
Red says sexy and Chi, The Spa at Shagri-La, has the feeling of a tastefully designed, elegant brothel, complete with a lush red décor and lighting that adds a mysterious ambiance. But this spa escape also has a contemporary Asian décor, treatment rooms with beautiful footbaths and ‘couples’ rooms where you and your partner can enjoy a side-by-side treatment… and then book the room for private ‘after time’. Now that’s sexy.
Six Senses Spa at Soneva Gili in Maldive Islands
If you want to spend the ultimate ‘alone’ time with your special someone, then Soneva Gili could be your fantasy dream come true. Imagine being marooned in an overwater villa, with your own “Fridays’ to wait on you, a private spa where massage tables with glass bottomed floors allow you to watch fish swim in turquoise waters while receiving a relaxing massage, a slide to whisk you from your bedroom to the sea below, your own speedboat (with driver), any food your heart desires… and being indulged (or left alone) 24 hours a day. Sexy and expensive – but worth it.
Aqua Spa at Sanderson, London, UK
With its ultra-contemporary furnishings and ‘out there’ feeling, the Aqua Spa at Sanderson tests design limits to transport you to a place you may not have been. Since the décor p
ushes the envelope – with smashing results – maybe it will translate to your sex life as well?
See the full list of the Top 10 Sexiest Spas on SpaFinder.com
**
Follow me on Twitter http://twitter.com/susieellis
**
If you wish to be put on a list that automatically sends my blog posts to your email, just let dulcy.gregory@spafinder.com know and she will add you to that list. Thanks so much!
Massage at a Spa Pet Peeve
Susie Ellis
SpaFinder Insider
Is it just me or do other people have issues with this? I am at a spa in my robe and slippers heading to the massage room with my therapist. After reaching the treatment room, the massage therapist says “now I will step out of the room, you can take off your robe and slippers and put them here, then get under the sheet on the massage bed face down (or sometimes face up).”
The therapist steps out of the room, I take off my robe and hang it up, step out of my slippers, take off my watch and put it usually on top of my slippers along with the scrunchy from my hair and get under the sheet. This takes about 30 seconds – at the most one minute.
Next….silence.
I wait.
I wait some more.
And then I begin wondering if I should shout out something like “I’m ready!” which I have done on occasion.
I continue to wait.
About that time (or to be honest even earlier) I begin wondering why it always takes the therapist so long to re-enter the room and begin my massage? Are they grabbing a quick break? Maybe getting something to drink? Perhaps washing their hands?
Of course eventually the wait is over, I hear the knock on the door, the therapist comes in and the massage begins. However when it happened to me again yesterday, I decided that I was going to write about it and perhaps get some conversation going.
I was at the Mandara Spa at Atlantis in the Bahamas where I had scheduled a massage which turned out to be a good treatment – except for the annoying wait on the massage table before the massage actually began.
Here is what I think therapists should know: Many (and I would even guess most) people who are getting spa treatments are counting on getting every single minute of that treatment and are keenly aware of time, whether they have a watch with them or not. It doesn’t matter if it is 50-minute, 60-minute, 80-minute, or 90-minute treatment, once the treatment is over they check their watches (or perhaps the clock that is in the treatment room). In fact, many people have even figured out what they are paying per minute! In my case, I was paying $3.00 per minute for my massage, factoring in the 20% service charge which was added to my bill BEFORE my treatment.
Time sliced off at the beginning (due to retrieving a guest late), at the end (due to ending early), or by taking a few extra minutes “to allow the guest plenty of time to disrobe” adds up and contributes a slight negative to what is otherwise usually a heavenly experience. To be fair, over the past years I have noticed a great improvement in prompt start and end times. It’s just those uneasy moments on the massage table waiting for the therapist to re-enter that seems to be increasing in my experience.
Which gives me an idea. Next time I go in for a massage and the therapist starts into the “I’m stepping out of the room” script, I will quickly take off my robe and get on the massage table while saying, “no need to step out of the room as I am fine with just slipping under the sheets while you are here” before she even exits.
I will let you know how that goes….In the meantime, do let me know your thoughts.
**
Follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/susieellis
**
If you wish to be put on a list that automatically sends my blog posts to your email, just let dulcy.gregory@spafinder.com know and she will add you to that list. Thanks so much!
**
Follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/susieellis
**
If you wish to be put on a list that automatically sends my blog posts to your email, just let dulcy.gregory@spafinder.com know and she will add you to that list. Thanks so much!
Spa Aside – It is Christmas
Spa Aside – It is Christmas
Susie Ellis, SpaFinder Insider
Email holiday greetings – like you, I receive more and more of them each year. I don’t know yet how I feel about them. On the one hand, it is nice to hear from people. On the other hand, knowing that I am part of a database of hundreds receiving the same e-card makes it feel a bit impersonal. It is more “green” than sending cards in the mail, so that’s a plus and some of the animated ones are kind of fun. I get impatient with the ones that are lengthy however and frustrated with the ones that don’t open right. As a company we have sent holiday e-cards for the past few years. We endeavor to find the right balance between something enjoyable and a communication that expresses our gratitude. Not sure we totally succeed, however we continue to try. The most memorable e-greeting I received this year was from my sister. It contained a story that someone shared with her. While I don’t usually forward these kind of things, I thought this one was worth sharing. Hope you enjoy it. Merry Christmas.
Susie
I remember my first Christmas adventure with Grandma. I was just a kid. I remember tearing across town on my bike to visit her on the day my big sister dropped the bomb: “There is no Santa Claus,” she jeered. “Even dummies know that!”
My Grandma was not the gushy kind, never had been. I fled to her that day because I knew she would be straight with me. I knew Grandma always told the truth, and I knew that the truth always went down a whole lot easier when swallowed with one of her “world-famous” cinnamon buns. I knew they were world-famous, because Grandma said so. It had to be true.
Grandma was home, and the buns were still warm. Between bites, I told her everything. She was ready for me. “No Santa Claus?” she snorted…. “Ridiculous! Don’t believe it. That rumor has been going around for years, and it makes me mad, plain mad!! Now, put on your coat, and let’s go.” “Go? Go where, Grandma?” I asked. I hadn’t even finished my Second World-famous cinnamon bun.
“Where” turned out to be Kerby’s General Store, the one store in town that had a little bit of just about everything. As we walked through its doors, Grandma handed me ten dollars. That was a bundle in those days. “Take this money,” she said, “and buy something for someone who needs it. I’ll wait for you in the car.” Then she turned and walked out of Kerby’s.
I was only eight years old. I’d often gone shopping with my mother, but never had I shopped for anything all by myself. The store seemed big and crowded, full of people scrambling to finish their Christmas shopping. For a few moments I just stood there, confused, clutching that ten-dollar bill, wondering what to buy, and who on earth to buy it for. I thought of everybody I knew: my family, my friends, my neighbors, the kids at school, the people who went to my church. I was just about thought out, when I suddenly thought of Bobby Decker. He was a kid with bad breath and messy hair, and he sat right behind me in Mrs. Pollock’s grade-two class. Bobby Decker didn’t have a coat. I knew that because he never went out to recess during the winter. His mother always wrote a note, telling the teacher that he had a cough, but we kids knew that Bobby Decker didn’t have a cough; he didn’t have a good coat.
I fingered the ten-dollar bill with growing excitement. I would buy Bobby Decker a coat! I settled on a red corduroy one that had a hood to it. It looked real warm, and he would like that.”Is this a Christmas present for someone?” the lady behind the counter asked kindly, as I laid my ten dollars down. “Yes, ma’am,” I replied shyly. “It’s for Bobby.” The nice lady smiled at me, as I told her about how Bobby really needed a good winter coat. I didn’t get any change, but she put the coat in a bag, smiled again, and wished me a Merry Christmas.
That evening, Grandma helped me wrap the coat (a little tag fell out of the coat, and Grandma tucked it in her Bible) in Christmas paper and ribbons and wrote, “To Bobby, From Santa Claus” on it. Grandma said that Santa always insisted on secrecy. Then she drove me over to Bobby Decker’s house, explaining as we went that I was now and forever officially, one of Santa’s helpers. Grandma parked down the street from Bobby’s house, and she and I crept noiselessly and hid in the bushes by his front walk. Then Grandma gave me a nudge. “All right, Santa Claus,” she whispered, “get going.” I took a deep breath, dashed for his front door, threw the present down on his step, pounded his door and flew back to the safety of the bushes and Grandma. Together we waited breathlessly in the darkness for the front door to open. Finally it did, and there stood Bobby.
Fifty years haven’t dimmed the thrill of those moments spent shivering, beside my Grandma, in Bobby Decker’s bushes. That night, I realized that those awful rumors about Santa Claus were just what Grandma said they were, ridiculous. Santa was alive and well, and we were on his team. I still have the Bible, with the coat tag tucked inside: $19.95.
May you always have LOVE to share, HEALTH to spare, and FRIENDS that care. And may you always believe in the magic of Santa Claus!
**If you wish to be put on a list that automatically sends my blog posts to your email, just let dulcy.gregory@spafinder.com know and she will add you to that list. Thanks so much!
That Famous Spa in Switzerland, Clinique La Prairie and the Product Line, La Prairie – Sorting it All Out
That Famous Spa in Switzerland, Clinique La Prairie and the Product Line, La Prairie – Sorting it All Out
by Susie Ellis
SpaFinder Insider
(Note, if you aren’t seeing any photos in this blog post, then please read the blog at http://www.blog.spafinder.com/ as the photos will be a big help in following this timeline!)
By now I have probably lost a few of my blog readers, but I promise that this is my last post on the story of Clinique La Prairie! After many hours of research to figure out how Clinique La Prairie and La Prairie skin care products are related (they aren’t anymore), I thought I would share the timeline I created. Who knows, maybe there is one other person out there who finds this sort of thing fascinating. Also, there are a few more pieces of the puzzle to complete – like how much the skin care line was initially sold for – so I welcome any additions or corrections to this timeline.
Here is the bottom line: To keep things straight you have to be conscious of the fact that Clinique La Prairie, which refers to the famous medical spa in Switzerland, sold their product line, La Prairie, in 1982. Since that time the companies have been totally separate. Always check if the word “Clinique” is being used – if so, that means the reference is to the facility in Switzerland. If the word “Clinique” does not appear, then you can assume the affiliation is with the skin care company. Except (and, of course, this adds to the confusion), the URL for Clinique La Prairie is http://www.laprairie.ch/ and the URL for La Prairie the skin care product company is http://www.laprairie/.
Here is a snapshot of what I have found to be a fascinating story:
1931: Clinique La Prairie opens in Montreux, Switzerland. Professor Niehans begins fresh fetal ovine (sheep) liver cell injections as a method to slow down the aging process. Over half a century later, the product became known as “CLP Extract” which is used in the clinic’s signature “Revitalization” injections today.
1953: Professor Niehans treats Pope Pius XII. Clinique La Prairie becomes word famous.
1971: Professor Niehans dies.
1976: Armin Mattli, a Swiss banker, purchases Clinique La Prairie.
1978: Mattli creates La Prairie Cosmetics, a range of skin products based on the clinic’s expertise in cellular revitalization.
1982: Mattli sells his skin care line Laboratories La Prairie, Switzerland to the American-based Cyanamid Company (a large, diversified, American chemical manufacturer) for a reportedly huge sum of money which he used to finance new buildings and medical programs. (I find it absolutely fascinating that he created and sold this line so quickly and so successfully!)
1987: American Cyanamid Company sells two of their product lines, La Prairie and Jacqueline Cochran, for $54 million to Sanofi.
1987: Sanofi, very shortly after purchasing La Prairie, turns around and sells it for a $20 million profit to Georgette Mosbacher for around $30 million. La Prairie has $20 million in worldwide wholesale volume.
1991: Georgette Mosbacher globalized the La Prairie line, doubled its sales (impressive!) and then sold the company for an estimated $45 million to Beiersdorf Group of Hamburg, Germany. Mosbacher is now CEO of Borghese.
1991: Clinique La Prairie adds a new Medical Center on their property in Switzerland. It is a hospital and has a surgical theater with specialties in myriad of areas, radiology, dentistry, plastic surgery, etc.
1992: Mattli launches Prestige Products of Switzerland from which he developed a new skin care line, Swiss Perfection. It is based on Iris flower cells. Apparently his son now runs this part of the business.
2002: The World of ResidenSea – a resort community circumnavigating the globe which has private apartment residences available – launches with the first Clinique La Prairie Spa.
2002: The first spa in the United States with the La Prairie name opens in New York, called La Prairie at the Ritz-Carlton Spa.
2004: La Prairie opens its first California spa at the Beverly Hills Hotel, now called the Beverly Hills Hotel Spa by La Prairie.
2004: A La Prairie Boutique spa opens at the Ritz-Carlton Berlin.
2005: Clinique La Prairie in Switzerland adds a health spa to its facilities. They added wellness rooms, thalassotherapy, a salt water pool, etc.
2006: The Ritz-Carlton Silver Rain La Prairie Spa opens in Grand Cayman.
2006: A spa-inspired condominium project in Miami is announced. It is a new project by Armin Mattli as he spends his time between Switzerland and Miami. He is calling it Clinique La Prairie Lifestyle Residences at Te
n Museum Park. This will have a Clinique La Prairie spa without the medical aspect.
2007: Clinique La Prairie sues Ritz-Carlton over the use of the name La Prairie in New York.
2007: Banyan Tree Spa replaces Clinique la Prairie as operator of the spa on the World ResidenSea.
2009: Ritz-Carlton, Rancho Mirage is to open a $25 million La Prairie Spa.
Final comments:
Re La Prairie Skin Care: I have tried some of their products and really like them – especially the subtle fragrance and the clean feel. Many people swear by them. However, I haven’t tried the entire range or used them long enough to give a thorough analysis.
Re Clinique La Prairie: After visiting, I give it a thumbs up. What I saw was impressive. To me, they appear to be a superb medical spa, possibly one of the most advanced in the world. They have a first-rate hospital. The staff is professional. They are in a fantastic location right on Lake Geneva. Lovely rooms, tastefully designed dining room, and I am thrilled to see that they now do have a very nice spa. I think that the popularity of spa around the world necessitated that recent addition and upgrade. Good for them.
So…as we left, my husband suggested I come back sometime for an “in-patient” visit. Not sure if he was referring to my need for plastic surgery or testing to see if I would try the “Revitalization therapy.” But after giving it some thought, I had to admit that the idea of coming here for a total tune-up, inside and out, was appealing. And yes, I would probably give that “Revitalization therapy” a go – in the interest of spa research of course. (Yeah, right.)
**
If you wish to be put on a list that automatically sends my blog posts to your email, just let dulcy.gregory@spafinder.com know and she will add you to that list. Thanks so much!