Island Vibes Magazine

Spas with a Caribbean Vibe

Posted on 05. Dec, 2009 by admin in Health, Travel

By Diego Zerpa Chang

During the last few years, many of the top spas around the world have been focusing their overall experiences on presenting aromas, ingredients and sounds from their local areas of establishment and on fashioning treatments that revive the culture and the traditional remedies from that particular place, whether it is a crystal beach, a impeccable white mountain and even a vibrant city.

This, of course, has also been occurring at the best spa & resorts across the Caribbean and Latin America, where full pampering health resorts with tremendous services as well as holistic retreats with wellness methods of relaxation have been creating baths, lotions, massages and oils with herbs and other ingredients such as chocolate, lime, mango, papaya, pineapple and even wine from this side of the world.

At the top spas in the Caribbean, visitors can get massaged and rubbed with mixtures of some of these home-grown products and, in some cases, they can even get soaked in them. Participating in such experiences, especially around the Christmas Holidays when everyone seems to be looking for that sensation of positive energies for the upcoming year, is good for the body –because it receives amongst other things many antioxidants and vitamins– and pleasant for the mind and soul –because it relaxes everyone from top to bottom and because it all happens amidst a natural environment that most of the time is quite different from the guest’s regular atmosphere–.

As soon as you step foot in one of these magical places, you will notice the extraordinary usage of natural settings in outdoor locations, whether it is in treatment rooms overlooking the turquoise ocean or in hallways and manicures and pedicures salons surrounded by bamboo or coconut trees. It is all there, waiting 24–7 for those guests who seek to prop up their health and wealth resolutions in 2010 and beyond with up-to-the-minute packages that offer significant savings on all spa treatments or with all inclusive qualities. You just have to do a little bit of research and, a few clicks and a few days later, secluded white-sand beaches might be the only scenery around you.

Options and more options

But, where can you truly start from in this Caribbean spas quest? There are, indeed, dozens of great spas around Antigua, Bahamas, Jamaica, Puerto Rico and the rest of the Caribbean. Island Vibes will just point a few that have been at the top of the lists on many travelers magazines worldwide due to their singular spa therapies and treatments, so that you can get a basic list and consider any of them as your next Christmas Holiday destination.

The Spa at the Curtain Bluff on Antigua offers the Caribbean Green Coffee Wrap, which is a cellulite corrective treatment. In it, the skin is gently exfoliated to encourage deeper penetration of this highly concentrated and proven effective treatment, which produces a firming and slimming effect. The all-inclusive rates at this Caribbean resort, which has been delighting guests for over 48 years, represent wonderful value for guests as they include activities such as scuba diving and deep sea fishing. You can visit www.curtainbluff.com for more information.

Also in Antigua is the Verandah Resort & Spa, which provides an eye-catching setting for romance, family fun and spectacular indulgence. Located along Antigua’s untouched northeast coast, this eco-friendly magnificent location encompasses 30 stunning beachfront acres traversed by hiking trails and encircled by the Devil’s Bridge National Park with its striking landmark rock arch. At the resort’s signature Spa Tranquility you can enjoy, amongst other cures, the 60 minute Aromatic Moor Mud Wrap, which is ideal for those prone to chronic pain, fatigue and post-sports injuries. The description from www.verandahresortandspa.com says: “Moor Mud, rich in essential oils (Lemon, Orange, Lavender and Sandalwood), envelops your entire body. Sore muscles, aches and pains are alleviated as your body’s circulation is stimulated and stress vanishes.”

For those of you wanting to visit Bahamas, you ought to consider the Our Lucaya Beach & Golf Resort, which describes itself as the closest you will get to a something for everyone-kind of island vacation. Amid golf courses, a world-class spa, a Las Vegas-style casino and various acres of soft-sand beach, this destination and its amazing Senses Spa might be exactly what you are looking for. Experience, for example, the Seasonal Facial: a custom-tailored deep-cleansing facial using seasonally available organic fruits, herbs, flowers, and exotic spices. The spa’s staff uses vitamins and nutrients to create facial treatments that are good enough for you to eat. Your skin will reveal a healthy, natural and youthful glow with the many benefits that this natural preparation provides. Interested in finding out more? Log in to www.ourlucaya.com for additional information.

Another major option for relaxation and peaceful exploration with a Caribbean vibe inside the Bahamas is the renowned One & Only Ocean Club, which also boosts destinations in Cape Town, Dubai, Mexico and other amazing places. In its Bahamas’ paradise the spa at the One & Only Ocean Club features a series of local healings such as the Elemis Soothing Sunburn Treatment. In www.oneandonlyresorts.com, this treatment is described as follows: “Inspired by a Tahitian recipe, fragrant Coconut and Frangipani flowers are blended together to produce a scented oil called Monoi to help soothe sunburned skin. The oil conditions skin while the body is cocooned in a foil wrap. Skin is then nourished with an application of Elemis Exotic Island Flower Body Balm, followed by a soothing foot massage.”

In Puerto Rico, the Golden Door Spa at El Conquistador Resort & Spa offers a series of treatments that should fulfill your most intriguing pampering needs. Two examples of these are the 50 to 80 minutes Pineapple Body Bliss –which is a luxurious tropical pineapple scrub followed by body refiner lotion and green tea that concludes with an antioxidant lotion massage– and the 50 minutes Roasted Coffee Scrub –which is made with roasted Puerto Rican Coffee grains designed to improve micro-cellular circulation and counteracts oxidation to fight visible signs of aging–. To learn more about this 26,000-square-foot Caribbean spa, you can log in to www.goldendoor.com/elcon/.

Finally, for those of you that have plans to discover the wonders of Mexico, please consider making a stop at the JW Marriott Cancun Resort & Spa. This AAA Five Diamond property features over 15 treatment rooms and offers ancient therapies based on the Mayans’ use of local plants, such as the 50 minute massage known as Xocoatl, Awakening Four Senses. What is this massage all about? Through www.jwmarriottcancun.com we were able to find the following picture: “Chocolate, a Mayan invention, was a traditional privilege to delight the gods, used as an offering during the rituals and as a reward for the ones who proved worthy. This unique massage, that you will fall in love with from the first moment, is done with a luxurious and original mixture of chocolate to smooth the skin, nurture it and leave a silky feeling.”

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