Mixing spas with leisure

Mixing Spas with Leisure

Mixing Spas with Leisure What on earth are people thinking about? …

Every so often we are asked to perform the impossible Provide a facility which caters for families and Spa users alike, whilst giving good segregation and eliminating any possibility of noise pollution at peak times.

It can and has been achieved ‘but’ the fall out can be immense, linking one with the other causes all sorts of problems from the initial receiving of the spa guest to the monitoring and caring for the larger family groups.

Let’s start with Reception or the receiving point.

The leisure facility should not even try to accommodate the receiving of Spa quests both staff and guest are a totally different entity in each instance, I have yet to witness a leisure club which at its peak times resembles nothing more than a crèche on steroids, and yet I know of hotels that try to operate this way and expect the spa users to ignore their surroundings until they have registered and been allowed into the spa proper.

So how do we overcome this?

You can only do this one way, a separate receiving point with a separate Spa entrance and well trained Staff. If the new development has little restriction on size and budget to a degree, then past this point things can be designed in a way that both Spa & Leisure can work together bearing in mind other crucial elements of the operational aspects as essentially they are totally separate businesses and should be treated that way.

Food & Beverage Areas F&B areas can bring problems of their own, witnessing fully suited and booted adults sitting at arms length of other users wrapped in robes, not the ideal way to sell a spa experience even if all of the treatments are exceptionally executed by the staff.

Remember it’s always the one bad thing the customer remembers above all else!

Atlam Design Worldwide Limited

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Mixing Spas with Leisure

Treatment, relax, post and pre treatment areas As far away from general traffic as possible, with secluded areas for one or several persons.

Take the Relax Room as an example!

Too many of these resemble an upmarket hospital ward with a juice bar facility, personally I could not think of anything worse to relax in!

True I may be being very critical about some excellent spas but sitting back and excepting the so called ‘norm’ is not the way to create that new experience that will be remembered in the minds of your clients for months and years to come.

Changing Facilities True separation is required for many obvious reasons noise pollution, content, décor, air turnover rates & safety issues.

I realise where space is at a premium this is not always possible, so a pod style change facility (developed by ADW) is a clever less expensive and space saving option, it also provides its user that added personal touch.

Atlam Design Worldwide Limited

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Mixing Spas with Leisure

Pool/Vitality Pool

The Spa user should have discreet access to the existing pool hall with controlled access back to the Spa, if this is not an option then a small vitality pool may be a consideration, linked with the thermal area it proves to be very successful, although clients should be mindful of the build and running costs of such a complex item. Your Spa design team can provide all of the necessary information to allow the correct choice to be made in line with the budget and final offering.

To ensure your development provides the correct mix with optimum revenues without the need for future redevelopment but the flexibility to expand ‘Speak with us, proving our worth is easy’

Neville Brownhill Company Director

Atlam Design Worldwide Limited

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Mixing Spas with Leisure