Ensana uses mineral water and physiotherapy for COVID recovery / photo: ensana health spa hotels & resorts
COVID-19 has rocked the world. More than 119 million people from 230 countries have contracted the virus and 2.7 million have lost their lives, according to statistics from the World Health Organization.
One legacy of this crippling pandemic will be a long-term need to support those affected – people facing bereavement or loneliness, the millions battling Long COVID and those who are now hyper aware of the importance of self-care, wellness and health.
Operators in the spa and wellness industry can make a vital contribution in supporting people through this challenging time, by providing dedicated recovery and support services in calming, healing environments.
Medi-wellness operators are already offering packages to help people who’ve had COVID-19. Lanserhof was one of the first, while in the Czech Republic, both Ensana and The Hotel Savoy Westend are using local mineral-rich spring water, along with physiotherapy and other medically supervised treatments in their ‘Respiratory Recovery’ and ‘Life After COVID-19’ programmes.
Other well-known spas, such as Chablé in Mexico, Clinique La Prairie in Switzerland and Sha Wellness in Spain, are adding immune boosting programmes aimed at strengthening both body and mind and reducing the risk factors for severe cases of COVID-19 – obesity, cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
It’s clear the potential there is for spas to help the world to heal, however, for these services to be accessible to all and not just an elite few, we need a rapid upskilling of the workforce to enable us to deliver across the board as a sector.
Spas of all sizes need to be ready to support customers as they return, because their needs – in terms of their physical, mental and spiritual health – will be far more complex and challenging than before.
We need both technical knowledge and shared experience to carry out this work effectively and we call on operators across the industry to openly share best practice and learnings for the benefit of all.
We must also be aware of the importance of supporting our spa teams, as they will find the burden – especially of dealing with the bereaved – extremely challenging.
The world is full of hope now we are on the road to recovery and we have a purposeful, powerful role to play in people’s personal journeys back to health.
Katie Barnes is the editor of Spa Business magazine
| [email protected]
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
View contents of Spa Business 2021 issue 1
Editor's letter: Healing the world
With the impact of COVID-19 affecting millions of people globally, spas have a special role to play in the recovery movement
Spa Programmes: On the menu
Healing heartache retreats at Chablé Mexico and Czech spas using mineral water to treat long COVID feature in our latest programming highlights
Programming: Kevin Kelly
Four Seasons’ Sensei retreat in Hawaii taps into wearable tech and biometric data
Programming: Jeremy McCarthy
Mandarin Oriental rolls out it Inner Strength Outer Strength mental wellness course to guests
Interview: Emlyn Brown
Accor’s global vice-president of wellbeing talks to Katie Barnes about business strategies following COVID
Everyone’s talking about: Local markets
How are spas adapting their business model to attract locals? And what happens when international tourists return? Spa Business magazine reports
Trends: Spa Foresight™ 20/21
Touch hunger, lung health, resilience and COVID cool spots all feature in future predictions from the Spa Business team
Sponsored: G.M. COLLIN: New partnerships
Skincare brand GM Collin is
re-energising its sales network and looking
for new distributors from across the globe
to drive its business network
Insight: Hindsight 2020
Mia Kyricos looks at the harsh lessons that spas can learn from the last year
Analysis: On your marks
Analyst Jan Freitag suggests a timescale for global hotel recovery and hotel spas
Research: Eyes on Ireland
An Irish Spa Association snapshot survey shows the impact of COVID on spas across country
Promotion: Artofcryo.com: Chill factor
Artofcryo.com provides evidence-based whole body cryotherapy solutions,
offering effective solutions for guests and an attractive ROI for investors
Fitness: Harley Pasternak
The celebrity trainer and nutritionist shares his vision of fitness and health in the age of coronavirus
Promotion: Iyashi Dôme: Optimal solution
Iyashi Dôme Japanese saunas offer a versatile treatment solution for spas searching for quality touchless treatments backed by science and Japanese technology
Finishing touch: Watch out
UK researchers launch a new study to explore how digital nature experiences can be good for us
Ensana uses mineral water and physiotherapy for COVID recovery / photo: ensana health spa hotels & resorts
COVID-19 has rocked the world. More than 119 million people from 230 countries have contracted the virus and 2.7 million have lost their lives, according to statistics from the World Health Organization.
One legacy of this crippling pandemic will be a long-term need to support those affected – people facing bereavement or loneliness, the millions battling Long COVID and those who are now hyper aware of the importance of self-care, wellness and health.
Operators in the spa and wellness industry can make a vital contribution in supporting people through this challenging time, by providing dedicated recovery and support services in calming, healing environments.
Medi-wellness operators are already offering packages to help people who’ve had COVID-19. Lanserhof was one of the first, while in the Czech Republic, both Ensana and The Hotel Savoy Westend are using local mineral-rich spring water, along with physiotherapy and other medically supervised treatments in their ‘Respiratory Recovery’ and ‘Life After COVID-19’ programmes.
Other well-known spas, such as Chablé in Mexico, Clinique La Prairie in Switzerland and Sha Wellness in Spain, are adding immune boosting programmes aimed at strengthening both body and mind and reducing the risk factors for severe cases of COVID-19 – obesity, cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
It’s clear the potential there is for spas to help the world to heal, however, for these services to be accessible to all and not just an elite few, we need a rapid upskilling of the workforce to enable us to deliver across the board as a sector.
Spas of all sizes need to be ready to support customers as they return, because their needs – in terms of their physical, mental and spiritual health – will be far more complex and challenging than before.
We need both technical knowledge and shared experience to carry out this work effectively and we call on operators across the industry to openly share best practice and learnings for the benefit of all.
We must also be aware of the importance of supporting our spa teams, as they will find the burden – especially of dealing with the bereaved – extremely challenging.
The world is full of hope now we are on the road to recovery and we have a purposeful, powerful role to play in people’s personal journeys back to health.
Katie Barnes is the editor of Spa Business magazine
| [email protected]
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
View contents of Spa Business 2021 issue 1
Editor's letter: Healing the world
With the impact of COVID-19 affecting millions of people globally, spas have a special role to play in the recovery movement
Spa Programmes: On the menu
Healing heartache retreats at Chablé Mexico and Czech spas using mineral water to treat long COVID feature in our latest programming highlights
Programming: Kevin Kelly
Four Seasons’ Sensei retreat in Hawaii taps into wearable tech and biometric data
Programming: Jeremy McCarthy
Mandarin Oriental rolls out it Inner Strength Outer Strength mental wellness course to guests
Interview: Emlyn Brown
Accor’s global vice-president of wellbeing talks to Katie Barnes about business strategies following COVID
Everyone’s talking about: Local markets
How are spas adapting their business model to attract locals? And what happens when international tourists return? Spa Business magazine reports
Trends: Spa Foresight™ 20/21
Touch hunger, lung health, resilience and COVID cool spots all feature in future predictions from the Spa Business team
Sponsored: G.M. COLLIN: New partnerships
Skincare brand GM Collin is
re-energising its sales network and looking
for new distributors from across the globe
to drive its business network
Insight: Hindsight 2020
Mia Kyricos looks at the harsh lessons that spas can learn from the last year
Analysis: On your marks
Analyst Jan Freitag suggests a timescale for global hotel recovery and hotel spas
Research: Eyes on Ireland
An Irish Spa Association snapshot survey shows the impact of COVID on spas across country
Promotion: Artofcryo.com: Chill factor
Artofcryo.com provides evidence-based whole body cryotherapy solutions,
offering effective solutions for guests and an attractive ROI for investors
Fitness: Harley Pasternak
The celebrity trainer and nutritionist shares his vision of fitness and health in the age of coronavirus
Promotion: Iyashi Dôme: Optimal solution
Iyashi Dôme Japanese saunas offer a versatile treatment solution for spas searching for quality touchless treatments backed by science and Japanese technology
Finishing touch: Watch out
UK researchers launch a new study to explore how digital nature experiences can be good for us
People taking GLP-1 weight loss medications such as Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro and Zepbound
may be losing weight, but they’re also becoming less physically active, according to new
research presented at the ENDO 2026 annual meeting of the Endocrine Society
Abu Dhabi-based investment firm Mubadala Capital has made a binding, fully financed
€1 billion
offer to acquire Pierre and Vacances SA, the European holiday resort operator behind the
continental European Center Parcs business.
Global retreat trade show, Synergy The Retreat Show, has launched a resource called The
Source, which hosts an open-access online Transformation Series programme.
The Standards Authority for Touch in Cancer Care (SATCC) charity has announced its first five-
day Living with Cancer and Beyond retreat, which will be held at Carden Park Hotel and Spa in
Cheshire, UK, between 1 and 5 September.
Patmos Aktis, a Luxury Collection Resort and Spa, has opened in Greece, with a renovated and
rebranded wellness offering called Ansana Wellness and Spa.
The Mauna Kea Beach Hotel, an Autograph Collection property in Hawaii, US, has opened its
22,000 sq ft indoor-outdoor Spa at Mauna Kea as the final step in the property’s overall
renovation, which has cost more than US$180 million (€166 million, £140 mill
The UK spa review and discovery platform for consumers, the Good Spa Guide, has announced
it will host the Good Spa Guide Awards 2026 during an event on 16 November at Sopwell House
Hotel in St Albans, UK.
Eighty-four per cent of consumers now say wellness is a top priority in their lives, with this
percentage increasing year on year, according to a preview presentation of McKinsey’s Future of
Wellness 2026 research report.
Mass protests have been taking place since Monday 1 June in Albania over the development of
a luxury resort by Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner.
Global Wellness Day (GWD) marked its 15th anniversary on Saturday 13 June 2026, with the
theme: #JoyMagenta – a celebration of the healing qualities of simple gestures and activities
that spark joy.
