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Experiences in the hospitality industry have grown from spa, to wellness and to something far more powerful. Jeremy McCarthy explains what this means for the decades ahead
The mission is to convert guests’ time into memorable moments / photo: mandarin oriental hotel group
Having worked in hospitality for more than three decades, I’m in an interesting position to look at the evolution of its experiential offerings.
At the beginning of my career, there was a lot of debate about whether spa was important at all. Is it profitable? Is it necessary? Can it be outsourced? Should it be outsourced? The dialogue about spa was filled with uncertainty and scepticism for a long time.
Although there are still naysayers today, spa has become a de facto standard in any luxury or full-service hotel. It’s seen as a necessary component because it generates revenues (sometimes out of undesirable spaces), attracts affluent travellers, generates publicity, connects our hotels to the local community and builds loyalty, by providing guests with impactful and meaningful experiences that go far deeper than other typical hospitality interactions.
From wellness to leisure Once spa was accepted, the industry began to ask what else it could offer guests. “How can we generate more revenues? How can we impact our guests even more? How do we meet the growing demand from affluent customers to not just provide services, but also support their lifestyle?”
We’re living in the age of the #wellnesseverywhere consumer. These customers are not content to carve out limited time in their life for wellness, they want it everywhere they go. They want it at work, at home and when they travel. Hotels have had to adapt to help guests maintain their healthy lifestyle while on the road, with cutting-edge fitness offerings, flexible culinary plans that respect a broad range of dietary interests and sleep programmes to ensure guests are well rested. 'Directors of spa’ became ‘directors of spa and wellness’ and they moved beyond the spa and fitness areas having a hand in guestroom amenities, sleep rituals, healthy menus, employee wellbeing programmes, wellness retreats, meetings and events and more. I like to tell my team: “We're not here to take part, we're here to take over.”
Today hospitality experiences are evolving and expanding once again – from spa to wellness, to leisure. Because just as spa is only one component of wellness, so wellness is only one component of the kind of experiences that travellers are seeking. The hotel industry is no longer selling beds and meals, it’s selling experiences. Some of those might be spa and wellness-focused, but they can extend far beyond this into a plethora of other domains such as social, family, culture, shopping, history, art, adventure and more.
What’s next? The hotel of the future doesn’t just provide accommodations, it provides and facilitates experiences. The hospitality industry has to once again rethink how it does business in a way that transcends traditional department structures such as concierge, guest services, F&B, wellness, activities, etc. Guests don't care if the experience takes place in or outside the hotel. They don’t care if it’s offered by the hotel or by a third party. And they don’t care what department is in charge of the experience. The guest only cares about their time. “I’m here until Thursday, what should I do?”. Our ability to guide a guest to the best answer to that question will determine our success for the decade ahead.
What hospitality has learned from spa is that if it can convert our guests’ leisure time into something impactful, this will grow loyalty and drive revenues. The mission for the decade ahead is to convert more of our guests’ time into meaningful and memorable experiences.
As group director of spa, wellness and leisure for Mandarin Oriental, Jeremy McCarthy works across 35 luxury hotels globally. Contact him with your views on Twitter @jeremymcc
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
View contents of Spa Business 2023 issue 3
Editor's letter: Reflection point
As Spa Business celebrates its 20th birthday, Katie Barnes pauses for thought and rejoices in the industry’s evolution
Spa People: 20th anniversary issue: Anna Bjurstam
The strategic senior advisor at Six Senses and Raison d'Etre on being initiated as a shaman, why psychedelics are here to stay and her bigger fear for the global spa industry
Promotion: Klafs: Relax into wellbeing
Klafs and Studio F. A. Porsche have combined their design and wellness expertise to create an oasis for total-body relaxation
News report: Eastern promise
Japan’s spa industry is valued at US$4.2 billion and is part of the world's third highest-performing wellness economy
Jeremy McCarthy: Theory of evolution
From spa to wellness and now leisure – Spa Business’ contributing editor looks at where hospitality experiences are heading
Promotion: Lemi: Built to last
Lemi is committed to leading with innovation to create
cutting-edge treatment room solutions that excel
in terms of performance and eco-credentials
Promotion: G.M. COLLIN: Collagen pioneers
GM Collin’s expertise in collagen research and product formulation has resulted in the creation of a new serum that combats age-related skin degeneration
Promotion: Comfort Zone: A brighter future
Consumers are increasingly interested in reducing dark spots and hyperpigmentation and a new line from Comfort Zone has been launched to address this emerging need
Promotion: Art of Cryo: Life changing experience
Vikki and Robbie are often exhausted after work. A visit to the spa to experience
the Art of Cryo Tech-Spa Module is a chance to re-set and rejuvenate together
Le Atelier by C.O.D.E. doesn't offer a standard bespoke service, it provides a highly
customised approach to designing massage beds and loungers in high-end wellness
environments. [more...]
Experiences in the hospitality industry have grown from spa, to wellness and to something far more powerful. Jeremy McCarthy explains what this means for the decades ahead
The mission is to convert guests’ time into memorable moments / photo: mandarin oriental hotel group
Having worked in hospitality for more than three decades, I’m in an interesting position to look at the evolution of its experiential offerings.
At the beginning of my career, there was a lot of debate about whether spa was important at all. Is it profitable? Is it necessary? Can it be outsourced? Should it be outsourced? The dialogue about spa was filled with uncertainty and scepticism for a long time.
Although there are still naysayers today, spa has become a de facto standard in any luxury or full-service hotel. It’s seen as a necessary component because it generates revenues (sometimes out of undesirable spaces), attracts affluent travellers, generates publicity, connects our hotels to the local community and builds loyalty, by providing guests with impactful and meaningful experiences that go far deeper than other typical hospitality interactions.
From wellness to leisure Once spa was accepted, the industry began to ask what else it could offer guests. “How can we generate more revenues? How can we impact our guests even more? How do we meet the growing demand from affluent customers to not just provide services, but also support their lifestyle?”
We’re living in the age of the #wellnesseverywhere consumer. These customers are not content to carve out limited time in their life for wellness, they want it everywhere they go. They want it at work, at home and when they travel. Hotels have had to adapt to help guests maintain their healthy lifestyle while on the road, with cutting-edge fitness offerings, flexible culinary plans that respect a broad range of dietary interests and sleep programmes to ensure guests are well rested. 'Directors of spa’ became ‘directors of spa and wellness’ and they moved beyond the spa and fitness areas having a hand in guestroom amenities, sleep rituals, healthy menus, employee wellbeing programmes, wellness retreats, meetings and events and more. I like to tell my team: “We're not here to take part, we're here to take over.”
Today hospitality experiences are evolving and expanding once again – from spa to wellness, to leisure. Because just as spa is only one component of wellness, so wellness is only one component of the kind of experiences that travellers are seeking. The hotel industry is no longer selling beds and meals, it’s selling experiences. Some of those might be spa and wellness-focused, but they can extend far beyond this into a plethora of other domains such as social, family, culture, shopping, history, art, adventure and more.
What’s next? The hotel of the future doesn’t just provide accommodations, it provides and facilitates experiences. The hospitality industry has to once again rethink how it does business in a way that transcends traditional department structures such as concierge, guest services, F&B, wellness, activities, etc. Guests don't care if the experience takes place in or outside the hotel. They don’t care if it’s offered by the hotel or by a third party. And they don’t care what department is in charge of the experience. The guest only cares about their time. “I’m here until Thursday, what should I do?”. Our ability to guide a guest to the best answer to that question will determine our success for the decade ahead.
What hospitality has learned from spa is that if it can convert our guests’ leisure time into something impactful, this will grow loyalty and drive revenues. The mission for the decade ahead is to convert more of our guests’ time into meaningful and memorable experiences.
As group director of spa, wellness and leisure for Mandarin Oriental, Jeremy McCarthy works across 35 luxury hotels globally. Contact him with your views on Twitter @jeremymcc
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
View contents of Spa Business 2023 issue 3
Editor's letter: Reflection point
As Spa Business celebrates its 20th birthday, Katie Barnes pauses for thought and rejoices in the industry’s evolution
Spa People: 20th anniversary issue: Anna Bjurstam
The strategic senior advisor at Six Senses and Raison d'Etre on being initiated as a shaman, why psychedelics are here to stay and her bigger fear for the global spa industry
Promotion: Klafs: Relax into wellbeing
Klafs and Studio F. A. Porsche have combined their design and wellness expertise to create an oasis for total-body relaxation
News report: Eastern promise
Japan’s spa industry is valued at US$4.2 billion and is part of the world's third highest-performing wellness economy
Jeremy McCarthy: Theory of evolution
From spa to wellness and now leisure – Spa Business’ contributing editor looks at where hospitality experiences are heading
Promotion: Lemi: Built to last
Lemi is committed to leading with innovation to create
cutting-edge treatment room solutions that excel
in terms of performance and eco-credentials
Promotion: G.M. COLLIN: Collagen pioneers
GM Collin’s expertise in collagen research and product formulation has resulted in the creation of a new serum that combats age-related skin degeneration
Promotion: Comfort Zone: A brighter future
Consumers are increasingly interested in reducing dark spots and hyperpigmentation and a new line from Comfort Zone has been launched to address this emerging need
Promotion: Art of Cryo: Life changing experience
Vikki and Robbie are often exhausted after work. A visit to the spa to experience
the Art of Cryo Tech-Spa Module is a chance to re-set and rejuvenate together
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.
Global luxury hospitality brand, Six Senses, has partnered with longevity healthcare provider,
HUM2N, to launch a clinic at Six Senses London, at The Whiteley.
As part of its first hotel partnership, Mayrlife – the medical health resort company known for its
site in Altaussee, Austria – has launched a day clinic at the Rosewood Vienna.
Premium London health club, KX Chelsea, will imminently unveil its most significant
redevelopment since its launch in 2002 to create an integrated wellness model combining
training, recovery and relaxation.
Le Atelier by C.O.D.E. doesn't offer a standard bespoke service, it provides a highly
customised approach to designing massage beds and loungers in high-end wellness
environments. [more...]
