Garcia-Tunon created all treatments and hired and trained staff
Spa and wellness director Vivianne Garcia-Tunon and consultant Inge Theron have collaborated with Oscar-winning designer Catherine Martin on the newly-opened South American-themed spa at Faena Hotel in Miami Beach.
“Aesthetically, it’s one of the most spectacular places I’ve seen – and I’ve seen a lot,” says Theron, who helped shape the initial concept of the 13-treatment room Tierra Santa Healing House spa. “It’s so chic, so cool, but so different. Think Great Gatsby meets Buenos Aires.”
Martin, who worked on the interiors of Tierra Santa as well as the hotel, has won four Oscars for production and costume design on Moulin Rouge and The Great Gatsby. Both films were directed by her husband, Baz Luhrmann, who’s also been involved with design in other parts of Faena Hotel.
“Art permeates everything,” says Theron, who describes the vibe of the spa as authentic, but playful with murals and wallpaper adding a splash of colour.
Garcia-Tunon says guests “absolutely love the spa’s design”.
The spa and wellness director, who left a senior regional vice president role at ESPA to join Tierra Santa, created the 22,000sq ft (2,044sq m) spa’s treatments, which take their inspiration from places like Mexico and the Amazon. “Everybody’s been looking east and west for concepts and philosophies, and we finally looked south – there’s so much to pull from,” she says.
Among the unique therapies are sessions by Mexican shaman Carlos Gomez, who’s on-site once a quarter for one-on-one healing rituals – costing US$400 (€359, £298) for two hours – designed to reenergise the body, evoke spirits and energy, or repair trauma from childhood.
Other treatments incorporate lapis lazuli from Chile to release tension, sound therapy with bowls from Eastern Vibration and a light massage using palo santo wood that’s traditionally used in South American purification ceremonies.
“Guests have been very fascinated by the shaman and the treatments we’ve put together,” says Garcia-Tunon, adding that the spa has been “extremely busy” since opening.
Preventative wellness and medical care is also offered at the spa by practitioners such as gut health expert Dr Matthew Cooper – aka Dr Enzyme – and cardiovascular specialist Dr Juan Rivera. Meanwhile, advanced beauty treatments are offered by Biologique Recherche and Georgia Louise.
Other industry companies and suppliers involved include Design for Leisure, which worked on the extensive and sophisticated hydrothermal area, Gharieni, Living Earth Crafts, SpaEquip and T-Y Linens.
Theron, who runs her own spa consultancy, Itanda, says Tierra Santa is “very unique… a sublime combination of ancient healing practice, art-inspired interiors and state-of-the-art technology, which makes it one of the most exciting hotel spas in the world and certainly one of the best projects to be involved with.”
Hotelier Alan Faena and American/Russian investor Len Blavatnik opened the 182-bed Faena Hotel in November 2015. It’s the first phase of openings in the larger Faena District Miami Beach, which is designed as an entire new neighbourhood with art and culture at its core.
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
Top team: Gwinganna Lifestyle Retreat
The people behind this world-renowned lifestyle retreat share their business insights with Julie Cramer. Plus a focus on co-investor Hugh Jackman
Ask an expert: Visiting practitioners
Done well, visiting practitioner programmes can boost profits by up to 40 per cent. But how can spas get the offer right? Kate Parker investigates
Promotional feature: Esadore - creating a splash
The MD of Esadore International, Theodora Kioussis, explains how the company’s creative, manufacturing and operational skill sets can bring an international managing director
of UAE-based esadore International to life in a short space of time
Garcia-Tunon created all treatments and hired and trained staff
Spa and wellness director Vivianne Garcia-Tunon and consultant Inge Theron have collaborated with Oscar-winning designer Catherine Martin on the newly-opened South American-themed spa at Faena Hotel in Miami Beach.
“Aesthetically, it’s one of the most spectacular places I’ve seen – and I’ve seen a lot,” says Theron, who helped shape the initial concept of the 13-treatment room Tierra Santa Healing House spa. “It’s so chic, so cool, but so different. Think Great Gatsby meets Buenos Aires.”
Martin, who worked on the interiors of Tierra Santa as well as the hotel, has won four Oscars for production and costume design on Moulin Rouge and The Great Gatsby. Both films were directed by her husband, Baz Luhrmann, who’s also been involved with design in other parts of Faena Hotel.
“Art permeates everything,” says Theron, who describes the vibe of the spa as authentic, but playful with murals and wallpaper adding a splash of colour.
Garcia-Tunon says guests “absolutely love the spa’s design”.
The spa and wellness director, who left a senior regional vice president role at ESPA to join Tierra Santa, created the 22,000sq ft (2,044sq m) spa’s treatments, which take their inspiration from places like Mexico and the Amazon. “Everybody’s been looking east and west for concepts and philosophies, and we finally looked south – there’s so much to pull from,” she says.
Among the unique therapies are sessions by Mexican shaman Carlos Gomez, who’s on-site once a quarter for one-on-one healing rituals – costing US$400 (€359, £298) for two hours – designed to reenergise the body, evoke spirits and energy, or repair trauma from childhood.
Other treatments incorporate lapis lazuli from Chile to release tension, sound therapy with bowls from Eastern Vibration and a light massage using palo santo wood that’s traditionally used in South American purification ceremonies.
“Guests have been very fascinated by the shaman and the treatments we’ve put together,” says Garcia-Tunon, adding that the spa has been “extremely busy” since opening.
Preventative wellness and medical care is also offered at the spa by practitioners such as gut health expert Dr Matthew Cooper – aka Dr Enzyme – and cardiovascular specialist Dr Juan Rivera. Meanwhile, advanced beauty treatments are offered by Biologique Recherche and Georgia Louise.
Other industry companies and suppliers involved include Design for Leisure, which worked on the extensive and sophisticated hydrothermal area, Gharieni, Living Earth Crafts, SpaEquip and T-Y Linens.
Theron, who runs her own spa consultancy, Itanda, says Tierra Santa is “very unique… a sublime combination of ancient healing practice, art-inspired interiors and state-of-the-art technology, which makes it one of the most exciting hotel spas in the world and certainly one of the best projects to be involved with.”
Hotelier Alan Faena and American/Russian investor Len Blavatnik opened the 182-bed Faena Hotel in November 2015. It’s the first phase of openings in the larger Faena District Miami Beach, which is designed as an entire new neighbourhood with art and culture at its core.
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
Top team: Gwinganna Lifestyle Retreat
The people behind this world-renowned lifestyle retreat share their business insights with Julie Cramer. Plus a focus on co-investor Hugh Jackman
Ask an expert: Visiting practitioners
Done well, visiting practitioner programmes can boost profits by up to 40 per cent. But how can spas get the offer right? Kate Parker investigates
Promotional feature: Esadore - creating a splash
The MD of Esadore International, Theodora Kioussis, explains how the company’s creative, manufacturing and operational skill sets can bring an international managing director
of UAE-based esadore International to life in a short space of time
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.
