The Spa Travel Gal’s April picks part 2: An international coffee spa
By Aimee Heckel
Wednesday, we featured April picks from Ava Roxanne Stritt, the Spa Travel Gal, who is known as a top authority on all things luxurious. Here, she shares another can’t miss spa experience.
INTERNATIONAL SPA FOR APRIL
OK, let’s be honest. How many mornings have you been so tired that you’ve thought, “I just wish I could cover myself completely in coffee.”
Well, you can — at the Kuö Spa at Costa Rica Marriott in Costa Rica, where you’ll find spa treatments inspired by the country’s indigenous culture, using coffee, volcanic ash and other ingredients (mud, algae, herbs) to create various wellness journeys, Stritt says.
“Kuö” means “skin” in the Costa Rican language of the Cabecar people.
“Not only does it mean the skin of the body, but it also means the bark of a tree, the earth’s crust and mostly notably refers to the coffee bean and its process of shedding its skin to become a precious fruit,” Stritt writes.
Here are a few of the treatments she recommends:
Costa Rica Coffee Scrub, $110 for 50 minutes. This treatment utilizes the antioxidant properties of coffee beans to revitalize the skin and reduce the appearance of cellulite and wrinkles.
Antioxidant Coffee Body Wrap, $145 for 80 minutes. Wrap your body in organic coffee, and indulge in rejuvenating vitamins, minerals and protein.
In addition, make sure you check out the coffee walk. Before your treatment, your therapist takes you from the relaxation lounge to the treatment room via a path filled with coffee beans to massage and relax your feet.
“The entire process of the treatment involves coffee,” Stritt says.
Money-saving tip: Check out Priceline.com’s deals for the Costa Rica Marriott. And book your Priceline.com travel through ShopAtHome.com and take advantage of a variety of deals and discounts, plus up to 6 percent cash back.
Also check ShopAtHome.com’s Marriott deals and discounts, such as save 15 percent off for seniors.
Spa trends alert:
Stritt has been noticing increasingly more relaxation or meditation walks at spas around the world. Walk through gardens, mazes, flowers, stones — some facilities feature indoor walks, too.
In addition, Stritt says she has been noticing a surge in spa happy hours, short windows of time where clients can pop in to get a few different treatments for discounted prices. For example, the Four Seasons Hotel and spa in Atlanta offers notable happy hours.
Monday through Thursday from 6 to 8 p.m., choose two 25-minute spa treatments from the special Happy Hour menu — plus a glass of Prosecco or sparkling cider — for $99. Our favorite Happy Hour choices: a Tropical Body Exfoliation and a De-Stress Massage.
On the other end of the spectrum, Stritt has also noticed a popularity in spa “journeys” — like at the Mandarin Oriental in Atlanta. The opposite of a quick happy hour, these experiences are lengthy and elaborate, based on the belief that you need an extended period of time to truly release your stress and improve your wellness.
The Mandarin Oriental spa offers two journeys, the Pacific Ocean Skin Revival and the Peaches and Cream Journey, both an hour and 50 minutes long and $280.
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