Spa Trends 2010-2011

Next year is not far off, so we decided to research some of the trends that are being forecast for this year and beyond.

Below is an article from SpaFinder’s “2010 Spa Trends Forecast”. This forecast suggests global spa trends that will influence spa experiences for both consumers and the industry in 2010 and for years to come. The annual report is based on analysis from a team of experts who visit thousands of spas, interviews with top industry analysts and research organizations, and ongoing consumer and industry research in the spa, travel, wellness, and beauty sectors.

Prevention:

Prevention as the new in word of the spa industry in 2010 and beyond. - Germany’s Brenner’s Park-Hotel Medical Spa’s PREVENT program, combines comprehensive examinations with personalized therapies, nutrition, and fitness.

Hammam:

With spa-goers increasingly seeking authenticity, tradition, and that magical spa experience that also offers true results, the Middle Eastern hammam (hamam in Turkey) represents one of the hottest trends for 2010. They are elaborate facilities where you get a full-body scrub, soaping, and often a massage inside a heated steam room. This is the year when people who have never heard the term hammam will learn its meaning, and those already familiar with it will discover new places to experience it. Travel to hammams like the 16th-century Çemberlita in Istanbul will increase, while brand-new spas will unveil distinctly modern incarnations.

Hybrid:

The modern spa is increasingly a hybrid, with spas incorporating far more fitness, fitness centres incorporating more spas, hospitals incorporating spa elements, and spas bringing in more medical doctors and specialists. The era of the spa/fitness/integrated-health-center/hospital/spiritual-retreat/wellness-center/beauty-clinic is on a serious upswing. Many more hotels are being built with spas.

Wellness Tourism:

People seeking spas for wellness will increasingly travel across borders for preventive services, diagnostics, spa and well-being vacations, even stem cell banking. The concept dramatically broadens the appeal of medical tourism away from surgery. Examples include stem cell banking at The Medical City in the Philippines, executive physicals at Lanserhof in Austria or Kurotel in Brazil. Traveling across borders to destination spas such as Champneys in the UK, Rancho La Puerta in Mexico or Chiva-Som in Thailand for a life/health turnaround are examples of core, established wellness tourism. Many global consumers opt for these journeys because another country/region offers significantly lower costs or greater procedure/treatment availability. But the upswing is also part of a wider trend toward “mindful,” not “mindless,” travel. Given the economic and moral climate, people are increasingly embracing travel with a higher benefit to themselves and their bodies.

Diversity:

For years analysts have discussed how the spa industry has been attracting new demographics (men, teens, seniors, new ethnic groups). But in 2010 diversity has reached a tipping point: It has fully arrived, and here to stay. Spa going has become so mainstream that the face of the spa-goer will now continue to reflect the wider global population. Every spa region has its unique “diversity story,” and around the globe far more men, younger and older generations, and ethnic groups are hitting the spa. And spas are taking note, with offerings that cater to these diverse groups’ needs and wants.

Article derived from International Medical Travel Journal website. GLOBAL: Spa trends and forecasts for 2010 website: http://www.imtj.com/

For more information visit www.SpaLux.org.