Spa 101 - Miami Beach
Tucked away on the fourth floor of South Beach’s Hilton Bentley is an intimate oasis called Spa 101 where the soothing sounds of a cascading fountain on a sundeck overlooking an ocean view and serene treatment rooms beckon the tired and weary to an opportunity to relax and re-charge, soothing away their aches and pains.And husband and wife owners Patrick and Iris Van De Coevering want their clients to incorporate the zen of spa life into their daily lives.“We promote our locals special as a way of helping people integrate spa into their everyday life. This entices them to come in more often, either once a week or once a month, basically before the muscles become tense and they experience pain,” Patrick said.
The special offer entitles members to 50% off all spa services for a $75 a month membership. Up to three people can share in the promotion so it’s a great deal that allows multiple clients to realize the benefits of a healthier lifestyle by utilizing the facilities.There’s an interesting story behind the spa’s name too. It’s simply a coincidence that the location is at 101 Ocean Drive, the Van De Coevering’s actually believe that a spa experience should be uncomplicated and presented as basic, fundamental services, so in essence – Spa 101. They learned this during their extensive training in Bali, considered the most elite place in the world where massage training is a way of life.
“In Bali girls are trained from a very early age in the art of massage and it is passed on from generation to generation and integrated into the culture. Having received our training there it allows us to select the best people for our spa since we know the best techniques and so can train our staff this way as well,” he said. Because of this and their caring atmosphere, therapists are long-timers at 101 which makes for the ideal client/therapist relationship, something that’s always important in the spa treatment world where services are so personal.The spa menu features only 14 services, which helps them keep treatments, basic and simple and focused simply on the fundamentals. The intimate atmosphere of an outdoor treatment room and three treatment areas indoors allows therapists to customize services on a client by client basis. For skincare treatments the therapist will first examine the skin and then determine what service is best suited for their skin type. It’s basically a way of educating people on how best to care for themselves.They’re also aware of the Miami climate and how it can affect a person’s skin following a facial so they purposely use a microcurrent machine for facials rather than microdermabrasion. With the currents the skin is massaged and awakened minimizing the look of wrinkles and creating a natural glow rather than removing a layer of skin which could lead to sun spots and other harmful non-reversible conditions.The hotel’s location, right on the beach and it’s smaller, more intimate size is ideal for Spa 101. The eight-year-old hotel does however have spacious rooms and a nice restaurant as well as a lovely beach club. Reality television stars Khloe and Kourtney Kardashian seem to agree seeing as they are the occupants of the hotel’s penthouse suite and also received treatments on camera for their show. Who wouldn’t want to enjoy a zen-like experience with the sun, sand and oceanfront breezes just steps away.
