Wellness, like most ambitions, has multiple layers to it. The term has been used in many ways to describe a desire to enhance one’s body, mind, and soul. But it is still only the exceptional hospitality programs that encompass the complete desire for wellness. There are simple ways that your portfolio can provide your guests with the right level of wellness to match your overall experience. Lina Batarags’ indictment of hospitality’s wellness programs as shallow acknowledgement of a lack of cleanliness (Insider, March 29, 2021) was harsher than necessary. She seemed to think that hotels were lagging the norm of...

The wellness industry is transforming into a booming trillion-dollar market with plenty of potential for new entrants in the sector, be it new products or services. EHL has compiled a list of the top 10 global spa trends for this year. The spa experience is no longer simply about pampering; spas are now required to offer an extensive menu of healing therapies for the mind, body, and soul. The COVID Impact on the Wellness Industry & Spa Trends Today, spas may answer most of the desires of an older generation expecting to be offered additional pampering services or a health and...

BANGKOK—With booming demand for adventurous and eco-conscious travel, northern Norway is one of the last frontiers for a self-sustainable, off-grid destination. The 94-room Six Senses Svart combines a futuristic design and technological innovation with earthy, organic materials that use the least embedded energy. The name Svart, which means black and blue in old Norse, is a reference to the natural heritage of the ancient Svartisen glacier, which lies just within the Arctic Circle, where summer days last forever and winter nights are lit by the breathtaking Northern Lights. To minimize the on-site impact, Six Senses Svart is poised on...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Events DC, the official convention and sports authority for the District of Columbia, announced it has earned the WELL Health-Safety Rating for its three primary venues including Walter E. Washington Convention Center, Entertainment & Sports Arena, and the DC Armory through the International WELL Building Institute (IWBI). The WELL Health-Safety Rating is an evidence-based, third-party verified rating for all new and existing building and space types focusing on operational policies, maintenance protocols, stakeholder engagement and emergency plans to address a post-COVID-19 environment now and into the future. Designed to empower owners and operators across large and small businesses alike to...

CHICAGO—Blueair, a leader in air purification for home and professional use, and the Allergy & Asthma Network, a nonprofit organization advocating on behalf of the 60 million Americans with allergies, asthma and related conditions, announced a long-term partnership stemming from the organizations’ shared purpose to support the health and well-being of those patients and communities most in need, specifically patients impacted by poor air quality. “Blueair was founded on the belief that the freedom to breathe is a basic right. Our mission has always been to provide clean air, with the health of generations to come top of mind,” said...

CHICAGO—Luminii, a leader in the germicidal ultraviolet (GUV) LED lighting space, announced that it is helping businesses including gyms, restaurants, medical offices and daycares around the country. With more than a decade of architectural LED product innovation, Luminii’s germicidal upper air system called Purifii is a contact-free, low-profile GUV product that kills the COVID-19 virus as well as other airborne viruses and bacteria that may be circulating in high-traffic indoor spaces. Since February 28, when Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot rescinded the city’s indoor mask mandate, some Chicago businesses welcomed customers back to restaurants, gyms, and retail establishments with extra risk mitigation layers designed to protect air quality and kill...

NEW YORK—The Peninsula Hotels, whose properties around the world have epitomized luxurious elegance for almost a century, will debut an extensive collection of new wellness resources for its guests in early 2022, inviting them to experience “Life Lived Best.” The brand-wide initiative will provide guests at all Peninsula properties with unprecedented opportunities to pursue their fitness, mindfulness, and nutritional goals—and to access those opportunities whenever they wish through a dedicated Wellness Portal and 24-hour Wellness Concierge service. “With this new Wellness program, we are breaking new ground in helping our guests to maximize their health and well-being,” said Gareth Roberts, Group...

BETHESDA, MD.—JW Marriott, part of Marriott Bonvoy’s portfolio of 30 hotel brands, recently announced the debut of three herb gardens envisioned and planted by renowned landscape designer Lily Kwong as part of the brand’s JW Garden program. Kwong, whose reverence for nature comes to life through her breathtaking botanical installations, is the founder of Studio Lily Kwong, a next-generation landscape design studio with a mission to reconnect people to nature. JW Marriott is guided by similar principles, with a commitment to mindfulness that allows guests to be present in mind, nourished in body and revitalized in spirit—pillars that directly...

UNITED KINGDOM—Global hotel group YOTEL and beauty brand Urban Jungle have announced a world exclusive partnership. YOTELs around the globe will become the first hotels in the world to stock Urban Jungle’s innovative amenities. Australian-born Urban Jungle is already disrupting the beauty industry with attainable and easy-to-use products and will now be available for all hotel guests staying in YOTELs from Miami to Manchester, Singapore to San Francisco and many more. Urban Jungle is set to be stocked in every YOTEL, YOTELAIR and YOTELPAD by the end of the year. Cleverly created to be cruelty-free and vegan, Urban Jungle is a...

ORLANDO, FLA.—The pandemic did many bad things to the hospitality industry and its related organizations. One of the organizations that suffered the most was Clean the World, the Orlando, Fla. based nonprofit that is dependent on donations of soap, amenity bottles, financial support, and volunteers to keep its mission rolling. “The donation drop off was more than 75 percent during the pandemic,” says Robert Montgomery, Clean the World’s VP Product Development. “Clean the World laid off 80 percent of staff. We almost had to close our doors.” Corporate events, at which groups assemble hygiene kits, came to a complete...