Hawaii’s
Back yard
Cheryl Chee Tsutsumi
Isle spas offer
the gift of pure
indulgenceOnly 18 days until Christmas, and if you still face a formidable shopping list, don't panic. Here are a few spa-tacular gifts and treatments from around the islands that can be easily purchased or arranged with a phone call.
SpaHalekulani
Halekulani Hotel, Oahu
SpaHalekulani draws inspiration for its exotic treatments from the healing traditions of various Pacific islands, including Hawaii, Samoa, Tonga and Tahiti. In Samoa, for example, heated rocks are wrapped in the bark of the nonu (Indian mulberry) plant -- known as noni in Hawaii -- and used to massage the body.Emulating this, therapists at SpaHalekulani knead replenishing noni gel into your skin with a pouch filled with warm stones. This 75-minute, $180 Polynesian Nonu experience also includes a foot-pounding ritual and relaxation time. (Note: Reservations for nonhotel guests are confirmed on a same-day basis.)
Just in is SpaHalekulani's exclusive line of beauty products, perfect for pampering at home. Scents include hibiscus, lavender orchid, mint, coconut passion, limu (seaweed), papaya, pineapple and maile, whose fragrant leaves were reserved as adornments for Hawaiian royalty in ancient times. Today, you can enjoy the heavenly aroma of maile in SpaHalekulani's shampoo, conditioner, body wash, lotion and candles. Call 931-5322.
Aveda Salon & Spa
Ala Moana Center, Oahu
Mark your calendar: On Wednesday, Aveda will host an open house from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. RSVP by tomorrow and you'll be treated that evening to light refreshments, an Aveda gift and an enticing sampling of services, including a hand massage, salt scrub, aroma-infused towel treatment and makeup touch-up.Personal shoppers can assist you with gift selections, and the $50 admission will be fully credited toward your purchases.
Even better, when you spend $150 or more on gift certificates, you'll receive an Aveda Personal Blends spirit bottle (a $25 value). With the help of a knowledgeable adviser, you can create a custom scent that can be used alone or added to massage oil, shampoo, conditioner or lotion for use during your next treatment at Aveda. Or give the bottle and the blending session to a loved one and make her Christmas merrier. Call 947-6141.
RIC NOYLE PHOTO
Brides and their parties can enjoy pampering in the privacy of SpaHalekulani's Bridal Suite.
Spa Olakino & Salon
Waikiki Beach Marriott Resort and Spa, Oahu
The four-hour Honi (kiss) experience is meant to be shared with someone special, even if you're not standing under the mistletoe!A sensuous massage à deux is followed by a luxurious honey, milk and awa (kava) wrap in a special treatment room designed for couples.
Then wash away your aches and cares with a soak in a Japanese furo (deep tub) and a steam shower. Pedicures, a healthy lunch and a champagne cocktail conclude this divine indulgence.
Cost for kamaaina is $368, which is 25 percent off the regular price in celebration of the holidays. You also can design a personalized spa getaway with any combination of Spa Olakino's services and receive a 20 percent discount to boot. Call 924-2121.
Na Hoola Spa
Hyatt Regency Waikiki Resort & Spa, Oahu
The staff at Na Hoola Spa is spreading Christmas cheer with two festive treatments. The 75-minute Pumpkin Spice Facial is an excellent anti-aging treatment that uses a pumpkin enzyme peel, vitamin C mask and an herbal-spice massage cream to exfoliate the skin, stimulate collagen synthesis and provide free radical protection. The kamaaina price is $95.Or drink in the sweet aroma of cedar, pine and cinnamon while the Sugar and Spice Body Scrub exfoliates, smoothes and moisturizes your skin. Featuring a rejuvenating mix of mango and ginger, this $75 treatment lasts 50 minutes. Call 921-6097.
MANELE BAY HOTEL
The scents of Christmas, including eggnog, nutmeg and cinnamon will send visions of sugar plums dancing in your head while lying on a massage table at The Spa at Manele Bay Hotel.
Spa Moana
Hyatt Regency Maui Resort & Spa, Maui
Spa Moana's signature treatment gets its name from its core ingredient: rich, aromatic coffee grown at nearby Kaanapali farms.The Kaanapali Coffee Scrub perks up your skin with a concoction of chocolate macadamia nut coffee; Hawaiian sea salt; papaya, aloe vera, cucumber and sea kelp extracts; and jojoba, avocado, apricot, sesame and grape seed, macadamia nut and organic sunflower oils.
The 25-minute coffee scrub costs $65. Add a massage, and you can extend the bliss to 75 minutes for $175. There is a 10 percent discount for kamaaina.
On the day of your treatment, you'll have free access to the new 5,000-square-foot Moana Athletic Club located on the beach level of Spa Moana. Its large picture windows open to expansive views of the Pacific Ocean and the islands of Lanai and Molokai, while inside, a 42-inch flat-screen television displays colorful scenes of Maui. Aerobics and yoga classes take place in a mirrored studio.
Equipped with the latest Matrix elliptical machines, stationary bikes, treadmills and free weights, the athletic club specializes in individualized fitness packages, including the Fluid Strength Program, which approaches physical training through movement rather than a series of static positions. Call 808-667-4725.
Spa Without Walls
The Fairmont Orchid, Big Island
Seven new outdoor massage hale (huts) nestled amid beautiful tropical gardens and waterfalls will be ready for guests in time for Christmas!The man in your life will love a massage here, using the niolopua (handsome) oil created specifically for the Fairmont Orchid by Sharon Warren, of Warren Botanicals Inc., a Kona-based company specializing in locally inspired, natural spa products. Designed for men, the niolopua oil blends virgin coconut oil, essence of lauae fern and a hint of sandalwood (long ago, only chiefs could wear tapa loincloths and capes scented with coconut oil and lauae).
Niolopua enhances all of Spa Without Wall's massage treatments, but therapists especially like using it with lomilomi, a vigorous, rhythmic technique that supposedly stimulates the flow of mana, or life force, in the body.
In ancient times, lomilomi was performed on Hawaiian warriors to prepare them for battle. The price of a 50-minute niolopua massage is $110; 10 percent is slashed off kamaaina treatments between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. daily. Call 808-887-7540.
RIC NOYLE PHOTO
Couples can indulge in SpaHalekulani's massage room with a tandem furo.
Princeville Health Club & Spa
Princeville Resort, Kauai
The 80-minute Royal Facial will make your loved one feel like a king or queen. It starts with a mineral foot bath, followed by an invigorating, deep-cleansing facial using botanical serums and masks blended according to the client's preferences. Choose from a dozen intoxicating scents -- including lavender, ylang ylang, jasmine, geranium and sandalwood -- which can be combined in more than 100 ways. A soothing scalp treatment and neck, shoulder, hand, arm and foot massage rounds out this royal experience.Aveda products are selected to complement customers' specific skin types and conditions, whether sensitive, mature, oily, dry or sun-damaged. The cost of the Royal Facial is $120 for Princeville Hotel guests and $125 for nonhotel guests. Kamaaina receive a 10 percent discount. As an added benefit, on the day of your spa treatment, you're welcome to use the adjoining health club's exercise equipment, lap pool and other amenities free of charge. Call 808-826-5030.
The Spa at Manele Bay Hotel
Lanai
Here are three ways you can indulge in your favorite yule treats without any of the calories! The Pumpkin Pie Facial uses a mask loaded with fresh pumpkin, vitamin C, beta-carotene and enzymes to protect the skin from free radicals and provide a deep exfoliation. The cost is $120.Eggnog, ground nutmeg, shea butter, cinnamon and oatmeal are the main ingredients of Holiday Scent-sations, a $120 exfoliating and hydrating massage that's an aromatic treat for the senses as well as the skin.
Or consider the $115 Christmas Cookie Wrap, a delicious offering that begins with a "sugar cookie" scrub made of honey, vanilla, shea butter, sugar and organic oatmeal. Then, after an application of vanilla body butter, the body is wrapped in a plastic sheet and thermal blanket. A relaxing foot massage completes the journey to nirvana. Call 808-565-2088.
Cheryl Chee Tsutsumi is a Honolulu-based freelance writer and Society of American Travel Writers award winner.
See the Columnists section for some past articles.
Cheryl Chee Tsutsumi is a Honolulu-based free-lance writer and Society of American Travel Writers award winner.
