Whilst Vancouver is best known as a nature lover’s paradise, with all of its unbridled, beautiful landscapes ripe for hikes, skiing, and water-sports, it’s also becoming an increasingly luxurious destination for purposeful rest and rejuvenation. The Spa by Ivanka Trump, opened in January 2017 and inside the Trump Hotel, encapsulates this, with its heavenly combination of luxurious spa treatments, advanced and modern technologies, and grounded, spiritual ambience.
It features signature rituals for women, men, and couples, and features numerous treatment rooms, a fitness center with the latest Technogym equipment, an outdoor Jacuzzi, an ultra-modern and intimate manicure / pedicure studio, candlelit relaxation lounge, and a gentlemen’s studio. I opted for a massage experience on my visit, and went on a Saturday morning after a gruelling hike, ready to be pampered and unwind.
Upon entry, I realised that there is something distinctly spiritual about this spa: it asks you to set an intention for your visit and then delivers you a full, sensory experience in line with this. Each treatment builds on three core intentions: to Calm, Energise, or Restore. Nibbling on the inviting array of delicious home-made chocolates, dried fruit chunks, and vegan energy cookies, I decided to go for the ‘Restore’ option, and the 90 minute Signature Massage treatment.
I was taken into the massage treatment room by my evidently extremely experienced and kind masseuse, where I was both surprised, and glad, to see a private bathroom and changing room to myself. I later learnt that there is also a Couples Spa Suite which features a spacious, deep soaking tub and steam shower for two to enjoy. Quite the opulent room, this suite is more of an apartment than your average massage treatment space, and well worth indulging in if you want to share the experience with a loved one.
Before starting my treatment, I was offered a warming neck wrap and signature Restorative white tea infused with Papaya, Coconut and Rose Petals. The tea was delicious and the neck wrap a pleasant, unexpected touch that gave me the sense that this would be a treatment unlike any other I’d had before.
After enjoying the tea and gentle warmth of the neck wrap, I was taken inside to the changing room, where I discovered that there was a Private Eucalyptus Steam room ready for for me to enter (alone) and begin to unwind in for 20 minutes. Another purposeful, and luxurious, touch to the treatment, this presented the perfect opportunity to engage in a short meditation and really take the time to take my intention seriously.
Feeling very zen and peaceful alone in the private haven of the steam room, I was later able to pad around my changing room alone in my deliciously fluffy white bathrobe and briefly enjoy all the amenities before my masseuse re-entered the room, and asked me to get ready for the treatment.
We began with inhalations of more Eucalyptus to begin my sensory journey by detoxifying the body. The masseuse then began the treatment, using a brand called Red Flower’s organic Cardamom and Amber Precious Oil. Using a fusion of eastern and western philosophies in his treatment, he gave an acupressure hand massage that brought a combination of energy work with Swedish techniques, applied from head to toe. It was absolutely glorious. Glad to have gone for the Restore intention, I learnt that the other two massages would have been quite different: the Calm intention massage is inspired by Hawaii’s Lomi Lomi massage using long, continuous stroked to relax the mind and body mimicking the ocean waves with the same calming amber oil. The Energise intention massage harnesses the power of Japanese Shiatsu to provide balance and nurture the body with kimoxi flower oil. Mine felt perfect for what I needed: it relaxed my muscles, kneaded out the knots in my shoulders, but also gave me an enjoyable, gentle, sensory experience that was both restful and rejuvenate. A truly restorative treatment, and again made plain the emphasis on intention, purpose, and really thinking about what you want from the experience.
After the massage, I was given Emerald infused water to refresh with and an abundance of time to shower in the opulent Swiss energy steam shower (inside the very same steam room I enjoyed earlier), and change in the private changing room before heading out. The privacy of this experience, coupled with the sense of calm and taking my time, added to the entire treatment and the sense of restoration I felt.
And thus, relaxed, restored, and rejuvenated, I left my private cocoon bubble to re-enter the bustling streets of Vancouver feeling that much better. A genuinely reviving way to spend my Saturday, it’s no wonder that the Spa by Ivanka Trump has been awarded 4-Stars by Forbes. I can’t recommend it more and will be back for more treatments soon.
The Spa by Ivanka Trump
1161 W Georgia Street
Vancouver
BC V6E 0C6
Canada
