MIAMI—Even Spartans need a day at the spa—especially after climbing an intensive rope wall or swinging rung to rung on the monkey bars. 1 Hotel South Beach’s new health and wellness concept attempts to accommodate the disciplined Spartan while also nurturing the nature-seeking guest attuned with the mind, body and spirit.
“The property’s commitment to wellness and health, which is also a brand-wide commitment, aligns with its holistic nature-inspired approach,” said Milton Sgarbi, managing director at 1 Hotel South Beach. “Guests are one with nature through the decor in their rooms, amenities and the restaurants they experience on-property.”
This self-proclaimed dedication to the overall well-being of its guests sparked 1 Hotel South Beach’s vision of bringing a health and wellness center to its property. “Additionally, the hotel elevates its wellness and health offerings by carefully selecting partners that align with the brand’s mission and values while enhancing our guest experiences,” Sgarbi told Hotel Business. “Wellness and mindfulness are additional brand focuses that allow our health-conscious guests to continue their daily regimen away from home—which is something that continuously sets the hotel apart from the competitors in this era of wellness-focused travel.” To fulfill its health-driven vision, 1 Hotel South Beach formed partnerships with both Spartan Gym and Bamford Haybarn Spa.
Located directly next to each other on the property—serving as the hotel’s health and fitness center—Spartan Gym and Bamford Haybarn Spa encompass more than 18,000 sq. ft. of space. “These were actually more than just renovations; the spaces were built from scratch,” he said, adding that the property didn’t run into any challenges when developing the additional areas for 1 Hotel South Beach’s health-focused guests.
Discussions about the multimillion-dollar investment began nearly two years ago. “Both Bamford and Spartan are great brands that align perfectly with our concept of health and wellness, and are cohesive with our on-property mind and movement programs,” said Sgarbi, who was not with the property during initial conversations with partners.
This opening is “truly the first-ever official Spartan Race gym,” said John Gauch, VP of training at Spartan Race. What makes this 14,000-sq.-ft. facility unique is its “oceanside location, expert staff, Spartan obstacles and philosophy—shared with 1 Hotel,” he said. This isn’t the first time Spartan has partnered with the hospitality industry on wellness opportunities: Marriott Rewards is the official global hotel partner of Spartan Race.
Able to accommodate nearly 290 people, the facility is divided into four core components of fitness: athleticism, strength, endurance and mind. The athleticism piece targets the body’s stability, coordination and balance through a combination of natural body movement workouts and equipment for more complex, skill-developing workouts. Another room provides weight machines, free weights and other strength-testing equipment for trainees focusing on bulking up. New cardio equipment is available to guests in need of aerobic and anaerobic training. The gym offers foam rollers and yoga equipment for trainees in need of some post-workout stretching and meditation.
Designed by Gray Organschi Architecture, the facility, which welcomes guests with an oversized industrial steel door, also has a centralized area highlighting obstacle-inspired offerings—including overhead ropes, nets and pipes for traditional Spartan course training. It includes three classrooms for group-style workouts (one of the areas can be used as a private training room for one-on-one training by local, certified Spartan trainers). Gabion-style walls lined in brick and rebar add texture to the space.
There are also outdoor areas for trainees: a designated Spartan yoga deck, the property’s private beach, and the property’s grounds, which includes 600 ft. of beachfront. “Spartan advocates for training outdoors when possible and is designed to train the whole person—body, mind and spirit,” Gauch noted.
To enhance the Spartan Gym experience, 1 Hotel South Beach is offering specialty packages for guests, including dedicated menus, class recommendations and spa treatments. The property and Spartan Gym plan to offer Spartan Weekends and Weeks in 2017, which is “an experiential introduction to Spartan training,” Sgarbi said.
“The Spartan training system builds well-rounded, all-over fitness and wellness that leads to better performance on the race course and higher quality living off the race course,” Gauch said, explaining what makes the new facility a Spartan Gym.
Spartan and 1 Hotel have common goals: “Creating community and helping people to live well,” Gauch said, noting how nature inspired 1 Hotel to develop overarching design principles embracing eco-conscious design and sustainable architecture.
Katherine Pye, director of body and spa at Bamford, also credited the hotel for adhering to a shared business philosophy rooted in nature and sustainable practices.
Designed by luxury hotel and spa designer Spencer Fung, the Haybarn Spa has 12 treatment rooms and three manicure and pedicure stations. Comprised of two larger, suite-style treatment rooms, the Woodland room features a bespoke central water fountain. “This area has been designed to create an atmosphere of calm, peace and reflection for guests,” she said. “The spa also features the Willow rooms, two larger suite-style treatment rooms where we offer couples treatments.”
Available at the spa are an assortment of holistic body treatments and massages, and facial treatments. The Haybarn Wellness package includes a private yoga session indoors or in a beach area; a body treatment; and a variety of detox and energizing juices. The Bamford team created a menu exclusively for 1 Hotel South Beach guests. Men’s and women’s changing rooms both have steam rooms available to customers. Bamford selects organic ingredients for its signature body collection. In addition to selling its organic skin line, Bamford also sells its wear and accessories line at its store.
Bamford has plans to open a second Haybarn Spa with the newly opened 1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge in fall 2017. Currently, the company is offering treatments in selected hotels throughout the world—including New Forest, U.K.; Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc in the South of France; and Le Grand Bellevue, Gstaad, Switzerland. “Alongside our exciting expansion in the U.S, we will also be opening the U.K.’s first spa on a train in 2017 onboard the Royal Scotsman in partnership with Belmond,” she said. “Haybarn Spa treatments will be offered on board throughout guests’ stay on the train.” HB
