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SPAof theMONTHBack to Nature, an Inspirational Retreat

POCONOS SPA at THE LODGE AT WOODLOCHHAWLEY, PA.

by Amanda Clinton Winter

The winding road through the forest leads only to one place. As guests get closer, the majestic trees seemingly close in, their all embracing limbs inviting one to surrender to nature and let go. The greeting of the towering cabin-like structure, its cathedral ceiling, impressive glass cupola, balcony overlooking the lake and oversized chakra bowls at the entrance set the tone for the rest of the stay—personal awakening is The Lodge at Woodloch’s philosophy.

“We all get swept up in the whirlwind of life and need an opportunity to rediscover ourselves,” says Spa Director Nancy Deaton. “With our philosophy of personal awakening, we pride ourselves in giving them that opportunity at The Lodge at Woodloch.”

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Nestled in Pennsylvania’s lake region, the resort and spa rests a short 95 miles—a convenient two to three hour drive—from the New York City metropolitan area, and is easily accessible from anywhere in the Northeast. The all-inclusive property, set on more than 150 pristine wooded acres with a 15-acre private lake, offers a serene escape but boasts the luxury of proximity. With less than a decade of operation—The Lodge at Woodloch opened in June 2006—the luxury destination spa has swept dozens of awards, including the number three Destination Spa in the World by Travel + Leisure World’s Best Award 2014, and made Condé Nast Traveler’s Reader’s Choice Top Spa List in 2013.

Stays include rooms and all meals, fitness activities and classes, use of the spa and most lectures and events. Packages also include a personal spa concierge to help guests design their programs.

Guests have the choice between two packages, allowing them to choose between rooms plus à la carte spa

treatments, or receiving one treatment per day with their stay. “Guests have the opportunity to participate in creative discovery classes, outdoor adventure activities and fitness classes,” says Deaton. “They can design their stay based on what interests them the most and hopefully discover a new passion or dust off an old hobby, which they then continue to nurture once they return home.”

The 40,000 square foot spa is a sanctuary for the senses. Guests can relax at the coed Whisper Lounge or immerse themselves in the Aqua Garden, complete with therapeutic soaking pools and dramatic hydro-massage WaterWalls surrounded by native boulders. An indoor activity pool and an infinity-edge whirlpool located on an outdoor porch overlooking the lake are also featured.

Separate men’s and women’s locker rooms are adorned with fireplace lounges, a sauna, steam room and whirlpool facilities with screened-in porches, signature private shower and changing suites.

Active indoor pursuits take place in the expansive windowed cardio/weight training studio, spinning room, yoga/meditation and dance/fitness studios.

Spa services are offered in 27 treatment rooms and focus on the use of natural ingredients, incorporating therapies from Europe and the Far East as well as indigenous elements.

At the spa, guests are invited to relax and unwind to let their body and mind be awakened and transformed. With that idea in mind—and taking into account their 35 percent men to 65 percent women ratio—the spa offers an array of treatments that is sure to please all.

Their signature treatment is the Rosemary Awakening body treatment. Inspired by the healing properties of rosemary, the treatment begins with a stimulating body polish of sea salt, rosemary from their healing garden and citrus to cleanse and detoxify. Next, a full body massage enhanced by locally crafted rosemary-infused oils and herbal heat packs relaxes and restores tired muscles. p

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A warm seaweed wrap, steeped in extracts of Icelandic moss and angelica to nourish dry skin, and a luxurious scalp massage complete the healing journey (100 minutes, $250). Among their most popular treatments is the Restorative Herbal Massage, a centuries-old Thai style massage with a local spin. Guests enjoy gentle stretching techniques and a relaxing massage with warm herbal poultices to restore harmony, loosen tight muscles and stimulate blood flow and energy. The herbal poultices are hand crafted by their master herbalist, Nathaniel Whitmore, using traditional Thai herbs blended with local plants to provide a relaxing and detoxifying experience (75 minutes, $195; 100 minutes, $255). Another guest favorite is the Chakra Balancing Massage that uses handcrafted oils from a local aromatherapist. This unique experience blends Swedish massage, energy work and aromatherapy to restore the body while balancing one’s energy. The massage utilizes infused oils designed for each chakra, addresses muscular tension and imbalance, while gentle energy techniques promote deep relaxation (100 minutes, $250).

Guests can also choose from many facials and other body treatments. The Lodge Facial is their signature facial. It begins with an in-depth skin analysis. Botanical enzyme peels of sweet cherry, pear, fig or pumpkin exfoliate while profoundly effective serums deeply repair and hydrate the skin (50 min-utes, $125). The Gentlemen’s Facial is a customized facial designed for each man’s individual skin type to remedy the problems related to daily shaving and excessive environmental exposure (50 minutes, $125). The Lodge Body Polish is their customized body polish that features a unique blend of revital-izing herbs and minerals to help soften the skin and increase circulation (50 minutes, $125; 75 minutes with full body massage, $185). The Lavender Garden Dream uses the calming and cleansing benefits of wild lavender. Earthly minerals and lavender exfoliate during an energizing salt scrub, while a customized essence of lavender wrap with a warm stone back massage leads the way to a restorative full body mas-sage (100 minutes, $250)—all prices are for Monday to Friday and increase by $10 on weekends.

Day spa guests are welcomed with their very own brochure and packages such as the Evening Escape, which in-cludes one spa service valued at $125, the use of the men’s or women’s re-treat, the hydro-massage WaterWalls and pool facilities, the cardio weight studio and a gourmet spa cuisine din-ner at the restaurant (available from 4 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., $255).

Locals can also show their loyalty and appreciation for the spa’s unique services by enrolling in the yearly Rosemary Renewal Club member-ship, which includes five 50-minute spa treatments (valued up to $135 each); six complimentary certificates for a gourmet spa cuisine lunch at TREE Restaurant and Bar; two monthly com-plimentary day passes (which include use of retreat facilities, Aqua Garden, cardio-weight studio); a 10 percent dis-count on retail purchases; 15 percent discount on spa services and 25 per-cent discount on all private fitness ac-tivities ($799 for a year, valid Sunday-Thursday, excluding holidays).

Launched in 2012, the program, Deaton explains, came to be to en-courage local clients to visit the Lodge p

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and create a connection with it. “This program allows us to form long lasting relationships with our local clientele. It also encourages members to introduce friends and family to our property,” says Deaton. “We created this package to focus on our slower times, allowing for us to see an increase in revenue when our occupancy is typically lower.”

In order to create this member-ship—the spa counts about 65 mem-bers—Deaton says they made sure it would be of value to the guests and the spa as well. “Some of the components of the membership program cost very little to us, but are very popular with our guests, like our day pass, which helps keep our costs down,” Deaton says.

The Lodge at Woodloch also part-ners with local businesses, such as with a local aromatherapist who handcrafts some of their massage oils, relies on local purveyors for their restaurant and hosts quarterly community events.

If local events and memberships keep locals interested, The Lodge re-lies on word of mouth to attract new guests—that is on the good words their guests will share of their trip to friends and family—and on a dedicated marketing approach to attract new-comers and return clients. “We have a limited print and online budget as well as a dedicated social media cam-paign (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram

and Pinterest),” says Deaton. “Our marketing efforts have a goal to keep our name top of mind within specific niches of high-end luxury travelers with an interest in health, wellness, spa, nu-trition, gourmet cooking and outdoor adventures.”

In addition to its local happen-ings, other special events include their themed weekend and unique present-ers to keep promoting their offerings throughout the year. “We do target dif-ferent times of the year based on our need periods to attract new guests,” says Deaton. “For example, we partner with Dogfish Head Craft Brewery to provide beer inspired spa treatments and we kick this off each year with an Art of Ale Craft Beer weekend. This is not your typical destination spa week-end but opens the doors to a new set of potential guests.”

Inspired by nature and with a per-sonal reawakening mind frame, The Lodge at Woodloch is a destination to get away from the daily stresses and rediscover the stillness within.

“At The Lodge at Woodloch, we let nature nurture,” says Deaton. “We take our cues from the nature that sur-rounds us and provide guests with re-sults driven spa treatments that help ease both the mind and body. We pro-vide guests with the opportunity to relax and renew.” n

THE LODGE AT WOODLOCH

109 River Birch Lane, Hawley, Pa.570.685.8500thelodgeatwoodloch.com

• Launched: 2006• Facility: 57 guest rooms

THE SPA:• 27 treatment rooms (14 massage rooms, six facial rooms, three wet rooms, two couples’ suites and two treatment combination suites)• Whisper Lounge—quiet co-ed lounge with fireplace—Men’s and Women’s Retreat (lockers, showers, sauna, steam room, whirpool); Aqua Garden (WaterWalls, indoor pool, outdoor whirlpool); cardio-weight studio; two multipurpose studios; Lotus Salon; Great Thing Boutique• 39 massage therapists, 14 fitness instructors, 12 spa attendants (to oversee the locker rooms and Aqua Garden area), 11 spa concierges, 10 cosmetologists, nine prep at-tendants (to assist treatment pro-viders), seven estheticians, six spa management team members, four nail technicians, one lead massage therapist

PRODUCT LINE USED AND RETAILED:

Naturopathica, Kerstin Florian,

Organic Male OM4, Zents,

Moroccanoils, Spa Ritual

SIGNATURE TREATMENT:

Rosemary Awakening

Body Treatment

The Poconos Spa menu is reviewed yearly

Amanda Clinton Winter is the manag-ing editor of Les Nouvelles Esthétiques & Spa. She has a bachelor’s degree in English Literature and Psychology from Wheaton College in Norton, MA, and a master’s degree in Public Relations from the University of Miami. Contact her at amanda@LNEONLINE.com. p

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