Shangri-La to launch new Spa brand - CHI

Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts is to launch a new Spa brand, CHI, through its hotels around the world. The first CHI spa is scheduled to open at the Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok in June 2004, with plans for 10 CHI spas to be introduced in various hotel locations over the next few years.

Designed to create a sanctuary of tranquility inspired by the legend of 'Shangri-La,' CHI will feature some of the largest and most luxurious private spa suites and villas. It will offer a range of specialised body, water, massage and facial therapies based on the ancient healing traditions, philosophies and rituals of China and the Himalayas.

"The essence of 'chi' symbolises Shangri-La's definition of a complete wellbeing concept within an Asian context," says Ian Brewis, director of spa development. In traditional Chinese philosophy, "chi" represents the universal life force that governs wellbeing and personal vitality. To maintain good health, it is believed that chi must flow freely within the body, and if blocked, illness will follow.

The CHI concept was developed in collaboration with a team of recognised specialists. Spa treatments and an exclusive product range have been designed based on the Chinese philosophy of the Five Elements, in which metal, water, wood, fire and earth are in balance with the positive Yang and negative Yin energy within the body. Signature therapies like Chi Balance, Meridian Harmony, and Chi Nei Tsang work to restore vitality, while therapies like the Himalayan Healing Stone Massage and the Mountain Tsampa Scrub use indigenous ingredients and techniques drawn from the ancient healing traditions of the mystical Himalayan region.

The interiors will reflect this concept, through the use of unique accents reflecting local architecture and materials, as well as the subtle use of Himalayan art and accessories. In the Shangri-La city hotels, CHI private spa suites will be among the most spacious in the market - in Bangkok, the garden suite measures over 107 square metres - offering a "spa within a spa" concept that provides each guest with their own state-of-the-art bathing, sauna, shower, changing facilities, and lounge area to indulge in the luxury of personal space and timelessness.

In resort locations, like the CHI spa at Shangri-La's Mactan Island Resort, Cebu, scheduled for a late 2004 opening, an 8,000 square metre "spa village" will offer private villas for couples, garden suites, unique "wet" spa facilities (aromadome, vitality herbal tubs and a spa pool with "tropi-cabanas), and one of Asia's first genuine watsu pools.

CHI spas scheduled to open are:

Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok June 2004

Shangri-La's Mactan Island Resort, Cebu Late 2004

Shangri-La's Fijian Resort, Yanuca Late 2004

Shangri-La Maldives Resort & Spa, Villingili Island Early 2005

Shangri-La's Barr Al Jissah Resort & Spa, Muscat, Oman Mid 2005

Pudong Shangri-La, Shanghai Mid 2005

Shangri-La's Sunny Bay Resort, Sanya Late 2005

Shangri-La Hotel & Spa, Haikou Late 2005

Shangri-La Hotel, Chiang Mai, Thailand 2006

Shangri-La Hotel, Guilin 2007