standards and criteria of green spas

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Gardens, Spas & Sacred Space - Alex StarkSPASSpas are locations where the individual can experience the totality of their being in order tocreate healing and wellness. The land, its topography and the spiritual qualities of the siteare integral components of this process. In this context it is important to allow the landscape

to speak to the soul and heart of the individual. To achieve this, it is essential, from anenergetic perspective, to enhance and to replicate its qualities in the built environments.

Structures must serve a fundamental purpose: to resonate with the natural qualities of thelandscape. uildings must respond to the basic qualities of place: orientation to the cardinaldirections, relationship to sky, water and earth, and to the movement of bodies as theytravel in space. To this end, certain metaphors and narratives must be orchestrated in anattempt to guide the visitor into an experience that can capture the magic and mystery ofthe land. !urthermore, any harsh qualities of the terrain must be softened with the additionof new elements that play o" the inherent qualities of light, sound, wind, and the passage oftime.

elow are basic parameters and guiding principles that can be incorporated into the design

and program of spas:

#. The experience of space is designed as a narrative in the landscape. $uests must feelthat they are discovering the landscape in order to create wellness in their bodies, psycheand soul.

%. This experience is conceived as a series of events that follow each other in sequences.Some of these events involve built environments, others include natural formations,gardens, exotic element imported for this purpose, or special artwork that resonates with theenvironment.

&. The connections between places, events and amenities is conceived as a web ofrelationships, rather than a pathway or road. This allows for more complex discussions about

the role of experience. It also allows for the introduction of sophisticated ideas forprogramming.

'. (ey metaphors are isolated from the surrounding landscape and repeated at variousscales in order to rea)rm the terrain and its qualities. These include but are not limited to:light and shadow, sun and moon, water and earth, openness and closeness, wind andmountains, the movement of sun, moon and stars across the sky, and plant life that re*ectsthe patterns of life, death, and rebirth. Spaces must resonate with these qualities.

+. lthough local materials are preferred, certain exotic items can be introduced in order toheighten the tension between nature and man. These include crystals, indoor plants,antiques, textiles, sculpture, and other decorations.

-. rt is used as a way to heighten the experience of place. arge scale sculpture andearthworks, in particular, can be helpful in dramati/ing the landscape.

0. Since wind and sky are a key component of the landscape, its movement is made visiblethrough art, architecture, and sculpture. Small chimes can also be used in courtyards anddwellings. 1very small movement of wind needs to be captured as a way of increasingpsychological relief.

2. 3ater and its role in the landscape must be explored repeatedly: water is everything inthe land. 4ence, gardens and horticulture play a central role in de5ning the guests6
https://www.google.com.ph/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=23&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjp0cnV-sjJAhXIkpQKHcq1DjQ4FBAWCCMwAg&url=http%3A%2F%2Falexstark.com%2Fservices%2Fspas-gardens%2F&usg=AFQjCNFVZeWXWhWJPOe-2IshFmCNOsnxpA&sig2=6BzRbgaOi8D7N-mXfQiUWw&bvm=bv.108538919,d.dGohttps://www.google.com.ph/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=23&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjp0cnV-sjJAhXIkpQKHcq1DjQ4FBAWCCMwAg&url=http%3A%2F%2Falexstark.com%2Fservices%2Fspas-gardens%2F&usg=AFQjCNFVZeWXWhWJPOe-2IshFmCNOsnxpA&sig2=6BzRbgaOi8D7N-mXfQiUWw&bvm=bv.108538919,d.dGo


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experience. Shallow re*ecting pools and larger water features all have a role: to cool anddelight.

7.In addition to the metaphors of earth and water, the movement of sun, moon, and starsacross the sky is an organi/ing principle that can be captured with sundials, portholes,rituals, ceremony, and programs such as solstice events, labyrinths, sweat lodges, and many

others.

S891 984IT18T;91Sacred rchitecture rises from a primary impulse towards union with the holy and is aresponse to the need for a physical container within which to reali/e this union. lthoughphysical and concrete, sacred buildings must partake of energetic and metaphysicalqualities in order to capture the essence of the divine. They must also serve as gatheringplaces for a congregation of spiritual aspirants. It is within sacred architecture that societiesengage in ritual and ceremony, the languages of the sacred. s such, sacred spaces areintegral to prayer, meditation, and healing.

ll sacred architecture partakes of essential qualities that distinguish it from profane ormundane architecture. mong others, these qualities include: a recognition of the

sacredness in particular sites, an understanding of geomantic structures and energycurrents in the land, and mastery of techniques for tapping into the sacred power oftopography and location. (nown collectively as the genius loci, these spiritual forces in theland, waters, and vegetation are considered to be alive, conscious, and interactive, andinclude all elements of the natural world. 4ence sacred structures are often located on ornear caves, wells, springs, rivers, groves, mountains, ley lines


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!or more information, please consult our A$uidelines for 4ealing $ardensB, and A$uidelinesfor Sacred rchitectureB in the 9esources section.4ow to create and design a luxury spaICve spent the last #& years of my professional career working at luxury hotels spa in some ofthe best european companies, as a therapist and as a spa manager. The main reason why

ICve decided to write this post is that, in all this time, despite ICve travelled a lot visiting mostof the most important wellness in the sector, I still havenCt found even one without importantconcept, design or management mistakes. Daybe some day a professional who has tocreate a spa will look for information in $oogle and 5nd this entry, and with these adviceswill be able to make a better Eob. In this case, and since I write this blog for free, it would bea detail to send me at least an invitation for a wellness session...

SPA$eneral rules:> If you are not an experienced spa specialist, F @FT 1SI$@ T41 SG. HouCll burn a lot ofmoney on unnecesary facilities and youCll forget other facilities that could be more needed,rentable or successful among your customers.

> Hour !I9ST investment must be hiring the best spa specialist you can 5nd. @o matter how

much you spend on them, they will save you much more money on your facilitiesinvestments and in the future a rational and optimi/ed concept Steps sequence: #= you know your clients


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> s a consequence of that, ISFT1 T41 @FIS1 91S !9FD T41 SI1@81 91S nother consecuence: ISFT1 T41 8I1@TS !9FD T41 ST!!. Hour client is living a relaxexperience, a peaceful moment after their treatment or Eust feels away of this world. TheydonCt want to see a tech support worker passing through, or a guy carrying a bunch of usedtowels. !ind the way to design your spa making a separation between the KnobleK and theservice areas.

In short: if you havenCt spend many years working on a spa, if you havenCt previouslydesigned one


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or services o"ered but not demanded, itCs their mistake too. !or example: the englishtourists love the steamroom and colors showers and threatments like re*exology and hotstones are very popular among them, then if you are focused on this public you want yourdesign !rom the client point of view: their spa experience must be KtopK, since they are at homelooking for information about the center until they come back home and reccomend it totheir friends !rom the company point of view: the spa is Eust a tool among others, to follow the companystrategies and reach their goals whatever they areL then the perfect spa is the one that doesthis in the best and most e)cient way. lso itCs necessary that the required investment to bethe lowest possible, in design and building


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s you can see there are two entranceMexits, with the reception desk in the middle of them and a Kvichy roomK which is a kind of massage that requires an speci5cinfraestructure and canCt be used for anything elseL the kind of client that visits this hotel isnot interested at all on such a thing and the vichy facility is used Eust #>% hours per monthand the rest of the time is empty. The space is limited, bad distributed and has a big part

wasted, and they have spend


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Hou see: this is nonsense, and any Eust minimum quali5ed specialist would have pointed it incase they would have looked for professional advice since the beginning. This centerreceived lots of clients complaints, who for example were at the relax /one >not physicallyseparated from the rest> hearing the Eacu//i and showers noise, the gym machines, thepeople talking at the reception and the hairdresserCs hairdriers. In this design the Eacu//i andsaunas machines >very noisy> are located right in front of one of the massage rooms and theclients get their threatments hearing much noiseL and in the other rooms you could bereceiving your threatment hearing someone singing under the shower at the changingrooms


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There are two options: crossing through the sauna and relax areas


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s ICve have said this is a real example ICve seen with my own eyes in my professionalcareer. I got the task to repair this mess, with some limits and spending as less money aspossible. I didnCt have total freedom to do what I thought necessary for this hotel level, butmy design was an obvious improvement:


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This is indeed something better, isnCt itJ The sauna gets some privacy, the vichy waste isremoved, the changing rooms are si/ed Eust as needed and there are more space for otherimportant facilities there are other factors to consider. In some spas the 5rst target is toget money directly, and everything else must addapt to thisL in some others, for exampleluxury hotels, a part of the pro5t gets sacri5/ed in order to reach higher targets like the


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hotel image to the client. In the proEect ICm showing you now the hotel owner based sauna doors security system locks to avoid interruptions for theclients, a towels collection and storage system better for the clients and needs less peopleto manage it


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In the ground *oor there will be the reception and the main common facilities including arelax /one. ll is adapted to the kind of clients and area residents, with their characteristicsand preferences, and some services have been discarded because they could have demandamong other public but not for this one.


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To protect the clients privacy all the windows and glass walls to the outside, including theglass pannel between the reception and the pool, should be in glass bricks or plaintranslucid glass.


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The service area has been thought to have the minimum sta" to o"er the best the bestquality service, and make the daily work optimal, *uent, easy and e)cient.


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The basement is used for the individual threatmentsL there is also a machineryMservice partseparated from the rest by a wide lobby that can be used as a handicapped people access,access to the service /ones for the technical and support sta", and emergency exit.


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nd we are 5nally coming to the end of this post. I suppose it will be boring for most of myfrequent readers


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standards and criteria of green spas

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