While spa and relaxation centres continue to be extremely popular, the question of how to offer special, unique therapies and facilities puzzles hotel and health centre owners alike. Indeed, the classic hammam package with a sauna, solarium and steam room alongside pools of different temperatures is still very desirable. But what more could you offer clients to enhance their spa experience and add a unique feature to your property?
Floatation therapy adds a new dimension to spa and relaxation centers, offering an activity that heightens the senses and brings physical and mental benefits to end users.
In this article, we cover what floatation therapy is, why floating spas are popular with clients seeking relaxation, and how to add floatation to the services your health centre provides.
A floatation therapy room welcomes customers with a sensory deprivation tank, a water tank where they can relax and hit the reset button. In a floatation tank, there is no sound or light, and clients immerse themselves in water mixed with Epsom salts.
This salt and water mix facilitates floating, while the total silence and darkness give clients the chance to unwind, forget the outside world, and even meditate. Floatation tanks also feature soundproofing to ensure there is no outside interference with the therapy. Finally, the water is heated to 94⁰F / 34⁰C – close to normal body temperature, creating a familiar and relaxing feel.
Most floatation spas leave it to the customer to choose if they want to be in complete darkness, with the tanks featuring a button to switch the lights off. Some may also offer music in the tank, but the most desirable set-up is complete quiet and no light.
Scientists estimate that 90% of our brain’s workload is spent responding to sound, light, temperature and gravity. Hence, removing some of this constant input will help the brain to switch off more, allowing the nervous and musculoskeletal systems to relax too. Moreover, being confined in a safe and isolated environment like that in the floatation tanks allows customers to reap the benefits of unwinding as well as of meditating in peace.
Detachment and relaxation
When spa clients relax in pools and saunas, they are still surrounded by others and subjected to multiple stimuli such as light and noise. While the relaxation benefits of these other spa elements are undisputed, opting for floatation therapy takes it one step further.
Floatation tanks shut out the world and immerse clients in a completely stress-free environment, boosting their detachment and switching them off completely.
Multiple physical benefits
In floatation tanks kept at close to body temperature, customers’ heart rates slow and blood flow is increased for better oxygenation. This in turn contributes to muscular recovery and an overall reduction in tension.
The pain relief and stress reduction associated with floatation therapy are enhanced by the release of dopamine and endorphins, just like after a satisfying workout session. Clients feel happy and motivated after their visit.
Mindfulness
Spending time in a floatation tank is conducive to meditation and thinking. The complete lack of external stimuli, coupled with the pleasant floating sensation, enables clients to empty their minds and leave behind busy lives and intrusive thoughts. As a result, they can experience a boost in calmness, mindfulness and creativity.
To increase your customer offering, adding a floatation tank (or several) will give you a competitive advantage and increase customer fidelity and satisfaction.
Here are the top elements to consider when adding your own floatation tanks:
- Ensure the key conditions are met: 94⁰F / 34⁰C water temperature, mixed with Epsom salts
- Consider complete sound and light proofing requirements and how these can be met at your health centre
- Place your floatation tanks in a quiet, relaxed section of the spa, to get customers in the mood to wind down as they approach their therapy
- Package your floatation therapy pods with other activities in the spa to create the ultimate relaxation bundle
- Offer a relaxing music or colour therapy option for an extra feature in the tanks
With their unique conditions and excellent opportunities for meditation and complete relaxation, floatation spas are a very effective way to enhance your health center offering.
Targeting those busy customers who are looking to unwind and disconnect from the world, the tanks offer them the perfect blend of solitude and comfort, and will give you the ultimate competitive edge.