Just a hop and a skip away from the French Quarter, tantalizingly close to New Orleans’ pulse, is the city’s Grande Dame hotel. Her pearl? The Roosevelt New Orleans’ Recovery Lounge. This space, conceptualized and crafted to be a luxury wellness experience, prides itself in being an accessible resource to its patrons—many of whom are stopping in from out of town on business, or perhaps to participate in one of the city’s many parades and fêtes. The Recovery Lounge offers a wide range of treatments, including those that can fit neatly into 20 or 30-minute windows and accommodate the busy schedules of traveling professionals and vacationers with packed itineraries.
Connection: A Luxury You Can Afford
While offering more conveniently timed treatments is one way The Roosevelt’s Recovery Lounge shows up for its clients, it’s not the only one. Connection is the crux of wellness, and at The Roosevelt, it’s the foundation of the luxury wellness experience they offer. “It’s being a luxury environment but creating that space where people can connect and be social together,” says Rachael McCrory, director of spa and wellness at Hilton. “Wellness is really the catalyst of that.”
When asked about what distinguishes a luxury wellness space, McCrory says “every moment is hosted.” Clients look to wellness professionals to not only analyze and recommend treatments, but to create a comforting space where one can relax, rejuvenate and even heal. When it comes to wellness while traveling, creating that space often requires a compromise of sorts—a professional must stage a space familiar enough to keep a client at ease while working in harmony with the destination they’re escaping to. It’s hard to divorce a city as vibrant as New Orleans from its lush nightlife and electric party scene. The Roosevelt’s Recovery Lounge stands as an oasis, complementing the Big Easy’s lengthy jazz roots with its audio-therapy treatment. Available in as short (read: convenient) as a 20-minute session, the lounge’s Harmonic Meditation treatment marries vibroacoustic sound therapy with zero-gravity positioning to reduce stress, manage anxiety and improve sleep. This treatment is just as effective as a stand-alone pick-me-up as it is when stacked with other treatments for a more intense wellness regimen.
Creating an à la carte menu that balances when combined, while also complementing the lifestyle of the clients coming through is no easy feat. It requires careful consideration of the locale, an understanding of the market’s demands, knowledge of the state-of-the-art technology and the ability to curate clinically-backed treatments in a flood of new products, devices and tech, some of which remain untested by the time the internet sinks its teeth into them.
Wellness: Part Human, Part Machine
Introducing tech to traditionally unplugged spaces is nothing new in this age. It feels like every day, there are a hundred new ways in which techies are boasting how AI can save time and boost productivity. The implications of integrating automation in skin care and wellness comes with its own string of complicated ethical quandaries and the uneasy question of legitimately improving the industry versus cutting corners. The Roosevelt has mastered this balance, incorporating state-of-the-art technology with a largely autonomous menu offering everything from infrared LED light therapies to shiatsu massages. “Touch will always have a place,” McCrory affirms. “The technology is there to support and amplify the work our staff does.” With a unique blend of newer treatments that sound like science fiction and tried-and-true classics, The Roosevelt’s Recovery Lounge is meant to be a welcome space for all. Clients with less experience can try out high-tech treatments for the first time in smaller windows, while the seasoned wellness advocate can pick a Recovery Package for a deep rejuvenation they can feel confident in. The Recovery Lounge’s emphasis on connection means that friends, spouses and even the traveling bachelorette party can visit this stop on their wellness journey together, feeling good and getting better, together.
After Checking Out
As we all know, all vacations come to an end eventually. So, what is one to do once they check out of The Roosevelt? Luckily, those who are local can join the Spa Club, a monthly program that allows members to benefit from a restorative massage or custom facial, while letting them take advantage of the hotel’s amenities. Additionally, a new layer of the Spa Club Membership allows members access to the Recovery Lounge and Contrast Therapy. As a Waldorf-Astoria hotel, The Roosevelt is part of a global network of hotels with their own spas and wellness centers, so wherever a client gets-away, they have the option of making another stop on their wellness journey.
The qualified staff at The Roosevelt Recovery Lounge is also able to let clients know where they may want to incorporate certain practices once they return home, such as additional stretching for those who suffer from muscle tightness or an abundance of stress. The line of cutting-edge products used in the Recovery Lounge, such as the smart goggles or collagen masks are available for purchase and can be drop-shipped, in case clients need to take a little TLC home with them.
The next time you’re in the Big Easy, don’t forget to check out The Roosevelt’s Recovery Lounge to take it easy—your body will thank you for it.
