| The Spa at the Sonesta Beach Resort Key Biscayne | |
Key Biscayne
Key Biscayne is only a short drive across the Rickenbacker Causeway from Miami, but it's light years away from the city in attitude. Miami is an exciting, vibrant city. The energy positively pulses from it. But just on the other side of Virginia Key, Key Biscayne lets you crank it down a few notches.
It's a place you can relax, enjoy the beach, ride a bike, go to the park, play golf or tennis, see the Cape Florida lighthouse, Stiltsville or where the Nixon compound was. But that's about it. The only crime is speeding and illegal parking. It's just another world.
The Resort
The Sonesta Beach Resort, with a $16 million makeover in 2001, is snugly located amid this calmness. The resort allows you to strike that delicate balance between relaxing by doing nothing and having fun by keeping busy. It's up to you to choose which end of the see-saw to sit on. On the busy side, you can find lots to do in the area. It's minutes from the Miami Seaquarium, Vizcaya Museum and Gardens and the Miami Museum of Science and a short drive to the Everglades, South Beach, Coconut Grove and Miami shopping. On the resort property you'll find tennis, swimming, water sports, age-appropriate children's program, bicycles and mopeds, a fitness center, and eight restaurants and bars. On the not-so-busy side, the resort offers relaxing on the beach or by the pool and relaxing in the Spa. I did most of the above but favored my time at the beach on a lounge chair reading Jean Auel's new book, "The Shelters of Stone" and my time in the Spa.
The Spa at Sonesta
The Sonesta's tiny, two-room spa was transformed by Patrick Kennedy of Miami in mid-2001 to a brand new, 10,000 square foot Spa. It now includes a fitness facility, full-service salon (hair services, nail care, make-up and waxing), spa retail center, private men's and women's locker rooms with sauna and steam rooms, and eight treatment rooms (3 facial, 2 wet, 3 massage). The colors are crisp white, aqua and yellow - fitting for the tropical location. The spa treatment menu offers both classic European and cutting edge spa treatments a la carte or combined in packages:
Massage: Swedish, deep tissue, aromatherapy, reflexology, couples, and neck, back and shoulder.
Facials: deep cleansing, aromatherapy, gentlemen's, refresher, vitamin C, and four-layer.
Body treatments: chamomile body scrub, Turkish body scrub, moor mud wrap, and natural spirulina wrap.
Hydrotherapy: therapeutic thermal mineral bath, aromatherapy mineral bath, deluxe Vichy Shower, and Krauter Bath, a potent aromatic bath with rich botanicals from Germany (fichtennadel or pine to invigorate, heublumen or wildflower for aching muscles and joints, melisse or melissa for rest and relaxation, and kamille or camomile to calm and soothe the body).
Kurs are offered that combine treatments and are based on the use of natural resources such as thermal mineral water, algae, mud, essential oils, and herbs. The Thermal Mineral Kur (detoxifying and relaxing) combines a moor mud body wrap with a hydromassage in mineral water from Hungary and a massage with thermal minerals and essential oils. The Thallaso Kur (rejuvenating) includes a natural spirulina wrap, thalassobath and essential oil wrap. The Aromatherapy Kur (soothes dry skin, relieves muscle tension) combines Turkish body scrub, aromatherapy mineral bath and aromatherapy massage. The Krauter Kur includes a chamomile body scrub, Krauter bath, and full body massage.
Spa Director Nancy Soccorso worked with Kerstin Florian to develop the Sonesta Spa's Signature Treatment, the Amarillo Infusion. (Amarillo=Yellow) "Yellow stands for spirituality, intelligence and inner strength. It is the energy that is released by the Florida sun and, as the color of the third chakra, it is the symbol of self-esteem, self-confidence and inner balance." This was the first treatment I tried at the spa. My therapist, Carmen, led me from the co-ed lounge to a hydrotherapy room. She instructed me to disrobe and get under the towel on the far table while she left the room. When she returned, she gave a quick, gentle massage with Sonesta yellow massage oil. Then she exfoliated my entire body using sea salt and jojoba oil. I get a little hazy about exactly when and where the other ingredients were used but they included sunflower oil and the herbs lemon verbena and marigold. A rinse under the Vichy Shower followed. I was then instructed to get up while Carmen removed the table top, revealing a hydrotherapy bathtub with yellow rose petals floating on the surface. While beautiful, the petals prevented the hydro mechanism from being run. I got in and soaked in the tub for about 20 minutes. After the soak, I was instructed to get out, dry off and get onto the other table. There, Carmen massaged a moisturizer on my skin, loosely wrapped me in a sheet, and massaged my feet, hands and scalp for about 15 minutes. Overall, the treatment was very warm - almost too much heat for me - and there was a lot of repositioning involved which detracted from the relaxing aspects of it. According to Carmen, who was very knowledgeable about aromatherapy, the treatment is good for digestion, relaxes muscles and joints, and balances energy. When the treatment was over, Carmen led me out to the lounge and prepared a cup of lemon-ginger Yogi tea for me (which happens to be my favorite!). I lingered over the tea and enjoyed just relaxing in the lounge.
The following day, I had a Swedish massage with Luz. It was a traditional full-body massage which is designed to relieve tension, improve circulation and induce relaxation through rhythmic flowing compression to the muscles. It was very relaxing and I'm pretty sure I drifted off to sleep a few times. Carmen then returned to give me a Vitamin C Facial which used ampoules of pure vitamin C. This facial is designed to improve the quality and appearance of the skin, strengthen elasticity and help prevent premature aging of the skin caused by UV exposure. My skin felt great afterwards. Carmen also reminded me that preventing sun damage with sunscreen and a visor is very important - especially on the beach.
Future Spa Plans
According to Spa Director Nancy Soccorso, the spa has some interesting plans for new treatments including:
La Stone
Therapy
Ayurvedic Treatments
Manual Microdermabrasion Treatments
New Tiki Huts for Beachside Massage
Aqua Massage in the Ocean or Pool (this sounds particularly interesting to me
since it is not Watsu or any other water therapy I have experienced or heard of)
Spa Cuisine
The spa allows guests to order a heart-healthy, low-fat spa lunch and dine in the co-ed spa lounge area. Available as an Appetizer and Entree or Entree and Dessert (both with mineral water or herbal tea), here are selections from the spa menu at the time of my visit:
Health Appetizers
Grouper Ceviche, Fresh Hearts of Palm, Oranges and Yuca Chips
(229 calories, 2 grams of fat)
Jumbo Shrimp Cocktail, Horseradish Cocktail Sauce
(258 calories, 3 grams of fat)
Fresh Garden Salad, Baby Organic Lettuce, Cucumber and Vine-Ripe Plum Tomatoes
(108 calories, 3 grams of fat)
Spa Entrees
Chicken Breast Salad, Wrapped in Soft Lavash with Tomatoes, Lettuce and Fresh Sprouts
(452 calories, 8 grams of fat)
Albacore Tuna Salad, Wrapped in Soft Lavash with Tomatoes, Lettuce and Fresh Tomatoes
(423 calories, 8 grams of fat)
Home Smoked Chilean Salmon, Sliced Roma Tomatoes, Red Onion and Cucumber, One Half Bagel
(361 calories, 6 grams of fat)
Angel Hair pasta, Tossed with Vine-Ripe Tomatoes, Garlic, Basil and First Pressed Olive Oil
(398 calories, 4 grams of fat)
Grilled Yellow Fin Tuna, Mango, Ginger, Cilantro Salsa and Crispy Fried Green Plantains
(374 calories, 9 grams of fat)
Grilled Ground Turkey Patty, Red and Yellow Tomato, Cucumber and Pearled Couscous Salad with a Spa Honey Mustard Dressing
(371 calories, 10 grams of fat)
Grilled Chicken, Artichoke and Wild Mushroom Pizza, Part Skim Mozzarella Cheese on a Whole Wheat Crust
(460 calories, 9 grams of fat)
Desserts
Tropical Sliced Fresh Fruit Plate, Served with Yogurt and Banana Bread
(263 calories, 3 grams of fat)
Mango Sorbet
(144 calories, 0 grams of fat)
Raspberry Sorbet
(132 calories, 0 grams of fat)
Strawberry Sorbet
(128 calories, 0 grams of fat)
Photos copyright 2002, Julie
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