Canyon Ranch SpaClub at The Venetian in Las Vegas, Nevada

Canyon Ranch is a highly thought of spa "brand" with their two destination spas usually in the top ranks of any spa preference poll. Canyon Ranch Health Resort (the original - in Tucson, AZ) came in #6 and Canyon Ranch In the Berkshires Health Resort (the second - in Lenox, MA) came in #2 on Condé Nast Traveler's 1999 Readers' Choice Awards. Travel & Leisure magazine's 1999 World's Best Awards, published in the September issue, site Canyon Ranch as the best spa in the United States and overall world's best spa based on accommodations, service, treatments, food and value. Needless to say, we wanted to see what made everyone think so highly of the Canyon Ranch name.

The first thing we had to do was find it. The Venetian is huge. We walked through the casino, saw the shopping mall that looks like Venice complete with the grand canal under what appears to be the open sky, the then-future site of the Canyon Ranch Living Essentials store, and the gondola rides. We eventually found the right elevators to take us to the fourth floor and the 65,000 square foot spa. The spa is found at the end of a long hallway lined with rooms marked "Spa Suite." These rooms are offered by the Venetian in conjunction with Canyon Ranch SpaClub services. Guests of The Venetian have priority access to SpaClub services.

The spa's reception area is large and bright decorated in pale earth tones of tan and beige. It opens to the 40' climbing wall, the salon, the Canyon Ranch Café, and the spa proper. Our appointments were for 2 pm. We arrived in time for lunch at the Canyon Ranch Café which opened at noon. We had a delicious and healthy lunch which included handmade chicken gyoza (165 cal, 2 g fat, 1 g fiber), grilled veggie sandwich (315, 11, 6), fruit smoothie (210, 3, 1), and homemade chocolate chip cookies (145, 5, tr).

We toured the large, supervised fitness facility which had the most inviting weight rooms and gyms I've seen. Complimentary fitness classes run every hour and include: Aerobics, Boxercise, Cardiocircuit, Meditation, Spinning, Yoga, Tai Chi, Chi Gong, and Stretching. We were sorry we didn't come earlier in the day to take better advantage of this great facility. But it was time to go our separate ways - Jeff off to the Men's Spa to change for a workout of weights and cycles and then to try the Canyon Stone Massage (80 minutes - $175) and I headed for the Women's' Spa to try the Ayurvedic Rejuvenation (80 minutes - $175).

I suspect the same designer created all the spas we visited in Las Vegas. The layout of the facilities are very similar and work quite well. The Women's Spa opened to a waiting room and check-in desk. A young woman greeted me and gave me a locker key and a quick tour of the area - vanity room for after your treatment complete with lotions, hair spray, mousse, etc., showers, locker room, wet room with large whirlpool, cold plunge pool (actually luke warm), steam room, and sauna. From this room, you enter the waiting room for spa treatments. I enjoyed a long soak in the whirlpool and time in the steam room, showered, then headed to the waiting room. This large high-ceilinged room, decorated in muted tones, held 16 chairs which were mostly occupied. Therapists came out periodically and called the name of the client. I felt more like I was in a doctor's waiting room than a spa. The chairs were comfortable enough - but didn't allow me to lean back, close my eyes and relax, so I spent most of the waiting time trying to guess who would be called next. Perhaps I just left too much time to wait in that room before my treatment. I also was terribly thirsty and was dying for a drink of water. It was nowhere to be found. There was a table set up in the waiting room that looked like it was supposed to have it, but it had not been restocked.

My turn finally arrived. I was led to a dimly-lit treatment room large enough to lay out the floor mats they use for Thai Massage. I filled out a Ayurvedic constitutional analysis form created by TARA Ayurveda (who also furnishes all of the Ayurvedic supplies) and found out that my dominant dosha is Kapha (Water & Earth). My therapist, Ted, who has treated Deepak Chopra, prepared the appropriate treatment of essential oils and herbs to help balance the doshas. He was quite informative about Ayurveda. The treatment itself consisted of exfoliation with a dry brush and massage using the prepared oils. When the massage was over, I was led to a chair and served a cup of herbal tea. It was all quite pleasant and relaxing. However, I felt a bit rushed drinking the tea. It would have been more efficient to fill out the analysis form in the waiting room to allow more treatment time in the treatment room.

Jeff's experience somewhat mirrored my own. He also commented on the lack of water to drink. I attribute the water issue to an operational glitch due to being just recently opened. Jeff's treatment consisted of a massage with heated smooth, round basalt rocks used with warm therapeutic essential oils. The massage concentrated on the back, neck and feet.

We toured the rest of the facility after our treatments and saw many things we would like to return to try.

• The Rasul chamber looked intriguing. It is an ornately tiled steam room that intermittently steams and showers "rain" from a fiber optic "night" sky. The Rasul Ceremony (50 minutes - $125) involves self-applied mud, steam and rain followed by an application of specially blended oils in a luxurious European enveloping bed. The Rasul Ritual (110 minutes - $225) involves dry brushing the skin, an herbal soak, the Rasul Ceremony, and application of nourishing oils coupled with a relaxing massage.

• The Royal King's Bath looked inviting - a dry brushing followed by a soak in a luxurious blend of frankincense or rose and sandalwood essential oils, accented by fresh flower petals and candlelight, followed by a relaxation massage. (80 minutes - $175)

• There were two Watsu® pools, each in its own separate room. Watsu® (50 minutes - $125) uses the support of the water to take weight off vertebrae and relax the spin in ways not possible on land. Muscle tensions release as the therapist floats and dances your body through calming water. It uses a variation of pressure point therapy.

• There were two private 1,000 square foot Spa Suites designed for couples. Each three-room suite has two treatment tables, two treadmills, a private bathroom, steam shower, soaking tub, lounge area with TV, VCR and stereo, and a fireplace perfect for enjoying room service from the Canyon Ranch Café. The Beautiful Beginnings package (4 hours - $1,075 per couple) includes a classic European deep cleansing and revitalizing facial, a soak in the claw-footed bath for two, application of moisturizing goat butter cream and a cocoon treatment in the German Envelopement System, and an aromatherapy massage. What a way to spend half a day!

Canyon Ranch SpaClub offers more than 120 services and activities and more than 30 health & wellness preventive care services, including nutritional analysis, movement therapy, bone density scan, cardiac stress testing, physical therapy assessment, sports injury treatments, women's health consultations and full physical examinations. More than enough to keep you busy for a short or extended visit. The facility itself is outstanding and the therapists top notch. Even though it was somewhat impersonal, Canyon Ranch SpaClub has the most complete fitness, well-being, and spa treatment offerings of exceptional quality of any spa I have visited. That is why the Canyon Ranch "brand" has its well-deserved reputation.

Photos courtesy of Canyon Ranch