Interview: Atlantis, The Palm's...

From meditation in the Lost Chambers to sound healing at the kids’ club, Catherine Marie Lazarou makes guests’ holidays more memorable

Catherine Marie Lazarou is the Wellness Director of Awaken, the wellness facilities Atlantis, The Palm, The Palm feel well and truly pampered. With high-net-worth travellers checking in, standards have to match the best spas in the world, as this is their point of reference, says Lazarou.

Together with her team, she oversees multiple outlets and services under the hotel group’s Awaken spa brand, including the resort’s gyms and in-room fitness facilities, and she is constantly evolving the wellness offering.

Previously a personal trainer, and then a therapist, Lazarou has worked in several destinations, from Australia to Singapore, developing her skills and honing her insights into what different markets want and the burgeoning wellness industry.

Connecting Travel met with the Wellness Director to find out how she’s created a brand that drives footfall and bookings from both local residents and returning overseas guests.

Connecting Travel: How influential is a spa when travellers are choosing a hotel?
Catherine Marie Lazarou: Some guests will call ahead to ensure there’s availability at the spa before confirming their hotel booking at Atlantis hotels, so we know it’s critical for some visitors. We’ve invested considerable time in ensuring our spa elevates the guest experience. The Awaken spa and fitness brand has been developed exclusively for Atlantis, The Palm and Atlantis The Royal, and it extends beyond the spa and the gym. For example, if a guest prefers to work out in their room, we’ll arrange to have portable exercise equipment sent to their rooms.

Atlantis, The Palm – a Dubai landmark

CT: What does Awaken Spa have that other spas don’t?
CML: We create unique wellness packages for guests that you could only experience at an Atlantis Dubai hotel. For example, we have created a day programme open to both hotel and non-hotel guests that starts with yoga or sound healing in our atmospheric aquarium, The Lost Chambers, which has amazing acoustics. Afterwards, guests visit the spa to use the steam room and sauna facilities and have a personalised massage and a hydrating facial, followed by lunch at The Edge or The Shore, our outdoor restaurants with pool access. It’s exceptionally good value, at AED1,320, and, as it’s open to hotel guests and local residents, we find people who are holidaying here invite their Dubai-based friends to book in with them for the day programme. It’s a lovely way to catch up.

Yoga at The Lost Chambers

CT: What are you most excited for clients to experience?
CML: Wellness is a pillar of the Atlantis Dubai brand, with wellness touch points across the hotels, from the Awaken suncare range that we provide by the pool to the magical “underwater” yoga and meditation sessions hosted in Atlantis, The Palm’s Lost Chambers. We even offer sound healing sessions for the little ones at the kids’ club.

Kids absolutely love sound healing; they are so calmed by it

CT: What’s your best-selling treatment?
CML: That would be the signature Awaken Massage, which begins with a crystal consultation. We ask guests to set an intention and pick a crystal. Crystals are thought to generate energy and in theory, you’re drawn to the crystal, or energy, that you need at that specific time.

Reiki is also a popular treatment, and all our Reiki therapists are trained to level I and II. Cryotherapy is also increasingly popular. Many of our guests have made ice baths a regular part of their wellbeing at home, so having the option to step into a cryotherapy chamber for three minutes to maintain their cold therapy routine is very much appreciated.

CT: And what are Awaken’s best-selling products?
We have our own product range, called Awaken, and many guests buy items from the range as souvenirs from their stay. It includes suncare, face and body mists, hammam soap, and body oils, creams and scrubs. All products are all made locally in Sharjah in the UAE and they feature local ingredients, such dates and sand used in the body scrub.

We also stock a range of international brands including Augustin Bader and Dr Bergener skin couture

We select suppliers by bringing them to the table to see what they have to offer. Products have to be B-Corp certified, clean, green, vegan and sustainable. The whole team is involved in testing products and we consider what each one can potentially add to our existing selection.

Awaken steam room

CT: What’s next for Awaken Spa?
CML: Our aim is to instigate true transformational change for guests and when you see a guest make real meaningful change to their wellbeing, that’s the most rewarding aspect of the job. With this goal, we’re always improving the offering, and I’m excited for guests to experience the new smoothie menu that we’re launching at the Awaken gym, and the new cold plunge pools we’ll be adding as the trend for cold therapies continues to boom.

For more information, visit www.atlantis.com/atlantis-the-palm. For trade enquiries, email sales@atlantisdubai.com, or visit www.onlinetraveltraining.com/free-courses/providers/atlantisthepalm