IN PURSUIT OF RELIEF

By any measure, the level of stress in contemporary life has never been higher. The primary culprit? Technology. The proliferation of cell phones, PDAs, and the ever-increasing volume of email has accelerated the pace of life and made "24/7/365" a burdensome reality. It has increased the length of the average work day by about one hour. And driven more people to seek relief, both at home and while on vacation.

It is not surprising, therefore, that spa-going has become an increasingly popular recreational activity for Americans on vacation. For a growing number, it now represents the primary purpose of a vacation. This is particularly true for affluent leisure travelers (those with an annual household income over $150,000, or the top 7% of all households defined by annual income).

As revealed in our 2006 Portrait Of Affluent Travelers™, almost half of all affluent leisure travelers visited a spa at a luxury hotel or resort at least once during the previous year. This appears to be a direct result of the growing level of stress in contemporary life (three quarters of adults now state they are actively seeking ways to reduce stress in their lives), and corresponding desire to be pampered...if only for an hour or two. The underlying motivation for a particularly devout group of spa-goers derives from a deeper personal commitment to alter and/or enhance one's life through the transformation of body, mind and spirit. These are adults who have visited a "destination spa" during the previous year (12% of all affluent leisure travelers).

There are only a few multi-unit hotel and resort spa brands in the country, but unaided awareness of the most popular is quite high among affluent travelers. Canyon Ranch tops the list, followed by Four Seasons and The Palms in Palm Springs as revealed below:

	Affluent Leisure Travelers
Unaided Awareness Of:	%
Canyon Ranch	14
Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts	6
The Palms	6
Ritz-Carlton	5
The Phoenician	5
The Greenbrier	3
Golden Door	3
Hyatt Regency	3
La Costa Resort & Spa	2
The Oaks at Ojai	2

And contrary to what you might conclude from the endless stream of articles in the press about increasingly-exotic spa treatments, the most popular spa treatment is an old favorite: massage. Pedicures and facials follow. Evidently, there's too much stress associated with the evaluation of less well known options as revealed below.

	Affluent Leisure Travelers
Extremely/Very Interested In:*	%
Massage	65
Pedicure	45
Facial	45
Manicure	40
Hiking/outdoor adventure	38
Exercise/fitness classes	37
Yoga and mind/body/spirit programs	29
Body scrub	29
Health/wellness classes	27
Spa cuisine	25

For more insights from the 2006 Portrait Of Affluent Travelers™
please click here.