The tranquility lounge

Having become something of a Spa Queen in recent months by virtue of editing daisygreenmagazine.co.uk, I am now seeing what it is that sets one spa apart from another.

Without doubt it is the little touches that count. I arrived at the Six Senses Spa at Pan Peninsula after a gruelling three hour train journey from Newcastle. The ladies that greeted me were faced with a puffing, sweaty heap who was half an hour late for her appointment.

But their aura of calm was unshakeable. By the time I’d returned from a hasty trip to the loo, they had rustled me up a cup of refreshing ice cold water, a heated flannel to warm me from the cold and rescheduled my treatment. Minutes later, I was cosseted in a warm, divinely scented room ambiently lit with soothing mood music easing away my stress.

Because of my lateness, the treatment was edited from 50 minutes to 20 (my fault, not their’s – I had an appointment to go to). But in those few minutes I was transported to dreamsville by the hands of my masseur. I emerged from the massage completely unphased by the idea of rushing to my next meeting, refreshed and elated. I was even persuaded to relax for a couple of minutes in the tranquility lounge with ginger tea, dried fruit and a honey dip – another perfect ‘little touch’.

So what is the Sixth Sense in the name of the spa and how do they earn their eco stripes? Well, we all know about the five senses – in short, they form the foundation of human experience. The sixth sense forms the apex of the triangle begun by the other five (if you see the logo, you’ll know what I mean). This sixth one ’symbolises a sense of elation discovered only by balancing the first five’.

The spa group, with centres across the world,  goes by the mantra of SLOW: sustainable, local, organic and wholesome.

A quick chat with the girls at Pan Peninsula showed it was a philosophy that genuinely runs through the whole organisation. The products that are used for the treatments at Pan Peninsula are largely UK made and free of parabens, SLS and petrochemicals – brands like Aromatherapy Associates, Ila and Voya (well that’s from Ireland but not a million miles away). This particular spa was limited in the sustainability stakes by lack of space – an occupational hazard of being in the capital, but other spas in the chain are able to go a long way towards self sufficiency, growing their own food on site for example. And a Six Senses spa in Asia is likely to use products manufactured in Asia for their treatments – a simple step but one that doesn’t often happen in a chain set up.

Well, much as I would like to embrace the SLOW living philosophy, in the more literal sense of the word, a glance at my diary shows my future holds a lot of rushing about. But, if I can stop from time to time, and let the ladies at the Six Senses do their work and make me stop for a moment, I at least have a chance of staying ‘balanced’.

I went to the Six Senses Spa at Pan Peninsula (Canary Wharf), 2 Pan Peninsula Square, London E14 9HA. For details call 0207 531 2320 or visit www.sixsenses.com.

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