The recent opening of the prestigious La Manga Spa Club heralds a new era in health and fitness for the Murcia region. Brian Fitzgibbon reports.

The word Spa comes from the Latin Salus Per Aquam and this literally translates as health through water. Spas have been popular throughout the ages, not just  because of their rejuvenating powers but also due to their ability to soothe away the stresses and strains of everyday life.
Situated on a hillside and offering spectacular views over the surrounding golf courses and nearby Mar Menor – Europe’s largest salt water lagoon – the La Manga Spa Club boasts such facilities as a spacious fitness centre, a magnificent indoor swimming pool, saunas, jacuzzis, fun showers and a relaxation area. It also offers a wide range of revitalising and relaxing treatments.
World-renowned spa expert Kerstin Florian, speaking at the official launch of the La Manga centre, identified healthy nutrition, regular exercise, psychological well-being and proper skin care as the four basics for a healthy lifestyle. Ms Florian has designed a wide range of health products used in  spas throughout the world but in Spain, they are exclusive to the La Manga Spa Club. Marine elements feature strongly in her products – even protein rich caviar, which is reputed to have anti-aging properties.
The La Manga Spa Club is laid out over two floors and as Donna Stephenson, Director of the centre explained, the concept was to create an environment that allows the senses to be indulged. Atmosphere is everything and great attention is devoted to creating just the right ambiance in the different areas. This extends to lighting levels, temperature and even music.
Treatments include:
Herbal, mineral and seaweed baths
Exfoliating body scrubs
Massage therapy & reflexology
Facials programmes
Deluxe manicures and pedicures
One of the more unusual treatments involves placing hot stones on the skin. Based on ancient Scandinavian tradition, the Samezen ritual promises to ‘melt away tension and fatigue, leaving both body and mind balanced and revived’.
The Spa is a major development and, together with the superb banqueting, accommodation and restaurant facilities in the Las Lomas Village complex, the cost totalled some 30 million euros.
La Manga Club Managing Director, Tony Coles, explained that the intention is to market the spa facility in its own right and so appeal to the health tourism sector. It will also be promoted in conjunction with the resort’s other facilities of golf, tennis, cricket and professional football. He particularly mentioned the six-lane, 25 metre indoor swimming pool which was incorporated in the Spa complex and commented that it now makes the La Manga Club “the complete resort”.

For further information on the Spa Club, its facilities and membership, telephone 96 833 12 34, e-mail spa@lamangaclub.com or visit the website spa.lamangaclub.com