Spa Montage, at 35,000-square-feet, is Utah’s largest spa. It takes its inspiration from the centuries-old hydrotherapy practices in spa towns like Baden-Baden, but the two-year-old spa also provides the quiet luxury that the Montage name is known for.
Hydrotherapy improves blood and lymphatic circulation, and there’s no better time for it than first thing in the morning. Guests arrive at the cozy spa sanctuary straight from their rooms, wearing a swimsuit topped by a plush robe.
The ritual begins by warming up in the steam room, sauna, or jet tub, for 10 to 15 minutes. Then, you quickly cool down in a timed cold deluge shower, for just a minute or so, making sure lymphatic areas such as the underarms, wrists and back of neck get a thorough blast. It’s not unpleasant, because you quickly wrap yourself in warm towels and rest on a chaise longue for 10 minutes, sipping lemon water or hot herbal tea.
You repeat this cycle two more times, perhaps changing up how you heat your body, maybe switching from the sauna the first time, to the jet tub, and the steam room the third, but always ending with the brief chilly shower. When your body is heated, blood moves toward the surface of the skin. When cold, it is drawn inward, to keep the organs warm. Cycling back and forth three times dramatically energizes your body. The experts at Spa Montage explained how the hot-cool water ritual helps release toxins and stimulates the lymphatic system. It also gets your heart rate going, with effects similar to a cardio session. And you can replicate it at home, merely by switching your shower from hot to cold and repeating two or three times. There’s no better way to get your energy up for a demanding day. The morning therapy at Spa Montage is only the beginning of the water indulgences. An indoor mosaic-tiled lap pool beckons swimmers. You’ll never have a more heavenly swim than here, where massive glass windows offer breath-taking views of the Wasatch Mountains as you glide by. The 30 treatment rooms include several with Vichy showers, and deep hydrotherapy tubs. Those soaking tubs- -also angled toward exterior views–are prepared with a custom-blend of salts, herbs and essential oils. A hint of eucalyptus opens breathing passages, all the better with which to sigh deeply, after a mountain hike, or a day on the slopes. spamontage.com