Everything about the Omni Scottsdale Resort & Spa, and its exhilarating Joya Spa, makes you feel like you are in Spain: Spanish tiles, orange trees, even paella on the menu. It’s no surprise then that the inspiration came from Granada, Spain. 

It seems the original owner felt a kinship between the environments in Scottsdale and Granada. The 31,000-square-foot Spanish/Moroccan-inspired Joya Spa, created and implemented by Sylvia Sepielli, in collaboration with Scottsdale architect Mark Philp of Allen + Philp Architects, is a true gem, and, like anything rare and of great value,  it is a joy to experience and behold. The Omni is a welcoming place, where you can loll around the pool all day and achieve a deep sense of relaxation. 

Guests begin at the Joy of Intention room where they choose from five healing stones to set the intention for the day. The Room of Purification is next, with a stunning 55-pound quartz crystal that radiates colored light, and a constellation that replicates stars from Granada, Spain, overhead. Place your hands on the crystal, take a deep breath in, then exhale stress and negative energy. The stops and starts are intended to slow you down, so that you begin to enjoy a contemplative and relaxed state. 

Joya Spa features a stunning hammam, and an invigorating hot and cold hydrotherapy course. Make sure to include the hammam in your journey, no matter which spa treatment you select. Hamman, of course, is indigenous to Morocco and Turkey, but it is also extremely popular in Spain, due to the Moorish influence there, ages ago. 

The entire experience is intended to transport you to another time and place–and it does!