Hot and cold therapy: a shock spa trend to surprise your customers!

Discover which spa innovations can recreate hot and cold therapy benefits in any specialized centers and hotels.

After a sauna there’s nothing like diving into a fjord to stimulate the senses! However, not all spa establishments have a stretch of icy water within reach. This is why several spa innovations have been invented, allowing specialized centers and hotels to add contrast therapy (a.k.a hot and cold therapy) to their wellness services. Even in the Tropics!

Contrast therapy – a wellness technique with a host of benefits

This spa trend combines thermotherapy – to eliminate toxins and to relax – with the invigorating and reinvigorating action of cryotherapy to create a minor thermal shock. A centuries old habit in Scandinavian countries, and more recently in hydrotherapy with the “Scottish cold shower,” hot and cold therapy is now available to all establishments thanks to the latest spa sector innovations.

Its many health benefits are interesting for everyone in good physical shape. Heat and cold stimulate blood circulation and respiratory tracts, boosting the oxygen content of the lungs. The body relaxes deeply to combat stress more effectively.

Ideal for athletes, contrast therapy helps to calm muscle pains after exercising. It should not be used by pregnant women and frail people.

Hot and cold therapy: the spa innovations to get

For thermotherapy

If saunas are the most popular for a warm up, Jacuzzis, heated pools and Turkish baths do the job as well. As most specialized establishments already have such facilities, adding the cold set-up cost is affordable.

No room? No problem! Choosing the right sauna for your small space

For cryotherapy

No need to wait for winter to roll in the snow: the ice cabin Alpha Industries presented at Piscine Global Europe 2018 is the ideal spa innovation for all year round wellness! Its artificial winter climate is reinforced by an ice fountain – the chips from which you use to rub your body – and usually fitted with relaxing lighting. After all, why go without the benefits of chromotherapy? And then there are snow showers, less of a thermal shock, but quite as refreshing.

To maximize user wellbeing, you can also add a good sound system and count on aromachology!

The technical management of hot and cold therapy

Snow cabins are big and often include an anteroom to accustom the body gradually, so you need quite some space. Spas wanting to invest in this equipment will also need a technical room and good space ventilation to prevent mold.

Small structures should go for snow showers, which can be fitted more easily into dropped ceilings.

All the spa equipment listed above can be used without supervision. But it is important to make sure that they are cleaned after each session – for example, ice caves need some time to dry out!

Your customers will be astonished by this new spa trend – and are sure to come back! But never forget that even if spa equipment is a very good way to attract new customers, what brings a spa alive is the organization of events.

Check out this article for some spa animations ideas!