Imagine soaking in a tub with warm aromatic oils gently poured over your shoulder and scents of exquisite tropical flowers filling the air, now take the image and place yourself overlooking the Andaman Sea with a cool breeze brushing against your skin.
The description could sound ethereal, but this was exactly what we felt at The Ritz Carlton Langkawi spa, housed in these gigantic ‘bubu’ or fish traps, walking into the therapy room already sets the tone for relaxation and calm.
The Ritz Carlton Langkawi offers six overwater spa pavilions with luxurious amenities and fine treatment essentials. Guests have a selection of therapy to choose from depending on if they are visiting solo or with a partner, among the treatment includes the Mandi Bunga Inspired Ritual, Mystical Ocean and Earth Ritual, and the Lulur Hamam Experience.
The Mandi Bunga Inspired Ritual, for example, takes its cue from the bathing rituals of Malay royal houses. But instead of dispelling bad energy, this treatment eradicates stress and tension with a combination of massage and fragrant oils, herbs, and flowers.
Additional services at this resort spa include therapeutic rituals for the face and body, as well as a selection of treatments developed especially for gentlemen. Of its six treatment rooms, three can accommodate couples. The spa also offers a spacious deck and the island’s only hammam.
The resort’s collection of spa rituals inspired by the indigenous healing and beauty ceremonies, practiced for thousands of years by local shamans and midwives aims to restore the equilibrium within your body, mind, and soul so that you reach a state of complete harmony.
Holidaying in the jungle-surrounded resort had already transformed our minds and body, allowing us to remove the hard outer shell that we had on fighting the battles at work. The spa element just added another layer of comfort to our soothing soul. Having been presented with the Mandi Bunga option for our treatment, our thoughts just drifted as if we were floating over the waters after we were explained what the 90-minute session will encompass.
According to the therapist, the purifying and restorative full-body experience takes inspiration from the Mandi Bunga bathing which originated from Malay royal houses, performed to dispel bad energy. She adds the session harnesses the benefits of traditional herbs rich in essential oils and therapeutic flowers to bring about a sense of calm and relaxation. During the process, warm aromatic oils are gently poured over the body and combined with a rhythmical massage which incorporates long warming strokes to soothe tense, aching muscles, rebalance body and mind, and bring about an overall sense of well-being.
After 90 minutes, the following session was the soaking therapy, where we are to dip into a bathtub filled with aromatic flower petals and more essential oil to heal the skin and bring the body together.
Overall, we enjoyed the 90-minute session though we wished it was longer, with a lighter feeling and spring in our feet, it was off to explore more of what the resort had to offer.
Other Spa therapies available
Mystical Earth and Ocean Ritual
Discover Langkawi’s most mystical Island in this mineralizing body experience.
Joining in synergy the rich natural treasures of the rainforest and ocean to nurture and nourish the body and mind. Aching muscles are soothed while, giving nourishment and regeneration to tired dull lifeless skin, with this relaxing hot stone massage and marine mud wrap experience. Blending century-old techniques with indigenous essential oils and heated stones to release tension and induce a deep state of relaxation.
Includes: Full body exfoliation, marine body wrap, scalp massage, full body massage.
Duration: 120 minutes
Lulur Hamam Experience
Lulur is a Javanese word for “coating of the skin”.
A centuries-old treatment was performed in the palaces of Central Java. A practice that is honored in this body-smoothing treatment. Completed in a gentle steam environment, this traditional ritual deeply cleanses and regenerates skin, while the full body foam massage and nourishing marine mud maintain healthy skin and well-being. This ancient therapy finishes with a refreshing and deeply relaxing scalp treatment designed to melt your stresses away.
Duration: 120 minutes
