Destination spa Lefay will open a luxury eco spa resort in the Italian Dolomites on 1 August.

Located in the ski area of Madonna di Campiglio, Lefay Resort & Spa Dolomiti features 88 suites and 22 branded residences, as well as a 5,000sq m Lefay spa – one of the largest spas in the Alpine region.

The resort was designed by architect Hugo Demetz, who used traditional materials such as wood and stone so the hotel blends into the surrounding landscape. Interiors are by Italian architecture firm Alberto Apostoli.

Lefay has positioned itself as a sustainable brand, and the new resort is certified by ClimaHotel, supplied by renewable energy sources, and controlled by advanced electrical, heat and water systems.

“We don’t build hotels – we build spa hotels,” said Alcide Leali, MD of Lefay Resorts. “Spa is always at the core of our properties.”

Lefay already owns and operates a spa hotel in Lake Garda, Italy, and has announced plans for a third resort in Tuscany.

Leali said within the next ten years, he hopes to have five properties in total, and is looking at branded locations with partners in Switzerland and Austria to position Lefay as the “European leader in spa resorts”.

The spa at Lefay Dolomiti is 30 per cent bigger than the Lake Garda location – 5,000sq m versus 3,800sq m – resulting in 50sq m of spa per key. “We wanted to enter the market with a property that is not just a leader today, but that will still be a leader in the next 10-20 years,” says Leali. “Our expectation is that the spa will grow.”

The spa has a fitness area offering classes for releasing tension and stretching muscles pre- and post-ski, as well as a wet area that includes a sports swimming pool, indoor/outdoor pool and a zone of nine saunas and steam baths of varying temperatures.

Lefay’s wellness method, which combines classical Chinese medicine with modern Western techniques, will be used across the spa, with signature energy treatments that aim to rebalance and rejuvenate the body and mind.

The Lefay Spa Method Scientific Committee has created five energy circuits for the spa, with different levels of temperature and humidity and dedicated phytotherapy (herbal teas) designed to help guests understand the type of energy they need to find balance again. The area is based on the classical Chinese concept that energy (Qi) cyclically moves through five phases, depending on the season or time of day.

Impulsive and nervous people are recommended the green dragon path with dandelion and bitter herbal tea and medium temperature sauna. The red phoenix path is suggested for anxious people with its hot dry zone and cold bath and lavender and passionflower teas. Guests experiencing tiredness, weakness and melancholy should try the steam bath in the white tiger area whilst people under stress should try the black tortoise path. The centre is the place of connection and is in the middle of the spa with bright light and views of the mountains.

Each path has a recommended sequence of treatments. Within the path of the black tortoise, Lefay has created an area dedicated to purification, meditation and rest. Guests can relax and detoxify in the Alpine salt-water lake and breath the benefits of the salt grotto and regenerate using mud therapy. Mud from the Val di Genova is enriched with malachite for its antioxidant action, magnesium for its energising, anti-ageing effect and rhodolite that stimulates the natural immune defences.

Lefay has also introduced a range of vegan-certified natural products that use ingredients from the local area, such as horse chestnut, oils enriched with mountain pine and juniper, mineral alpine salt and traditional butter from the Alps.

In addition, the spa offers some non-invasive skin treatments, physiotherapy and osteopathy. There are two couples spas inspired by the natural elements of the mountain with a range of couples’ rituals.

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