The concept behind SIRO – an acronym for strength, inclusivity, recovery and originality – is to empower guests to unlock their peak mental and physical potential. Philippe Zuber, CEO of SIRO’s parent company Kerzner, says: “Prioritising fitness, recovery and self-care has become a way of life for many and has evolved into a pillar facet of modern life. SIRO is our direct response to this new normal.”

Speaking at a London convention Zoe Wall, VP of SIRO and global wellness director at Kerzner, said the company envisions opening at least 100 properties, indicating that its first hotel in One Za’abeel is already trading well.

Since its world debut in February, SIRO has confirmed a Q4 opening for its second hotel in Montenegro and has revealed further plans for two more developments in Los Cabos, Mexico (opening 2027) and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (opening 2028). Japan has been touted as another future destination.

Zuber concludes: “SIRO was designed to be a rapid-growth challenger brand that enables Kerzner to expand our global footprint in the world’s most vibrant cities.”

Read Spa Business’ interview with Kerzner’s Zoe Wall at www.spabusiness.com/zoewall

photo: SIRO One Za’abeel

The proposition is to offer life-changing experiences in state-of-the-art destinations.

We don’t even refer to a gym, we have a Fitness Lab. It’s like a club, rather than a hotel gym, with a reception area and staff on hand for nutritional consultations or body analysis, plus a refuel bar offering a selection of smoothies, protein bars and freshly made snacks.

You arrive by lift on the 30th floor and there’s a traditional check-in desk, or guests can check in online and fill out questionnaires beforehand if they want.

It covers nearly 1,000sq m and is split into zones focused on cardio, strength and functional training with equipment by Technogym. In our Experience Box, classes take place hourly. There are also group cycling, pilates and yoga studios.

The idea is to create a culture – a wellbeing community – and central to this is The Collective. This is a designated area for workshops, we’re aiming for three a week, covering everything from sleep and nutrition to gut health and mindfulness.

Of course, we have a membership programme in place too (see p106) and the response has been very positive.

Recovery is an essential part of exercise – whether you just want to keep up your training or you’re an athlete looking to improve performance. So our spa has traditional elements such as hands-on treatments alongside cutting-edge technology but everything complements the fitness element.

We offer myofascial cupping, for example, to stimulate blood flow and relieve muscle tension or a full-body treatment by Proverb which combines massage and assisted stretching. More technology-based treatments include compression boots or percussive therapy by Theragun.

We have 10 treatment rooms and four of these are dedicated to specific experiences including cryotherapy by Art of Cryo plus Gharieni’s infrared MLX i3Dome and its vibroacoustic Welnamis bed. And in our beautiful hydrothermal area, we offer a combination of hot and cold experiences for contrast therapy, which is perfect for recovery.

Our Zen Room is personally one of my favourite areas as you can really switch off. You can read and journal, or even fall asleep.

Given that four of our treatment rooms are more technology-focused, you’d think it’s not so labour-intensive. However, it’s still very similar to a traditional spa manning structure and we may even have more additional staff than normal. We have various assistants escorting people through every part of the journey. Cold treatments and contrast therapy are particularly popular, but many people are experiencing these for the first time so we have people coaching them through it. Several guests are even frightened of cryotherapy so it’s essential they’re offered guidance and once they’ve done it, they feel invigorated.

SIRO aims to make fitness and recovery a part of your lifestyle. Yes, we have an amazing gym and spa, but depending on your schedule or preference you might not use them. So you have the freedom to experience it in your room. We offer an extensive workout kit in our fitness suites and access to virtual exercise classes.

Sleep is a huge part of recovery and our thermoregulated mattresses in all rooms really stand out. They adjust to body heat to ensure you have a much deeper level of sleep. Many guests say it feels like they’re sleeping on a cloud.

Being so close to the financial centre we expect to attract a high number of business travellers, but being a resort we also believe it’s perfect for leisure guests. Our members are not only Dubai residents, they come from further afield and there’s a wide range of nationalities. We’re thrilled that this all ties in with our pursuit of inclusivity.

photo: SIRO One Za’abeel

Just because you travel, it doesn’t mean you have to deviate from your health goals. You shouldn’t have to compromise. Nutrition is one of the pillars of SIRO and one of my responsibilities was to create a menu which gives people options. But at the same time, we have a shared service system with One&Only and wanted to avoid putting extra stress on the operational team.

So, we’ve developed a modular concept that’s embedded in the menu. People can choose their set dish, but, also select ingredients to build their own bowl – we offer a variety of proteins, vegetables, dressings, nuts and things that provide extra goodness such as matcha powder. It’s flexible but not too complicated as the team has those ingredients to hand.

Or, if you have a consultation ahead of your stay, I can customise a meal plan based on requirements, preferences and, of course, keeping in mind imbalances and intolerances. Give me 24 hours notice and I’ll devise a daily menu of breakfast, lunch and dinner with snacks according to your desired calorie intake or any other specialised needs.

But you don’t have to have a full consultation either. My office is right next to the Refuel Bar and I’m always available for guests to approach – whether that’s for general nutritional advice or for me to guide them through the F&B experience.

We don’t have a dedicated restaurant, so the food we’re supplying is something you can come in and grab.

We have a vending machine which is more like an ‘intelligent fridge’ – it’s a beautiful dispenser which shows pictures of the food. There are freshly made power bites without any gunk or preservatives, dried fruits and nuts.

We also have a range of signature shakes and smoothies created in tandem with One&Only’s mixology and beverage team and a UK-based protein supplement brand called Innermost. They’re categorised by desired outcomes such as strength, weight loss, performance and general good health. We have classic shakes, but others have added vegetables or feature Middle Eastern ingredients such as tahini and orange blossom water.

We’ve basically turned around the minibar concept. You would expect to see things like sodas, potato chips and Skittles, but none of those are good for you. Instead, we offer snack bars with peanut butter and dark chocolate, cucumber mint sparkling water and coconut sugar for hot drinks, which is very rare.

We’ve really invested time in finding the right products. It’s very niche and you don’t realise what goes into a space like this, but it’s a huge component of the SIRO guest experience that’s critical to get right. And so far there’s been a lot of curiosity and appreciation for what we’re trying to do.

The two towers are 68 and 59 storeys high / photo: SIRO One Za’abeel

Developed by Ithra Dubai, a subsidiary of the Investment Corporation of Dubai, One Za’abeel is a mixed-use complex at the threshold of the Dubai International Finance Centre. It consists of two towers joined together by The Link – which reaches 230m in length and is one of the world’s longest cantilevered structures. Between the two towers (reaching 68 and 59 storeys), the development includes:

• 264 residential apartments

• 94 One&Only private homes

• SIRO’s 885sq m Fitness Lab (gym)

• 1 Clinique La Prairie Longevity Hub (part of the One&Only hotel)

• 26,000sq m of office space

• 229 One&Only guestrooms

• 132 SIRO guestrooms

• 11 restaurants

• SIRO’s 840sq m Recovery Lab (spa)

• A series of retail outlets at ground-level

For more details about the wellness facilities of SIRO One Za’abeel visit www.spabusiness.com/sirozaabeel

To listen to the original interviews with Julie Amos and Heeral Shivnani, visit https://wynnebusiness.com/starrcast-podcast/

Lisa Starr

It’s always exciting to visit something that’s the first of its kind and, as with anything truly new, SIRO presented some surprises.

The first occurred at the entrance of One Za’abeel. It is very early days still, but there was no sign or mention of SIRO neither in the lobby nor the elevator up to its home on the 30th floor. Once there, the doors open on both sides. Turn one way, you see seating areas, retail counters and a coffee and juice bar. The other way brings you into the spectacular gym, where a trainer immediately greets me and sends me back to the first side. What I thought were retail counters, were customer service stations for checking in. It serves as a fitness mecca and reception to the hotel above and has a decidedly casual vibe. It all speaks volumes about what SIRO is striving for.

Positioned on the main floor, the Fitness Lab rivals any big city club in appeal – it’s the nicest gym I’ve ever been to, in any country. It has a wide array of equipment and a design influenced by a cool cohort of professional athletes such as AC Milan, world champion swimmer Adam Peaty and Olympic boxer Ramla Ali. And, although I didn’t experience the workouts, I dare say they’re more elevated because of these alignments.

Guests can have a session in the group cycling studio, utilise Pilates Reformers in a dedicated space and participate in an array of classes including boxing and HIIT in the Experience Box. Trainers are roaming the floor to aid as needed and expansive windows on three sides inspire with the views. Even visiting midday, there was a buzz of activity.

curving staircase leading up to the Recovery Lab. No elevator here, which is a nod to the notion of making movement a lifestyle choice. Here beauty therapy staff manage 10 rooms offering just the right blend of technology-based and traditional spa treatments.

A particular highlight was the RelaxSpace module in the Zen Room – it’s a multisensory experience providing sights, sounds and even scents to whisk you on a natural getaway of your choice.

Unstructured downtime is also welcome amid a facility brimming with so many options and this space, with its comfortable niche lined with salt blocks, offers the tranquillity to do just that.

More elevators take you to the four SIRO hotel floors above, housing 132 rooms and suites. It’s difficult not to be won over by the spectacular view of the Dubai skyline in my corner room.

While there is a basic choice of workout equipment – an exercise ball and cabinet hiding yoga mats and straps – the space is more focused on restoration.

The large, thermoregulated bed with hypoallergenic sheets and down pillows gave me a reasonable night’s sleep, but I wasn’t in it long enough to fully feel any profound benefits. It was great to see a zero-gravity chair for relaxing in – another detail demonstrating the recovery ethos – if only I could have got it to recline correctly! But my favourite ‘restful’ feature of my stay was the SIRO robe. Crafted in the style of a hoodie, it’s extremely cosy and comfortable.

Having to leave the robe behind, as well as the Fitness Lab where it just felt nice to hang out more than anything else, was definitely disappointing. Overall, I loved the experience and I’d ‘jump’ at the chance to return.

• Room rates start at AED1,460 (US$398, €367, £310) a night

• Annual Fitness Lab silver membership (for access, but no classes) is AED7,095 (US$1,932, €1,777, £1,514)

• Annual Fitness Lab gold membership (with unlimited classes) costs AED9,460 (US$2,576, €2,369, £2,018)

• Facilities and classes are free to hotel guests

• A basic 60-minute massage starts at AED400 (US$109, €100, £85)