Nature Retreat — Aviva Spa

Aviva Spa, Singapore’s first Nature Retreat Spa, is alluringly located on the second storey of the Aranda Country Club. The spa promises an ‘away from the city’ feeling and is well-equipped with nine rooms, including two couple’s rooms, a fitness gym, a hydrotherapy bath, an outdoor Jacuzzi, a retreat meditation space, a steam and sauna room, and a spa retail. It offers a dizzying selection of services, which includes facials for all skin types, hand treats, jetlag relief, waxing, individual and couple spa treatments, as well as bridal spa packages. 

The treatment I was recommended to sample is its latest Miracle Honey Program, a pampering and detoxifying treatment with anti-oxidants and nourishing properties. This honey-inspired session lasts 1 hour 45 minutes, and is a recent addition to Aviva Spa’s highly regarded range of nature-inspired therapeutic spa programs. 

The therapist sharing this unique sweet honey experience with me was Tracey. The first part of my treatment began with a brisk exfoliation with the Honey Sweetie Scrub, a rich concoction of warmed honey and Dead Sea Salts. It is specially blended to help improve circulation and is a wonderfully natural exfoliant for dry skin. The various revitalising components in the salts also assist in reducing tissue fluid retention, increasing tissue metabolism and minimising stretch marks. Tracey draped me with a light sarong and began by rubbing the warm honey scrub onto my legs, sloughing away the outermost layer of dead skin cells on my ankles and calves. It was especially soothing when the warm concoction was drizzled generously down my back. I felt the tension in my shoulders melt away as she worked the granular scrubs into my shoulder blades, weary and sore from too much scrunching over my desk. 

The second part of my treatment was the Honey Silk Wrap, an exquisite treat designed to hydrate, seal and maintain moisture in the skin, as well as improve the skin’s texture and restore its radiance. Mention of honey dates back to at least 5500 BC in a document believed to be of Egyptian origin.  A gift from Mother Nature, honey is known for its anti-bacterial and softening effects, and is a natural humectant, having the ability to both attract and preserve moisture in the skin. Legendary ladies of rank and leisure have recognised honey’s beautifying properties as well, most memorably in the milk and honey baths favoured by Cleopatra. After my invigorating scrub, Tracey lifted the sides of the plastic sheet I’d been lying on, and folded it over me, gently tucking the corners in for this warm and nourishing wrap. A sarong blanket was pulled over to further enhance the warming sensation and I began to feel the slow comfortable warmth building up from my own body heat. Tracey dimmed the lights and quietly left the room as my newly polished skin soaked up the softening and nutrients-filled honey. I was soon lulled into a light slumber as the pleasing combination of the honey and heat worked its wonders on my very neglected skin. 

Tracey returned after 20 minutes and carefully adjusted the lights, filling the room with a soft and pleasing glow. I was led to my private shower for a quick rinse-off. What felt like a thick sticky layer was surprisingly easy to wash away, leaving my skin noticeably smoother and velvety soft.  

The last of my three-part treatment was the Uplifting Body Massage with specially blended sweet almond oils. Tracey rubbed the lightly aromatic oil thoroughly into my skin and muscles, employing a combo of techniques. This is the most important part of a spa treatment for many people, the deciding factor of whether a treatment is ‘worth it’. Having been extensively trained, Tracey intuitively applied the right pressure and strokes to the different parts of my body, sweeping and rolling on some areas, and kneading and pressing on the more ‘knotty’ places like the shoulders and back.  Soft feathery strokes were used on sensitive areas like the neck, and I observed some light tapping around the knees, much like a lymphatic drainage massage. 

Massage has been used for thousands of years and has a number of health benefits.  Besides preventing and treating muscle pains, it is also known to improve blood circulation, reduce tension, calm the nervous system as well as promote a sense of relaxation and well being. I got up good as new, and felt almost ready (but reluctant, of course) to start another day at work. Ah, I must recommend this to my friend, Izzie.

Candice Ling