Hotel Spa of the Year – Asia and Australasia: The Spa at Four Seasons Hotel Kyoto Scoops Top Wellbeing Award

The Spa at Four Seasons Hotel Kyoto has won Hotel Spa of the Year – Asia & Australasia at the 2019 World Spa & Wellness Awards during a glamorous ceremony on February 24, 2019 at The Brewery, London, UK.

World Spa & Wellness is a London-based, bi-monthly digital magazine featuring global wellness news and insight.  Independently judged by anonymous visiting spa experts, The World Spa & Wellness Awards celebrate industry excellence by region across the categories of care, service and standards.

Now in its third year of operation, The Spa at Four Seasons Hotel Kyoto is epitomised in Enso – the Japanese aesthetic principle connecting the body and mind through the Zen circle motion. Through ceremonial Japanese rituals and revitalising treatments it elevates spa guests into the meditative realms of inner and outer peace, inviting a celebration of the present moment and a thoughtful connection to self and surrounds.

Commenting on the award, Chinnapat Veerasomboonsin, Director of Spa at Four Seasons Hotel Kyoto said: “It's a real honour for The Spa team to be recognised in this way. The Spa offers guests a fascinating insight into the Japanese way of life and appreciation of beauty; it’s an idea that is central to the entire Four Seasons Hotel Kyoto experience and our therapists consider it a true privilege to be able to share their city and culture through treatments that mean so much to them.”

According to Zen masters, Enso can’t be explained, only experienced. In keeping with this, The Spa has to be experienced in person to appreciate its unique aesthetic and approach: a haven where beneficial local ingredients combine with balancing Enso ideals to offer a truly memorable Kyo no Iyashi (Kyoto healing).

In addition to drawing inspiration from the Enso circle concept, The Spa showcases a sublime serenity that recalls the Waka Buddhist poetry that was penned in its 800-year-old Shakusui-en Pond Garden, transporting guests to the ancient Heian Period (794–1185) when Kyoto was Japan’s "Capital of Peace and Tranquillity."

From the "elegant refinement" of Miyabi – a signature couple’s ceremony featuring stress-easing sake bath, aromatherapy massage and exclusive TATCHA facial – to the traditional healing of an Arashiyama Kyoto Bamboo Massage, The Spa offers a range of therapies designed to bring balance, harmony and joyful self-acceptance while inspiring a mindful celebration of the present moment with all its imperfections and wonders.