Mission Hills Resorts Blend Golf and Spa
When the Guinness World Records called Mission Hills the world's largest golf club, we went online to get the skinny. Golfers can tee off on 12 courses, then find comfort and rejuvenation in three spas. Reached from Hong Kong by car, or Shenzen airport, the original Mission Hills is an amazing experience. Near a national park in Dongguan province, the bustling city of Shenzen provides glitzy counterpoint to the resort's total seclusion.
Herb gardens, rooftop pavilions for yoga or qi gong, and spa luxury enhance the resort's three clubhouses. These self-contained day spas offer family-oriented wellness programs as well as sport-related therapy.
At the new Mission Hills on Hainan Island, traditional Chinese medicine vies with Thai and Balinese massage.
The Mission Hills brand encompasses Mission Hills Golf Clubs, Mission Hills Residences, as well as Mission Hills Hotels & Resorts. The company also hosts major golf tournaments, including the Omega Mission Hills World Cup and the Mission Hills Star Trophy. The company employs approximately 11,000 people across its two operations.
www.missionhillsgroup.com
Workouts by The Great Wall
Designed by 12 Asian architects, Commune by the Great Wall is Beijing's most creative place to live and enjoy historic wonders. Set in a retreat-like environment, the Commune includes a five-star hotel managed by Germany's Kempinski group. Gazing out at the Great Wall from the hotel's Anantara Spa, your inner voice may remind you of other wonders. Offering healing massages from around the world, as well as Chinese wellness rituals, this new entry by an Asian spa group promises a revolutionary experience. Coming: luxury train excursions managed by Kempinski.
www.kempinski.com
Experience Shanghai Marriott Mandara Spa
Towering over Tomorrow Square, the JW Marriott Hotel Shanghai has China's first Mandara Spa. Re-creating an ancient village, cobblestone walkways lead to your private suite. Experience Elemis skincare made in the UK, treatments with Dr. Spiller line. Complete with salon for hair/nail care, baths, massage, Thai stretches, indoor swimming pool, the Marriott is steps from museums, opera, dazzling shops and restaurants on the Bund riverfront. Join tai chi groups in the People's Park, explore this cosmopolitan city to see the new China.
Both the Mandara spa brand and JW Marriott franchise are controlled by Minor International Ltd., based in Bangkok, Thailand.
Contact: www.marriott.com
Tea-off at Fuchun Resort
Tea plantations surround Fuchun Resort, supply fresh leaves for spa treatments, scenting the air. This design hot spot is a favored hideaway for Shanghai business executives and expats. A blend of contemporary style with traditional architecture, Fuchun Resort will be featured in the new edition of "100 Best Spas of the World." Enjoy spa treatments with organic products by A. W. Lake in your private villa or lakeside pavilions. Join tai chi and yoga groups every morning, swim, play the par-72 golf course. The resort restaurant is associated with one of Shanghai's top kitchens for new Chinese cuisine, Restaurant T8. Located near the picturesque Fuchunjiang River, the area is said to cleanse the soul of mundane life. The Yoga Lounge at Fuchun Resort features Himalayan Master Yogi Giri to guide guests in breathing, stretches, and meditation.
www.fuchunresort.com
Sojourn to the Silk Road Banyan Tree Resort
Dating to the Song Dynasty, Lijiang was a stop on the Silk Road trade route. Set in foothills of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, Lijiang's new Banyan Tree Resort and Spa is close to scenic Tiger Leaping Gorge and a dry sea where you can go grass sliding. Built like a Tibetan village, 55 private villas with red-clay roofs nestle in secluded gardens. Treatments incorporate the five Chinese elements: earth, water, fire, wood, and gold.
Contact: www.banyantree.com
Return of the Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong
Legendary style and service distinguish the Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong. Inspired by feng shui design, the hotel's makeover features a three-floor spa with herbal steam room, Vichy shower, Kneipp water walk, Ayurveda sanctuary, traditional Chinese medicine consultation. Indulge in ice fountain or topical rainfall shower, vitality pool soak. Guys get urban lifestyle retreat, barber and pedicure. Redolent of the 1930s, this beautiful oasis on the hotel's 24th floor overlooks Victoria Harbour.
Andrew Gibson, corporate director of spas for Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, is based in Hong Kong. Formerly with the Six Senses spa group, Gibson brings a wealth of experience in Asia and the UK to the Mandarin Oriental expansion plans. Gibson's latest project for the Mandarin Oriental Sanya resort on China's tropical Hainan Island has a traditional Chinese medicine pharmacy and resident shaman.
www.mandarinoriental/hongkong.com
Bet on Macau
The Chinese Territory of Macau may be the next Las Vegas.
American casino impresarios Sheldon Adelson and Stephen A. Wynn led a wave of new casino hotels in the former Portugese colony. High-speed ferries get you there in an hour from Hong Kong.
The Chinese version of Adelson's Venetian hotel, casino, and shopping complex, bigger than its Las Vegas namesake, has gondolas plying indoor canals of a miniature Venice. The 32-floor hotel offers 3,000 suites, 500,000 square feet of gambling space with 6,000 slot machines.
Privately operated, Malo Clinic Spa at the Venetian Macau is an integrative wellness center offering both comprehensive medical treatments and executive health checkups (six operating theaters, a staff of 50 doctors) with a full spa featuring 100 spa therapists.
www.venetianmacao.com
Malo Clinic is unique in Asia with its multi-disciplinary team of medical doctors, licensed healthcare professionals and wellness therapists recruited from Asia, Europe, and America. Under the guidance of founder Dr. Paulo Malo, a world renowned dental surgeon known for pioneering revolutionary surgical techniques in dentistry.
www.maloclinics.com
The Wynn Macau rates raves: high-tech guest rooms are equipped with deep-soaking tub, tropical spa has garden swimming pool. Looking remarkably similar to the Vegas tower, but smaller, Wynn Macau spa features marble baths, salon, and Cybex fitness center.
www.wynnmacao.com
Government estimates show Macau outpacing Vegas in gambling revenue. Opened by Hong Kong billionaire Stanley Ho, the Grand Lisboa casino attracted an estimated 500,000 visitors in its first 10 days. Ho's latest projects include a joint venture with MGM Mirage, featuring a 600-room hotel and casino, a six-star Park Hyatt hotel, and an entertainment complex.
When the Sands casino opened here in 2004, people broke doorways as they stampeded to enter, according to reports in the International Herald Tribune. Recently added: Four Seasons Hotel Macao, Cotai Strip. Amid stellar entertainment and duty-free shopping, this hideaway on the Cotai Strip has a 14-room spa, private suites and separate sections for men and women, with indoor vitality pool. Cuisine inspired by Macau's Portuguese and Chinese heritage.
www.fourseasons.com
Challenging the Venetian is City of Dreams, a $2.4 billion resort that brought together two dynasties: Lawrence Ho, son of Macau gambling impresario Stanley Ho, and Australian James Packer, once owner of Jurlique skin care.
Australian hotel and casino operator Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd. developed the luxurious Altira Macau hotel just off the Cotai Strip, The 38-story tower has 216 deluxe rooms plus suites overlooking the island. Altira Spa offers the ideal retreat from Macau's frenzy, with a spectacular infinity-edge swimming pool adjoining 12 treatment rooms high in the sky. Additional amenities come with Altira hotel suites: circular stone bath, Japanese-style shower, and upscale bath products.
www.altiramacau.com
And there are plans to build 23 more hotels and casinos in Macau in the next 10 years.
Let the good times roll.
