Body benefits.
So what’s the deal?
What do you think of when you think of the Park Rotana? Fun Australian nights at Cooper’s? Fine food at Teatro? Or invigorating, pampering treatments in their leisure and fitness club, Bodylines?
The last may not be as well known to the masses but the rather inconspicuous health centre is a bit of a hidden gem.
Complete with a chill out area, sauna and steam room and amicable changing facilities, there’s enough on offer at Bodylines to tempt you from the lovely looking pool outside, and inside for some quiet time.
A Balinese Wellness Massage paired with a Foot Reflexology treatment is just the ticket for rest and restoration. The full body, deep-tissue holistic treatment is designed to invigorate and relax tired muscles, aid aches and pains and generally relax body and mind. The essential oils used are also meant to tackle stubborn cellulite – a bonus for the ladies. The therapist works wonders with a pleasant pressure that banishes tension, yet flows over the body with soft strokes, stretching, kneading and skin rolling, applying oils that work in sync with the body, targeting any specific problems such as stress and digestion. It’s a soothing one-hour session that results in a zen-like state of mind.
That zen feeling momentarily ends as the Foot Reflexology treatment begins. The treatment is meant to be therapy for the soles of the feet; pressure points are worked with a firm touch, with the benefits felt throughout the whole body as the zones pressed target the related areas in your body. The result is meant to be a release of tension and general relaxation as mind, body and spirit is rebalanced.
What we in fact feel at first is an increase in tension as we clench our toes and fight our reflexes to kick the therapist in pain.
Our soles – and souls – feel tormented. As pressure points are pressed (perhaps relating to body parts that aren’t in their best condition), pain thresholds are tested. Thankfully, the therapist works carefully until the aches fade and our whole body relaxes once more. It’s an amazingly thorough treatment; in fact we’re not sure anyone has ever spent so much time on an otherwise thoroughly neglected area of our body. An hour later, the fear of bruising has gone and feet – and mind – feel lighter.
Why go?
While the amenities face stiff competition from other spas and health centres around the capital, Bodylines is a pleasant, understated surprise in the mix. There’s a whole host of fantastically well-priced treatments available, plus a gym, pool and relaxation area on offer – offering the perfect excuse to make a day of it.
And why not?
Those with sensitive toes or a slightly suffering body will flinch at the Foot Reflexology – but bear with it: it gets better and the results are lasting. As for the Balinese Wellness Massage, we haven’t a bad word to utter.
Charlie Kennedy
What? Bodylines leisure and fitness club
Where? Park Rotana Abu Dhabi
The treatment: Balinese Wellness Massage and Foot Reflexology Massage
Cost: AED 550 (AED 300 for Balinese; AED 250 for Foot Reflexology)
We say: Head to toe pampering treatments that offer health benefits? No pain, no gain …
Contact: 02 657 3373
