SPA

A Tale of Two Cities

By David Godsall

One weekend in South Florida, two sun-soaked weekend getaways.

As a year-round resident of the frozen north, I cherish my few brief opportunities to escape southward every winter. And with the shortest flight between me and an embarrassing Ray-Ban tan, South Florida is a perennial favourite – but which one? There are two versions to choose from: the sleepy Fort Lauderdale area, where the greens are well tended and there’s never any trouble getting a reservation after 6:30, and sleep-deprived South Beach, where poolside relaxation usually involves a DJ. Confounded, I started to wonder if I could cram both Floridas into one mid-winter weekend.

Thinking compromise was the key, I booked my stay at the stunning 51-storey beachfront Acqualina Resort in Sunny Isles, halfway between South Beach’s Ocean Drive epicentre and Fort Lauderdale’s Sunrise Boulevard. But the moment I pulled up under the stately porte cochère, I remembered something important about South Florida’s disposition: no compromises. The Acqualina lobby, all marble and vaulted ceilings, seemingly transported piece by piece from the Italian Riviera, coexists beautifully with equally impressive contemporary accents, like hallways with waterfalls cascading over glimmering tile on either side. It’s the kind of place that makes you think you can have your cake and eat it too.

My need to release some hibernation-induced tension being a major priority, I decided to start with a slice of relaxation. The Acqualina is home to the first ESPA facility in the U.S., so it seemed like the right place to get over my clichéd male aversion to spa treatments. Any residual hesitation was wiped out when the attendant told me that more than a few Miami Dolphins are frequent visitors. After 90 minutes on the massage table, my thoughts infused with the aromas of sandalwood and lavender, I found myself lounging in the LED-lit chromotherapy steam room thinking the NFLers might be on to something.

Cleansed of both stress and toxins, I was confident the former wouldn’t return until well after my weekend was over. But I had plans to replenish some of my impurities much sooner. My companion, Clare, was feeling energized from her own spa session, so we set off on an action-packed evening of re-toxification. First on the agenda was cocktail hour with the beautiful people at the Delano Hotel poolside bar for a taste of old Miami glamour mixed with contemporary Philippe Starck high-mod design. Next came a healthy dose of red meat at Prime One Twelve, chef Mike Sabin’s world-renowned purveyor of dry-aged prime steaks, located on the site of South Beach’s first hotel, followed by drinks at the Fifth.

A room-served plate of impossibly light French toast, with the requisite freshly squeezed Florida OJ, helped take the edge off the next morning, but my 9 a.m. tee time at the Fairmont Turnberry Isle still felt a little early. And once I got out onto the pristinely verdant (and very technical) Raymond Floyd-designed course, tucked away in the Fort Lauderdale canals, the hazards of my double vacation schedule became woefully obvious. I was relieved when we arrived at the 18th and it was time for poolside reflexology back at the Acqualina. After that invigorating (if slightly painful) experience, I treated myself to a divine mahi mahi sandwich and an afternoon spent by the pool while Clare browsed the nearby designer-saturated Bal Harbor Shops.

I would have been content to end our weekend with dinner at Il Mulino, the hotel’s proprietary branch of the reigning top Italian spot in New York, but Clare had other ideas. We settled on dining in, followed by an evening of classically SoBe carousal at Nikki Beach – another perfectly uncompromising compromise.

(David Godsall is a writer and editor with Spafax in Montreal who now believes that all hotel pools should offer both reflexology and DJs.)

TOP IMAGE: AQUALINA RESORT AND SPA
SPA: AQUALINA RESORT AND SPA
DELANO: PURPLE PR
GANSEVOORT SOUTH: GANSEVOORT HOTEL GROUP