SPA DOCTOR: I feel like I’m floating, in a blissful bath … of sound
Can taking a ‘sound bath’ really help ease stress and anxiety? I was sceptical when it was suggested I try one.
For the uninitiated, a sound bath isn’t going for a long soak in a tub while listening to your favourite Spotify playlist. The ancient Eastern practice involves lying down while a therapist ‘bathes’ you in soundwaves produced by instruments such as gongs or Tibetan singing bowls (brass vessels that produce different tones when hit by a beater).
Hollywood actress-turned-wellness guru Gwyneth Paltrow, and Kim Kardashian’s model sister Kendall Jenner, are fans. And despite being unsure that anything they advocate could be up to much, I was intrigued.
I put the fabled relaxing benefits of a sound bath to the test during a hiking holiday in the Nevada desert. At the end of a week which involved many dawn starts trekking out into Red Rock Canyon in order to avoid the insane heat of the day, I hot-footed it to the Resorts World Las Vegas Awana Spa, to try its Eastern Vibrations treatment (75mins, £220).
TRANQUILITY: The Awana Spa at Resorts World Las Vegas
WHAT’S THE TREATMENT?
I am promised the experience will help me ‘achieve a remarkably restorative and euphoric state through the beautifully peaceful sounds and vibrations of Himalayan Singing Bowls’.
Did it? Well, it was really quite lovely.
Lying on a heated massage bed in my robe, I’m already feeling pretty much at peace. The therapist begins by giving me a quick head and shoulder massage, and then the ‘bath’ begins. She walks around the bed, beating the bowls, which make long, enchanted ringing noises of different pitches. Occasionally a bowl is placed, while still vibrating, on my chest and the vibrations make me feel oddly shivery. At times, as the sounds harmonise, I feel like I’m almost floating on water.
After what seems like a few moments – but was actually near an hour – the treatment is over, and I totter off to use the heated pools of the spa.
The facility itself is gorgeous – every beautifully tiled room is curved, and there are no corners or straight lines.
After a couple of hours of wallowing, sauna-ing and steaming, I emerge feeling supremely unbothered by anything much at all.
Hollywood actress-turned-wellness guru Gwyneth Paltrow (pictured), and Kim Kardashian’s model sister Kendall Jenner, are fans of ‘sound baths’
WHAT ELSE IS THERE?
Like all Vegas mega-hotels, Resorts World is keen to show there is more to Sin City than casinos and paying a grand to see Adele sing some songs.
Most now offer a wide range of wellness activities – and also some pretty amazing food. We’re treated to dinner at Crossroads, a Mediterranean-style restaurant that serves exclusively plant-based food. For anyone who thinks they’ll be served rabbit food and end up hungry, fear not – the dishes include vegan ‘foie gras’, decadent ricotta-stuffed corgette flowers, and unctuous stews. If that doesn’t tickle your fancy, there are myriad other options in the extremely trendy street-food market.
Resorts World Las Vegas is divided into three hotels, the Hilton, the Conrad and the more exclusive Crockfords (rwlasvegas.com).
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