‘Chi’ in Chinese refers to the life force that drives energy through the body, and Shangri La’s chain of luxury spas go by the same name.

To wrap up a rather blissful 4-day weekend, I had a pampering session at Chi Spa to rejuvenate my senses for a brand new week of work. Chi Spa’s latest offering is the ‘Hamper Pamper’.

For AED 800, the Hamper Pamper is a full 2 hour retreat involving a Pumpkin Spice body peel and wrap, and a blissfully long Asian-blend massage.

The Hamper Pamper deal also gives you full access to the Chi Spa facilities, and to take full advantage, it would be advisable to reach the premises a good half hour or so earlier.

Upon my arrival at the reception area, I was given a warm welcome by the very friendly staff on duty and I was guided into the ladies’ quarters for a tour of the facilities.

Chi Spa is divided into discreet areas for each gender, and also has a uni-sex area for couples’ therapy.

I made full use of the ‘ladies only’ section. At the locker room, I was allocated a space to store my luggage, and I changed into the Chi Spa bath-robe, slippers and disposable underwear in the changing room.

I then made my way to the sauna, and after sweating it out a good fifteen minutes or so, I sat in the plunge pool sipping warm ginger tea waiting for my therapist to get me for my treatment. Life is good!

My therapist for the day was the very lovely Oui who hails from Thailand. She led me to my treatment room, which was beautifully set up and looked blissfully zen.

Soothing Asian-themed music played in the background, and Oui dimmed down the lighting.

I sat in a comfy chair with my feet in luke warm water softened with exotic bath salts, and Oui took me through the details regarding the Hamper Pamper treatment.

I was asked if I had any allergies or wounds, if I was alright with the room temperature and music, and if there were specific body parts I wanted to avoid or give more attention to. The brief chat was thorough and to the point, and before long, I slid out of my bath-robe and lay flat in the warmth of the treatment bed.

The Hamper Pamper experience involves a very thorough body scrub. The exfoliation formula used has the very decadent scent of festive Pumpkin Pie, making this treatment so apt for priming up right before the Christmas rush!

Oui tells me this is Chi Spa’s newest treatment, and they are using high-quality products from the well-known American beauty brand Epicuren.

After a thorough scrubbing, I was cocooned into the blankets I lay on, and engulfed in plastic sheets. The exfoliating removes dead skin cells, and the warmth of the wrap helps the skin to rejuvenate and detox.

The scent of spiced pumpkin put my mind into a blissfully happy state, and for once I was enjoying the flavors of Pumpkin Pie sans calories!

My treatment room has an adjoining shower, and I enjoyed a steamy cleanse right after the wrap. I got an up-close and personal look at my well-scrubbed skin and was amazed at how soft and supple it felt, and yes I could still get a delicious hint of pumpkin!

After the shower, I was back on the bed for an hour-long Asian-blend massage.

Oui used a beautifully fragrant body oil from the Epicuren range. She tells me it is an organic blend using a special mix of essential oils including lavender to promote relaxation, and eucalyptus to rejuvenate and refresh. I could also get subtle whiffs of vanilla and floral undertones.

Oui expertly massaged my entire body, and performed an Asian-style knuckle massage on the pressure points under my feet.

The massage ends with a gentle yet through head rub, and I was halfway through slumber when my sleep mask was gently removed from my eyes.

The body oil has a magically exotic, refreshing scent that also did wonders at hydrating my skin. After the Chi Spa’s Hamper Pamper treatment, I felt wonderfully refreshed and couldn’t get enough on how soft and glowing my skin was looking.

I asked Oui if I could buy the Epicuren body oil for home use. Unfortunately the spa is only buying this for commercial use at this stage, but plans are in place for selling the brand at the Chi Spa store in early 2016 so stay tuned!

Chi Spa sells a number of beauty brands at their store, and as they do not have Epicuren in stock (yet!), Oui suggested I try the Red Flower range.

Red Flower is yet another organic beauty brand from the United States, and I ended up walking away with the Red Flower ‘Cardamom Amber Oil’ (Oui tells me it will do wonders for stiff muscles, especially for the knots of tension she found on the back of my neck) and I also bought the Red Flower ‘Lemon Coffee Blossom’ body scrub because it smelt divinely delicious. Will be posting a review on these beauties real soon, so stay tuned!

Chi Spa’s store sells a beautiful range of spa goodies, and also stocks a number of indulgent spa beauty brands for home use including Red Flower and Mei Spa.

 

Overall, I had a blissfully relaxing time at Chi Spa. The Hamper Pamper at Chi Spa does wonders to a lack-luster, overworked body. With the indulgent scent of pumpkin spice, treat yourself to some pre-Christmas pampering. You know you deserve it!

Chi Spa is located on the 4th floor of Shangri La (Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai). For bookings and more information, call 04 405 2441 or visit their website.