Sea Spa at Loews Coronado Bay Resort and Spa in Coronado, California
Julie Register visited this resort spa in California in March 2004

There's something for everyone at Loews Coronado Bay Resort's new Sea Spa. An extensive menu of services offers a full array of spa and beauty treatments and healing therapies - 7 facials with 7 add-on possibilities, 10 body treatments, 4 body smoothers, 10 types of massages including watsu and beach stone, waxing, manicures, pedicures and salon services. In addition, Sea Spa offers treatments specifically for teens - Gen-X Signature Teen Facial, Skin 101, Acne Facial and the 4-hour Teen Cruise package with Gen-X Facial, Seaside Escape Massage, Manicure, Pedicure, Shampoo and Style. It offers treatments specifically for men - The Yachtsman Signature Male Facial, The Admiral Facial, The Captain Facial, The Mariner Body Scrub and Massage, The Old Fashion Rub Down and the 3-hour Men's Cruise package with Yachtsman Facial, Mariner Scrub and Massage and Sport Manicure or pedicure. For the pampered pet, Sea Spa sells OPI nail "pawlish" and, according to Spa Director Michael Santonino, it plans to soon offer outdoor pet massages. For couples, Sea Spa offers side-by-side facials and massages.

My husband and I enjoyed the spa together a number of times during our visit to Loews Coronado Bay Resort. We used the fitness facility each morning. Since it is used by the local community as well as resort guests, it gets a bit crowded first thing in the morning. I had to use the treadmill instead of my preferred elliptical machine. We used the free weights and Cybex circuit machines. The glass doors open to the outside, letting the fresh air in - a feature I particularly enjoyed. Adjacent to the workout area is a studio that offers group exercise classes such as belly dancing, BOSU combo, cycle and abs, kickboxing, tai chi, Rahini yoga and yoga basics.

Not all experiences were shared with my husband. While he had a haircut in the Spray Salon, I had a head start in Sea Spa with a Self-Heating Sea Foam Cocoon body treatment. I checked in at the reception desk, was shown the women's changing room and swapped my clothes for the fluffy robe and slippers in my locker. After a visit to the sauna, steam and shower, I went to the co-ed waiting area and tried a granola bar - utterly delicious, but certainly not low calorie. At the appointed time, my therapist led me to the wet room where the table was draped in what looked like a space blanket. I got under the towel and the treatment started with an exfoliation that smoothed the surface of my skin. This was followed by an application of intensely active marine mud. The silver sheets were cocooned around me. As the mud started to activate, it heated up and started to bubble. Sea Spa calls it the "Champagne of the Sea" with good reason. It was a delightful sensation and very relaxing. When the mud stopped bubbling, it was time to unwrap and rinse off. The treatment ended with the therapist massaging anti-aging body cream massaged into my skin. The treatment is intended to sooth sore tissue while toxins are drawn from deep within. I really enjoyed it. It is probably my favorite body wrap to date. After the treatment, I was escorted back to the waiting area.

From there, I went out to the spa garden where my husband joined me for the start of what was to become a very relaxing afternoon. The garden is very private with a whirlpool, fountain, watsu pool, four outdoor treatment rooms, lounge chairs and tables. We had ordered a spa lunch - a Seafood Cobb Salad (shrimp, salmon, bacon, egg, tomato, olives, bleu cheese, avocado) and a Tijuana Caesar Salad with shrimp along with an Island Oasis (pineapple, banana, papaya, coconut, soy milk) and Ocean Breeze (lemon, sorbet, white peach, pineapple, mango, orange) smoothie.

I'll take a little time out here to talk about the spa cuisine at Sea Spa. The menu of "colorful food" was designed by culinary guru Jeanne Jones, author of more than 30 cookbooks including Canyon Ranch Cooking, Healthy Cooking for People Who Don't Have Time to Cook and her latest, Cooking from the Cupboard. The basic color wheel was the inspiration in planning the Sea Spa menu. Each day, the spa features a different color as the Sea Spa "Special." The goal is to teach guests the importance of eating something from each color group every day. Eating five or more servings of colorful fruits and vegetables each day is important for healthier living and disease prevention. Deeply-hued fruits and vegetables provide a wide range of vitamins, minerals and fiber as well as phytochemicals. In addition, the resort's 3,800 square-foot herb garden provides more than 40 varieties of fresh herbs for the culinary staff to use daily in the resort's cuisine. Now, back to the spa…

After our delicious spa lunch, we relaxed in lounge chairs until time for our Coastal Couples Seaside Escape Massage. Therapists Ashley and Tamara collected us from the garden and escorted us to the "Oceanfront" treatment room designed for a dual massage. The Coastal Couple may be booked for any massage you would like to share with a spa companion - we chose the Seaside Escape (Swedish). The massages were very relaxing and over way too soon! We were escorted back to the waiting area and given water and a choice of fruit smoothies from the "colorful" spa cuisine or champagne. Since we had just had smoothies for lunch, we chose champagne. The chairs in the waiting area all have blankets, which are nice to have after a treatment. Unfortunately, the waiting area is the crossroads for the spa and is a bit busy. The spa garden is a quieter location. We enjoyed our spa experience so much that, before we left the spa, we scheduled back-to-back watsu treatments for the morning of our departure.

There are lots of other activities at Loews Coronado Bay Resort for couples to enjoy. During our stay, we dined at the resort's restaurants Azzura Point (fine dining), The Market Café (family dining) and La Cantina (poolside). One evening, we snuggled together under a warm blanket on a gondola, sipped champagne and nibbled on chocolate-dipped strawberries while the gondolier guided us through the canals and waterways of Coronado Cays. He even serenaded us! The next day we checked out kayaks and explored the cays on our own. One of our favorite things to do was to lounge on our Bayside Villa deck and watch the sailboats and yachts glide by. The resort also offers tennis courts, swimming pools, whirlpools and bicycle, roller blade, scooter, wave runner, sailboat and paddleboat rentals as well as direct access to Silver Strand State Beach.

Bright and early on the morning of our departure, we again checked into Sea Spa for back-to-back watsu sessions. Watsu is a three-dimensional massage combining the support of the water with pressure-point techniques of Shiatsu massage to allow the free flow of energy through the body. We had both had watsu before, so we knew what to expect. This time, we both experienced watsu from enthusiastic practitioner, Tania Papov. I went first. Tania supported and glided my through a series of stretches in the body-temperature water of Sea Spa's watsu pool. Sensing that I was up to trying something new, Tania introduced me to Water Dance - essentially underwater watsu. She gave me a tap on the arm, I held my breath and under I went. I loved being completely immersed and slowly moved through the water and thought it was very, very cool. Jeff had been ambivalent about his first watsu experience, so I was particularly interested in his reaction after his session with Tania. He was very enthusiastic about it! So, on that positive note, we left Loews Coronado Bay Resort and Sea Spa - particularly thankful to the spa for some great spa experiences we could enjoy together.