Enjoy Your Adventure

My sister-in-law emails me with the idea to escape from the toddlers for a weekend. I'll admit, it didn't take me long to feverishly type my affirmative and pick a date. Cheryl had located a spa-resort in St. George, Utah called Red Mountain Spa. The spa idea was a curious one, since we were on the search for a little zen time to de-stress from jobs and toddler chasing. This particular spa was different than your average pamper you till you drop variety. 3 meals a day at their restaurant was included in the price, as well as a list of daily exercise classes, relaxation classes, and hikes in beautiful Snow Mountain Canyon. They give you a $100 credit toward spa treatments or different outings. They have two pools and hot tubs on the property and an array of hammocks and waterfalls in which to blob by.

The resort was located at the base of beautiful red buttes and surrounded by green sprinkled desert (we were fortunate to arrive before the heat really hit in the summer, so there was quite a bit of greenery around). We got there at lunch time, so Cheryl and I meandered to the Canyon Cafe and enjoyed the lunch buffet. The food at the Cafe is focused toward health - it was all fresh, low in the calories and sodium, and extremely tasty. As we were eating, it was apparent that we were out of our element. People sat at the surrounding tables wearing exercise-style clothing and all had their water bottles with them. We were used to a normal amount of stress when eating in a restaurant when we were attempting to contain our toddlers within their chairs, and hoped their voices would stay below the 8 decibel mark as to not bother other patrons. Here, everyone was pleasant and relaxed (and yes, we noticed, no kids were in the vicinity).

Our first stop was at the Red Mountain Outfitters store, where Cheryl picked up some flip-flops (with living in Seattle, the weather doesn't often allow much reason to have a pair), and I got some shirts for the boys at home and new outdoor-style shorts and pants. I realized I only packed jeans and shorts, but no loose pants or sweats for activities. We got ourselves decked out in outfitter gear and joined in to that of the 'active' spa culture.

Our next step was to plan out our activity schedule for the next four days. There are always things going on, and several activities required advanced reservations. Over the course of the next several days, we went on a canyon hike, horseback ride, yoga, nordic walking, stretching, mountain bike ride and aqua circuit class. We also signed up for 'an evening with the stars' activity where we got a presentation on astronomy in the extremely vivid Utah night sky. We also much enjoyed two treatments each at the spa (I had the Desert Rain massage and the Soaring Spirit body wrap-most excellent!!). There was plenty of time for lounging at the pool or hanging in a hammock throughout the day as well.

We thoroughly enjoyed each activity, but found a curious phenomenon occurring at the start or conclusion of our activities. Most of the guides would give us an "enjoy your adventure" statement. I started to feel like we were at Disneyland with the staff forced into creating a particular illusion for the guest by having to utter a catch phrase every time. Cheryl and I took a 'Mountain Bike 101' class (it was actually the two of us and a bike guide-made it a lot more fun), in order to learn the technical side to off-roading. While the guide was driving us out to the trail, she was talking about living in the small town and working at the spa. I found her to have a somewhat cynical side and a good sense of humor, so I dared ask as we were about to start out on the trail if the employees were forced to utter the adventure statement to all guests. She started laughing and said that they were required to say it as often as possible. In order to keep them to the corporation's policy, there is the occasional 'secret shopper' sent out to evaluate how the employee treats the guests. She said that she was always getting in trouble for missing the phrase (sounded like on purpose).

I must thoroughly recommend this vacation to anyone who wants to get away to a beautiful location, no matter if they wish to remain active or relax and be pampered. When I first heard of going on a spa vacation, I was thinking we'd spend all day in bathrobes going from a facial to a massage to a pedicure for the entire vacation (not a horrible thought, I must admit). But I am now a converted believer in the 'active and healthy' spa retreat and see that we all need a place to recharge our batteries from time to time. Check it out: http://www.redmountainspa.com/