Where High-Tech Healing Meets Oceanfront Serenity
A Storied Past, A Modern Glow
Last winter, when the Lyft driver dropped me off under the original Porte Cochère, my mind wandered back to the mid-seventies, when my family summered at my in-laws’ apartment, just a block away. Then called Carillon Miami, the hotel was a hotspot when it made its debut in 1958 because it showcased Architect Norman Giller’s Miami Modern Architecture—with its sleek lines, bold geometric shapes, colorful materials, and terrazzo floors—and featured celebrity names: Martin Luther King spoke there, and Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack performed.
It was still a lovely hotel when we were there, and so close that my ‘tweens walked to its luncheonette and shops (in a former arcade).
The hotel closed in the 80s; then, in 1998, the original building was restored, and two towers were added. Ten years later, under Canyon Ranch management, an enormous, multi-level spa was added to offer a wellness lifestyle to residents and spa guests. In 2015, it was rebranded as Carillon Miami Wellness Resort, and its 70,000-square-foot space still ranks as one of the most extensive spa and wellness facilities on the Eastern Seaboard. Today, the affiliate of The Leading Hotels of the World displays some historical artifacts, including white panels from the original staircase, positioned above the guest services desk, as well as original silverware, vintage menus, photographs, and postcards in glass cases within The Strand restaurant.
The Daily Rhythm of Wellness
The award-winning spa ranks on many a “best” list and enjoys an internationally recognized, well-regarded reputation. When I recently walked towards the elevator bank, I noticed that the “daily movement schedule” posted there listed twelve activities, all between 8 am and 5 pm. At the spa reception on the upper level, I learned that my morning schedule included the Detoxification & Optimal Weight Circuit, which I had already requested from the list of menu options as part of my two-hour-plus Wellness Circuit.
Arnaldo, who escorted me, assured me that the circuit had been personalized to account for my claustrophobia and shepherded me to an infrared pod with a top that stayed partially open, allowing me to fully relax in the Prism Light Pod. I was also able to lie passively and comfortably on two different water beds: the WAVE by Wellstystem, where I enjoyed a thirty-minute head-to-toe bubble massage; then, I tried the Gharieni Welnamisa water pillow top bed. It was heated and included color therapy earphones for soothing sound therapy.
Technology Takes Center Stage
Another spa guru introduced me to the power of the BioCharger, which claims to deliver healing frequency waves. He demonstrated its force by holding an elongated light bulb in his hands, which lit up as soon as he turned on the mechanism. During that session, I sensed the kind of tingling that sometimes accompanies a microcurrent facial.
I avoided the impressive-looking Somadome pod, which claimed: “the world’s first technology-enabled meditation pod combining color, sound, and energy therapies to create the physical space to experience the benefits of meditation.” Even so, I couldn’t enter a bubble with a closed lid! I also dodged a variety of Cryotherapy options, because, although I have twice tried the frigid treatments, I can’t tolerate cold. I chose a far more pleasant option, a session within the Himalayan Salt Chamber, where I breathed deeply to take advantage of the promise of better breathing, healthier skin, and stress relief.
During my lunch break, I took a short stroll on the Miami Beach Boardwalk shrub-lined, nine-mile pedestrian oceanfront promenade— and lunched on a beautiful, healthy, deconstructed crabmeat and avocado salad on The Strand’s poolside patio. (The more intimate Tambourine Room, by Tristan Brandt, holds a rare-for-Miami Michelin star and only opens for dinner.)
A Return to Classics
Back in the locker room, I readied for what I love best: a traditional touchy-feely massage and a hydrating facial; then, I went to the relaxation lounge and waited for the massage therapist. Danielle custom-tailored the treatment by adding lymphatic drainage techniques to tackle a travel-related issue: my ankles swell on the flight and stay puffy, from so many salt-saturated restaurant meals.
Next, Kim, my esthetician, custom designed The Carillon Seaside facial to address my specific skin needs. She chose hydrating products from Comfort Zone, from Italy, to nourish my sensitive, dry, and aging skin. The service begins with the inhalation of Tranquility oil, a blend of sweet orange, rose, and cedarwood, and continues with an Essential Scrub exfoliant containing rubberized beads. The protocol includes a non-acid Essential peel with pineapple/bromelain; a soothing face massage; and a Renight mask. Kim checked my pores and removed some impurities—an essential procedure often missing from spa facials—before concluding with deep moisturizers: Lift eye cream, Hydramemory serum, and Sublime fluid moisturizer.
Afterwards, I lounged on a chaise in the relaxation room outfitted with a radiant-heated ZENERGY healing pad. Then, I put on a bathing suit and boarded the elevator to the rooftop pool, the most private of the hotel pools with an expansive ocean view.
It was a perfect spa day. I can’t pinpoint which one of the modalities stimulated my body, or if it was the fusion of them all that provoked the change, but I can attest that, together, they made a difference: my body started to detoxify, and it continued for a couple of days. Though I’ve given up dreams of owning an apartment at The Carillon, I hope for another longer stay, for the opportunity to detoxify, enjoy the services, and try some of the many medical wellness options, including Hypnosis to reduce claustrophobia!
“Come as you are. Leave as you’ve never been.” The Carillon motto rings true for me.
