SpaView.com launches Internet

BY PATRICIA O'ROURKE

Shopping for a spa vacation just became interactive.

Miami Beach-based SpaView.com has launched a dynamic new Web site providing comprehensive information on fine hotel and resort span vacations. SpaView users can research and book spa vacations, take virtual tours of individual spa properties and receive the most detailed, up-to-date information on spa services, equipment and staff available.

Member spa resorts in Miami and Florida include Doral Golf Resort and Spa, Eden Roc Resort and Spa, Fisher Island Club, Fontainebleau Hilton Resort and Towers, Naples Beach Hotel and Golf Club, Safety Harbour Resort and Spa, and Sanibel Harbour Resort and Spa.

SpaView's Miami and Florida home page can be reached directly through <www.SpaMiami.com> or <www.SpaFlorida.com> or by going to the Southeast region on <www.SpaView.com>.

During the site's inaugural, SpaView guests can register to win $500 towards a Valentine Spa Vacation at Miami's deluxe Doral Golf Resort and Spa or $500 off a StarTrac TR4500 Treadmill. For contest details and free registration, go to the SpaRegistry at <www.spaview.com/spa_registry.html>.

SpaView member properties have all received the "SALUDSeal of Approval," qualifying the facility as having institutional quality equipment, certified professional staff, and a full range of spa and fitness services.

Each member hotel or resort spa has its own 25-page section that includes a virtual tour of the facility and staff, spa menus, programs, packages and specials. Spa-goers are able to compare properties all over the world, book their personal spa vacation and receive instant confirmation in real time.

SpaView.com also offers a community-based, on-line wellness environment.

Its engaging content serves to educate (and demystify) the "spa experience." This is complemented by an on-line forum for sharing spa reviews and a spa store where a variety of spa products may be purchased, including gift certificates, books, CDs and videos.

"What sets SpaView.com apart from the competition are the high standards we require of our member properties; the level of information that we provide to our consumers, and the innovative multi-media applications we offer on the Web site, including 360-degree interactive photography of the spa facility, and audio-video clips of the spa staff," said Melchior Baltazar, SpaView's managing director. "Our goal is to become the preeminent Internet source for booking spa vacations on-line, and to establish an interactive spa community where spa-goers have a creative forum for discussing their experiences on-line," Baltazar added.

Baltazar, founder and managing director of SALUD, the parent company of SpaView.com, is an international lawyer and former U.S. Navy Seal. He is a sought-after spa speaker and fitness consultant. SALUD is a full service hotel and resort spa and fitness company, providing consulting services in the design, construction, operation, marketing and procurement of fine hotel and resort spas.