To Your Health

Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine, Oct, 2001 by Christopher Elliott, Christine Pulfrey

Asked about her favorite spa, Barbara Sills skipped the big-name properties she'd visited in favor of an obscure, all-inclusive resort on the Caribbean island of St. Lucia called Le Sport (800-544-2883, www.lesport .com.lc). Everything from seaweed wraps to Thai massages is included at the moderately priced property (the average room rate is about $200 per person per day at this time of year). "I like the way they made me feel at home," she says.

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SPAS | Treatments and prices are all over the map

The following are some of the country's top resort and destination spas, illustrating the wide range of treatments and prices. Rates are based on double occupancy, unless otherwise indicated, and are effective October 1. Packages usually include meals and daily spa treatments.

For a list of other reputable spas, check Fodor's Healthy Escapes (Fodor's, $20), a 346-page guide that covers spas in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. It is among the most frequently updated of the guides to spas, undergoing a complete revision every other year (and all updates are made after an actual visit).

BIRDWING SPA Litchfield, Minn.

320-693-6064; www.birdwingspa.com

Located in the countryside 70 miles west of Minneapolis, the Birdwing Spa is a modestly priced destination spa built on 300 wooded acres next to scenic Starr Lake. Birdwing was once known for its weight-loss sessions, but it has shed that spartan image and now enjoys a reputation for pampering guests. The resort features a full menu of spa treatments that focus on relaxation. Among them is the Decadent Rose Body Glow, a combination of scalp and facial massage, body wrap and foot soak in rose-and-chamomile essence. An overnight stay starts at $250, and you can linger for a week for $1,500.

MARRIOTT CAMELBACK INN RESORT, GOLF CLUB & SPA Scottsdale, Ariz.

800-242-2635; www.camelbackinn.com

This desert spa resort, known for its golf and pleasant climate, is also home to the Bindi herbal body treatment. If you sign up for one of those, expect to be slathered in an herbal paste and baked under an infrared lamp, after which the dried layer is sponged off. But the 60-minute, $105 treatment helps exfoliate, rehydrate and soften skin. Afterward, relax and take in the dramatic desert landscape stretching toward the base of Mummy Mountain. Room rates start at $339 a night, and packages start at $4,040 a week in the winter and $3,210 in the summer.

THE DORAL GOLF RESORT & SPA Miami, Fla.

800-713-6725; www.doralresort.com

The Doral's spa has made a name for itself with mud-Italian mud. Its 50-minute Fango treatment ($90), which relaxes you and remineralizes your skin, is its most requested offering. The spa also offers special packages for guests, including the Blue Monster, a $200 treatment that gives you full use of the facilities and a choice of massage and a facial or haircut. Room rates start at $395 a night, and seven-day package rates start at $2,240 a week in season (September 17 through March 2002, excluding holidays).