Offering a wellness area has become a real asset for many tourist establishments.

Hotels, campsites, gîtes, B&Bs, lodges, or seasonal rentals: the spa allows you to enrich the experience offered to customers and differentiate your establishment.

But installing a spa for a tourist activity is not just about choosing a pretty model.

Usage frequency, location, filtration, maintenance, energy consumption, regulations, or ease of operation: a professional project must be considered differently from an installation for a private individual.

At Provence Spa, we work with Aquavia Spa, a European manufacturer offering both spas for private use and solutions specifically designed for hotel and tourism professionals.

Let's look at the main elements to consider.

Why install a spa in a tourist establishment?

Wellness is now fully integrated into the experience sought by many vacationers.

And it is not necessarily necessary to create a huge wellness area.

A judiciously installed spa can be enough to bring real added value to an establishment.

Depending on the project, it can be installed:

• on the private terrace of a room or lodge;
• in a shared wellness area;
• near a swimming pool;
• in a dedicated indoor area;
• in the garden of a gîte or guesthouse;
• within a campsite or tourist residence.

The important thing is therefore less the size of the establishment than how the spa will be used by the clientele.

Private spa or professional spa: an important distinction

This is probably one of the first questions to ask yourself.

Not all tourist projects necessarily require the same type of spa.

The private use spa

A spa exclusively associated with a room, suite, lodge, or accommodation can be used in a way that is relatively similar to a residential spa.

It notably allows for offering a more high-end experience:

a room with its own wellness area.

The choice of model will then depend on the number of people accommodated, the available space, the desired level of service, and naturally the expected frequency of use.

The spa for collective use

The situation changes when the same spa is made available to many clients.

A hotel, campsite, or tourist residence can experience high traffic, especially during peak season.

The spa must then be designed to withstand intensive use and facilitate daily water management.

It is precisely for this type of project that Aquavia Spa also develops a range of professional spas.

A professional spa must be designed for its operation

When an individual chooses a spa, they naturally think about comfort, massages, and design.

A professional must obviously consider these criteria, but they must add others.

They must notably consider:

• daily attendance;
• the capacity of the spa;
• water renewal and treatment;
• filtration;
• ease of maintenance;
• access to technical equipment;
• energy consumption;
• material resistance;
• the integration of the spa into the establishment.

A beautiful spa can become a constraint if it is not adapted to its actual use.

The right choice is therefore the one that takes into account the daily operation of the establishment.

The importance of water quality

In a tourist establishment, this is obviously an essential element.

The higher the traffic, the more the filtration and water treatment must be dimensioned accordingly.

A spa intended for professional use may therefore require a different hydraulic design and filtration system than a classic residential spa.

Aquavia Spa offers solutions specifically developed to meet these professional constraints.

The project must also take into account the regulations applicable to the establishment and the type of use envisaged.

This is why the purpose of the spa must be defined at the beginning of the project, and not after its installation.

Consider energy consumption from the start

For a professional, the purchase price is only part of the equation.

One must also consider the operating cost.

A spa can maintain several hundred, or even several thousand, liters of water at temperature for long periods.

Insulation, thermal cover, set temperature, location, and heating system therefore have a direct influence on its consumption.

The solutions developed by Aquavia Spa notably allow, depending on the configurations, to work on the insulation and energy efficiency of the spa.

The use of a heat pump can also be considered for certain projects to reduce the energy needed for water heating.

For an establishment open several months a year, these differences can become significant over time.

The location of the spa is part of the project

A spa should not be chosen independently of where it will be installed.

A terrace with a view, a green space, a private suite, or a wellness area will not necessarily require the same approach.

It is also necessary to anticipate much more practical aspects:

How will the spa be delivered?

Can the floor support its weight once filled?

Will the technical equipment remain accessible?

How will the electrical supply, water inlet, and drainage be done if necessary?

How will the maintenance team be able to intervene easily?

These questions seem secondary when one simply looks at a photograph of a spa.

In the field, however, they can make all the difference.

Design also matters

A professional spa remains an element visible to customers.

Its aesthetics therefore fully contribute to the image of the establishment.

And this is particularly interesting with Aquavia Spa, as the manufacturer offers different approaches depending on the projects: acrylic spas, stainless steel solutions, or creations allowing mosaic integration.

The spa can thus become a true architectural element.

In a contemporary hotel, a high-end residence, or a wellness area, this integration capability can be decisive.

Aquavia Spa: an experience also geared towards professionals

Aquavia Spa is mainly known for its residential spas, but the manufacturer also has real experience in the professional and hotel sector.

The spas are manufactured in Europe, in the Aquavia Spa factory located in Cervera, near Barcelona.

This mastery of manufacturing allows the brand to offer different solutions depending on the nature of the project: high-end residential spa, spa for intensive use, or specific integration into an architectural project.

For Provence Spa, working with a manufacturer capable of responding to these different configurations is particularly important.

Because two establishments may want to install a spa while having completely different needs.

Provence Spa and the outdoor accommodation sector

Supporting professionals is also part of our own history.

It was at the SETT show in Montpellier, alongside Aquavia Spa, who had invited us to participate in the event, that Provence Spa sold its first professional spa for a campsite.

A particularly important experience for us.

Because behind the sale of a professional spa, discussions quickly turn to very concrete issues: attendance, operation, maintenance, location, and customer expectations.

This is also what makes professional trade shows interesting: they allow technical solutions to be compared with the daily realities of operators.

Since then, this experience has naturally been part of our approach when we discuss a project with a professional.

Hotel, campsite, gîte: each project deserves its own solution

Ultimately, there is no one ideal spa for all professionals.

A bed and breakfast wishing to offer a private spa for two people will not have the same constraints as a campsite wishing to create a wellness area accessible to many vacationers.

Before choosing a model, we therefore prefer to start by understanding the project:

Who will use the spa?

How many people?

How often?

Will it be private or collective?

Indoors or outdoors?

What place will it occupy in the customer experience offered?

The answers to these questions then allow us to determine the most suitable Aquavia Spa solution.

Our Provence Spa advice

For a tourist establishment, do not choose your spa solely from a catalog.

The number of jets or the aesthetics of the model are important, but they represent only a part of the project.

Think from the outset about its real use, its attendance, maintenance, energy consumption, and the technical constraints of its location.

A correctly chosen and integrated spa should become an asset for your establishment, not an additional constraint for your team.

At Provence Spa, we can assist you in your reflection and guide you towards the Aquavia Spa solutions adapted to your professional project.

In summary

Installing a spa in a hotel, campsite, gîte, or tourist accommodation can bring real added value to the customer experience.

But a professional project must be considered as a whole:

use, attendance, filtration, maintenance, energy consumption, location, and aesthetic integration.

With its European manufacturing and solutions for both private installations and professional projects, Aquavia Spa can meet very different configurations.

And at Provence Spa, our role is precisely to help you find the one that truly suits your establishment.