Ready for a Spa Cleanse at Miami’s Carillon Hotel?

I took the concept of spring cleaning a step further this year. After months filled with erratic eating habits (too much caffeine and too many sugar-fueled benders), I was feeling pretty lethargic. Luckily I found the perfect opportunity to purge these and other toxins from my body, with a Spa Cleanse at the Carillon Miami Wellness Resort 
Formerly the location of the renowned Canyon Ranch Miami, the property was originally designed as a health resort. Now rebranded as the Carillon, the new owners have taken up the mantle nicely Situated on Collins Avenue North – far enough away from the decadence of South Beach – the 70,000 square foot beachfront property includes state-of-the-art fitness facilities with panoramic views of the Atlantic Ocean. There are over 40 fitness classes offered, ranging from Off-Broadway dance and ballet classes to boot camp circuits to aquasize classes. There is also lengthy menu of spa services. Guest rooms are spacious – many come with full or partial ocean views – and contain standard luxury hotel amenities.

The three-day, all-inclusive Spa Cleanse, which also provides a take-home plan and recipe book to continue the cleanse for an additional three days, includes a strict meal plan (in this case, total elimination of caffeine, sugar and carbs in favour of copious amounts of water, fruits and vegetables and proteins), a customized exercise plan, sunrise meditation and sunset yoga classes, a personal training session, a detox massage, as well as two consultations with a nurse who provides a personal assessment and nutritional supplements.

With breakfast being comprised of a smoothie served at the juice bar, sit down meals are left for lunch and dinner, although there is also a mid-morning vegetable snack and mid-afternoon juice. Staff at the resort’s Thyme Restaurant are friendly and accommodating, and the meals served are delicious and generously-sized. Standout dishes included Shrimp with lime mint cilantro dressing, an enormous spinach salad with pomegranate seeds and pears; vegan tacos with guacamole, sunflower seeds, tomatoes and sprouts, and vegan raw lasagna made with cashew nut cheese.

In between classes and meals, guests can take some time to lay by the pool or on the beach, or take a stroll on the boardwalk – the Spa Cleanse is also meant to be a time to unwind and reflect (journals are provided to guests at the beginning of their stay). And sufficient time (approximately one hour each day) should be allocated to partake in the spa’s expansive Thermal Experience – a European hydrotherapy circuit that includes experiential rain showers, which are said to improve circulation. There are also Finnish-inspired hot saunas and a Crystal steam room to help release tension and tight muscles, and the thermal circuit culminates with ice-cold showers in the aptly-named Igloo Room (I would have probably embraced the latter more had I not just come off a particularly long Toronto winter).

The Spa Cleanse at the Carillon is an excellent way to kick-start better lifestyle habits. But just as the effects of a good spring cleaning will be short-lived if you start letting the dirt accumulate, the benefits of a good cleanse will only last so long as you maintain this healthier way of living. Your body is your temple, as they say, and it’s up to you to keep it squeaky clean.

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Lynn Burshtein is a regular contributor to Travel to Wellness.  She was a guest of Carillon in May 2017 and travel was subsidized by the Carillon.