Spa and Hotel news from SpaCast.com. Part of Spa Index Media Network.

More on the remarkeable LEED certifications for CityCenter Las Vegas

CityCenter may very well change the way the hotel world looks at sustainability. For the first time in the lodging business at this kind of a scale, a company set out to incorporate wide-ranging green efforts in order to create some of the most environmentally friendly structures that have ever been constructed. 

Incredibly, six components of the $8.5 billion CityCenter project on the Las Vegas Strip have achieved LEED Gold certification, an accomplishment of Herculean proportions that is a total game changer for any significant hospitality project on a go-forward basis.

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Spa STAR report: Average spa treatment rate is US$146

Luxury spa participants in the Spa STAR performance report continued to show declining performance metrics through the third quarter of 2009, according to data released by STR. Through September year-to-date, the Average Treatment Rate (ATR) for the participating spas was US$146, a decline of 10 percent from the first nine months of 2008. For the same time frame the Average Daily Rate (ADR) for luxury hotels tracked by STR decreased 17 percent to US$240.

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#SpaCast: US medical spas facing state legislation

Medical spas in the US and elsewhere have increased in numbers and are popular as medical tourism destinations. Several countries have reported problems of medical spas undertaking medical procedures which neither the spa nor the staff are qualified to do. Unfortunately, this reflects badly on the majority who are professional. They have tended to fall between the gaps in legislation, but one of the first countries seeking to remedy that is the USA. Nationally, the number of medical spas around the country has grown from 500 in 2004 to 2,500 today. If this growth rate continues, more states will follow the four who are preparing regulations, and almost every sate has discussed the idea.

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Swine Flu Vaccine Arrives At Palm Springs area Day Spa

This seems to be the hottest property in Riverside County. H1N1 spray mist vaccines. There's a refrigerator filled with 100 of them. Up to 1,000 are on the way. We did not find them at a county medical clinic. They're all out. We found it at the Eterna Day Spa and Laser Center in Indian Wells.

How did they get this supply that county public health officials can't seem to get? Simple. Dr. Weisman's medical spa just asked.

"He actually was the first in the nation to receive it because he just had the foresight for that, far along, that many months ago that we would be needing this for the community," says Eterna Medical Day Spa's Lucy Schwartzer, RN.

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Are DIY facials bad for you?

With the recent burst of sunshine, we're all starting to think about spring-cleaning everything from our homes to our skin. And, with less disposable income around, when it comes to the latter, we're more likely to be relying on DIY versions rather than paying a professional - especially as many high-tech treatments once exclusive to spas and salons are now available in home kit formats.

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Boy, we sure hope so: Spas Add Years to Your Life

Did you know that April 16th is National Stress Awareness Day? Coincidence that it falls the day after taxes are due? I don't know, but spas can help. ISPA's research shows that the No. 1 reason people go to the spa is to relax and relieve or reduce stress.   Dealing with your stress today can help prevent stress-related illnesses (heart disease, stroke, depression) tomorrow. "There's quite a bit you can learn at a spa to help reduce stress," said Dr. Brent Bauer, director of the Complementary and Integrative Medicine Program at Mayo Clinic. "Things like meditation, acupuncture, massage and guided imagery - the right answer is to find what fits for you and incorporate it on a regular basis."

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