2_2_DiscoverBenelux_23_Nov_2015_Scan Magazine 1 30/10/2015 13:02 Page 68
Finding a sense of self and team at the Thermae resorts Once in a while you will head somewhere that is less of a visit and more of a homecoming, a rarity of a location whose beauty and luxury offer a sense of escape from the daily grind. TEXT: EMMIE COLLINGE | PHOTOS: THERMAE
In compact Belgium, it will not take much travelling to get to such a place – and, fortunately, there are now three locations, each going by the name of Thermae, offering a generous dose of bathing, beauty treatments, fitness, wellness, saunas and scrubs – all of which can be enjoyed with friends, family or coworkers. From a toe-tingling and relaxing bath in a vaulted cellar, a restorative sauna in the former icehouse of the castle grounds, or the 85 degrees Celsius pine-infused Black Forest sauna, Thermae Boetfort and Thermae Grimbergen welcome guests for an indulgent visit that can last hours or days. There is no cold minimalism at Thermae, it is all sensory lights, delicate fragrances,
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opulent gowns, warm wood and – in the case of the 400-year-old Boetfort Castle – ancient stone walls and vaulted ceilings. With two wellness resorts and hotels as well as the Thermae Sports Merchtem health club to their name, there is a vast menu of treatments on offer to exfoliate, hydrate, smooth and refine, spoiling guests with a legion of massages to knead away any knots of tension. The Thermae formula is simple; each of their wellness resorts have been designed with a well-considered trajectory through the facilities, including a regenerative refreshment break in their much-admired restaurants and bars. Whatever the combination – and whatever the location – explains Ellen Van De Wijgaert, Thermae’s
marketing manager, you will leave reinvigorated. As their resorts offer comfortable and well-equipped meeting rooms and seminar spaces, the holistic opportunities for bolstering team spirit (alongside your own) are plentiful.
The age-old wellbeing at Thermae Boetfort Set within Boetfort Castle, close to Brussels, this Thermae resort and hotel has earned a reputation as a purveyor of indulgence and equilibrium. With its acclaimed restaurant forming a staple part of any visit, guests mill around the castle, the annexed buildings and its grounds, basking in all sorts of mud wraps and body scrubs, as well as facials with essential oils, glacier water, Dead Sea salts, bamboo and mud.