Meet Carlota Guardans, Wellbeing Manager of the Único Group hotels and discover the importance we give to the wellbeing of our guests.
Licenced in Business Administration, with a Master’s degree in Management from the IE, Carlota has worked for many years in the ‘beauty and cosmetics’ sector, and the hotel world has always been present in her day-to-day life. She loves to travel, discover new destinations and has always placed a great deal of importance on where she stays. Because of this, she decided to embark on her professional ‘adventure’ with Único Hotels, where she could combine her great love of hotels with her experience in beauty and wellbeing.
Can you define the role of a Wellbeing Manager?
Único Hotels are characterized by excellent service, elegant décor, thoughtful gastronomy and a passion for the genuine and authenticity. From the very outset, it was always about providing a great experience to the guest. Every experience should be unique. For us, the well-being of our guests is more than treatment rooms, it goes much further than that. We also offer healthy food, free yoga classes, and bicycle rental at the hotels where this is possible.
As the head of wellbeing, my biggest challenge is to ensure that the client does not see our hotels as just a place to go to sleep, but rather as a place where things happen and where achieving a sense of well-being comes above everything else. In each of our hotels we have an area reserved exclusively for treatments, always with the best people in the field and using the best products.
My work is to ensure that we offer the best treatments on the market and that we take care of every detail. In addition, I create a programme of other experiences and activities like yoga, cycling, golf, floral design workshops, as well as overseeing yoga retreats, rebalance workshops and cycle stages, to name just a few.
How important is it for Único Hotels to have a space solely dedicated to wellbeing?
For Único Hotels the wellbeing of our guests is extremely important. We believe that wellbeing is equal to happiness and ensuring the happiness of our guests is our mission. For us, wellbeing goes beyond going to the Spa and getting a treatment, but encompasses a whole set of things that happen in our hotels: great service, great food, an impeccable room, and discovering new experiences or activities.
What services do you offer in the spas? What makes them different to others?
We offer a great variety of fully body massages, facials, manicures, face and body rituals by Natura Bissé, and, of course, manicures and pedicures. Our therapists are able to advise guests on the treatment that is best for them according to their needs. Every one of our hotels, also has a dedicated fitness centre equipped with state-of-the-art Technogym equipment.
At Mas de Torrent, Finca Serena and Grand Hotel Central guests can enhance their experience with a sauna or hammam. And in the case of Mas de Torrent and Finca Serena, you can also enjoy a water circuit, relaxation rooms, a solarium and terrace.
Personally, I think what distinguishes us is seen and felt in the human connection. Every one of our therapists offers a fully engaged service and have a true passion for their work. We love what we do.
What type of activities do you offer throughout the year: yoga retreats, daily classes, detox programmes?
I love this part of the job. It’s where I can really get to work and I have a great time with it. I love interpreting trends and what my clients desire most. We see more and more that when our guests travel they want to experiment and try many different things.
For this, we never stop creating unique experiences. Over the course of a year, we’ll offer yoga retreats, rebalance and wellness courses, bike stages, golf packages, ceramic and flower arranging workshops and much more. On a permanent basis we offer free yoga classes, bicycle rental from the hotel, tennis classes and exclusive access to golf courses.
If we want to be authentic, each hotel needs to help its guests discover the destination. All of our activities are designed to enhance this journey of discovery.
So, you work with specialist teams across all different disciplines?
Correct. Every activity or experience we offer is overseen by a specialist.
Dermatology, nutrition, exercise and fitness – how do they combine as different retreats or treatments?
The idea comes from and is nurtured by the department of wellbeing. For this reason, I personally take care of organizing and controlling each of these details, though I have to say, I have the best team and they make it very easy for me.
What value do you think these retreats bring to the experience, aside from their amazing locations and the Mediterranean close by?
It’s all about customization and attention to detail, which is the result of everything we have done before and our ability to react to any unforeseen event so that everything goes well. Location and the magnificent spaces where the retreats take place certainly add to the experience.
In today’s world, happiness is about taking care of ourselves, and ultimately we want to help our guests achieve that goal.
