Grass routes: How CBD spa treatments took the hotel world by storm

Sign up to Simon Calder’s free travel email for expert advice and money-saving discounts Get Simon Calder’s Travel email Get Simon Calder’s Travel email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. I’ve been intrigued by the use of CBD in skincare and spa treatments ever since Kim K threw a “CBD-themed baby shower” complete with pampering sessions for her pals, back in 2019. Not only is Switzerland’s prestigious and spendy Gstaad Palace spa hotel offering “high-tech CBD treatments”, where you’re scrubbed down with a mix of CBD oil, rose petals, lavender and hemp leaves, but Anantara’s Bangkok, Chiang Mai and Ko Samui hotels have all rolled out whole rituals involving infused teas, a soak in a bath of cannabis-infused herbs and a CBD oil massage. Because we’re applying it topically, we approach it from different angles – with a spa oil, with a cream, a roll-on and depending on the spa, a shot of our CBD booster in a drink.” Cain compares the anti-inflammatory, relaxing effect on the body to becoming ‘a well-oiled engine’ Don’t expect the traditional cannabis aroma, she says – OTO doesn’t use any “hemp terpenes” and blends its CBD with botanicals and essential oils, so there’s no unpleasant muskiness to the treatments. And if you’re already at the spa, “don’t be afraid to ask to smell the product,” she says – a pure CBD oil won’t have a hemp-like smell.