Jurgen Wondergem: Guests no longer settle for massage or hammam

New luxury: health you feel

There is a quiet revolution going on in the hotel industry. Luxury is no longer just a suite with marble bathroom, champagne on ice or an infinity pool overlooking the sea. The new luxury is invisible, but palpable down to your very fibre: health. It is a shift that did not happen overnight, but has been steadily gaining ground in recent years - fuelled by a global reappraisal of well-being and quality of life.

Anyone visiting a leading resort today wants more than relaxation. Wellness is booming, but today's guest is no longer satisfied with a standard massage or hammam ritual. They want to recharge, strengthen their bodies, sharpen their minds. They want to live with a capital L; and hotels that understand this are tomorrow's winners. They seek experiences with substance, where the time they invest in a stay actually pays off in their health.

The numbers speak for themselves. The wellness industry is growing by over 10% a year globally. Wellness tourism is fast crossing the one-billion-dollar mark. And the offerings are growing along with it: from IV therapy and full body scans to personalised recovery programmes, sleep coaching, breathing sessions and stress management. It's prevention, performance and personal growth all in one - wrapped up in an inspiring travel experience as memorable as a special culinary evening or a spectacular view.

Exercise and recovery

I see it every day at the Royal Mougins Golf Resort, our four-star resort on the French Riviera. Our guests want to exercise and recover, savour culinary delights and detox, perform and recharge. They live consciously, cherish their time and expect us to help them make the most of it. This requires vision, daring and the ability to combine tradition with innovation.

That is why we are now taking the next step: a luxury, part-medical Health Spa. Not a gimmick, not a trend follower, but the beating heart of a lifestyle destination where golf, wellness and health science reinforce each other. We take inspiration from pioneers in Italy and Austria, where medical expertise goes hand in hand with natural elegance. Think physiotherapy combined with golf analysis, restorative fitness, sleep improvement and stress reduction - all under the guidance of professionals who understand that wellbeing is tailor-made.

Luxury is not in service or dishes

For me, this is also personal. After over 30 years of working in hotels and resorts around the world, I know that luxury is not in the service or suite, but in the care you feel. The moments when a guest says, "I feel better than when I came here." That is the essence. It's those genuine, almost intimate moments of transformation that make the difference between an ordinary stay and an experience that enriches your life.

True luxury is not what you own, but how good you feel. In an increasingly fast-moving world, peace and self-care are becoming scarce - and therefore precious. Our ambition? That guests will soon leave with more energy, a sharper head and a healthier body than the one they came with. That they take away not only photos as memories, but also a new standard for how they want to live.

That is not a promise of luxury. That ís luxury.