Women prefer a spa break with friends rather than going shopping with them, a survey by one of Donegal’s leading hotels has found.
Research by the award-winning Shandon Hotel & Spa on Donegal’s Wild Atlantic Way may also have unearthed a new trend on spa breaks.
A total of 220 female guests surveyed since January found that 178 of them – or 81 per cent – preferred a spa day or evening with friends rather than going shopping with them.
The survey prompted the 4-star spa hotel to offer spa breaks timed to clash with late night shopping hours, says Shandon general manager Carolynne Harrison.
“This initiative was definitely customer-led,” says Carolynne.
“We now do spa events for groups of up to 15 from 6pm to 9pm in the evenings and it has proved to be hugely popular.
“Of course cocktails are included in the package – or mocktails if that is the preference – and slots fill up very quickly.
“It works out at around €33 each when a group booking comes in and certainly that’s a lot less than most women I know would spend on a shopping trip!
“Less than one in five still prefer shopping according to people coming to our spa but that’s totally understandable,” she adds.
The all-female customer survey also asked how likely the women were to bring a partner on their next spa trip – instead of a friend.
Just 34 per cent said they would consider bringing a partner at some stage over the next year.
Of those clients at the four-star hotel spa near Dunfanaghy who took part in the survey, the main reason given for preferring a spa break with a female companion included:
· ‘Girls are much better craic’ (56 per cent)
· ‘Sure I see him all the time’ (22 per cent)
· ‘He’d rather go to the bar’ (18 per cent)
· ‘He’d be a bit shy’ (4 per cent)
Shandon Hotel Manager Carolynne Harrison conducted the survey as part of marketing research for the award-winning destination.
“We were looking into new trends – and the spa versus shopping survey was key,” she says.
“The evening really works – especially for working mums.”
Carolynne also says staff had noticed more couples booking into the spa and the survey found around a third of women said they would bring a partner at some stage over the next 12 months.
“I suppose we were interested in the reasons behind it so we began asking clients for those reasons and it is clear that men are becoming a lot less spa-shy than they once were,” she says.
Carolynne said this may be the start of a new trend as men become more confident about taking a spa break with a girlfriend or wife or partner.
“It looks that way all right,” she says.
“It would certainly explain the increasing number of couples coming to the Shandon for spa-centred breaks and we would expect that to continue to grow.
“This is a romantic destination anyway, overlooking the beach and wonderful rooms overlooking the whole coastline. It is a special place and we are very lucky that way.”
Spa manager Eibhlin Cannon added: “I think some men are nervous about going to a spa but we find they can relax here within a few minutes and realise they need some downtime just as much as their partner and really really enjoy it.
“We see a lot of repeat male customers coming with girlfriends or wives and I think that tells us that once they’re hooked on coming to a great spa, they want to come back over and over again.”
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