Luxury hotels as art galleries, wellness retreats, gathering places, and sports clubs. When hotels became cultural worlds, they play a significant role in shaping human lifestyle.

In June of 2007, as the then Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors for the International Spa Association, I was invited to Hainan Island in China for the launch of the Hainan Spa Association. It was my first visit to China, and I was delighted to tour some of the beautiful spas on Hainan Island. I was also given an incredible opportunity to sit down with the then Vice Governor of Hainan Province to discuss the future of the spa industry in the region.

In that meeting, Vice Governor Lin Fanglue said, “Hainan is known as the Hawaii of the East. Our goal is that one day, Hawaii will also be known as the Hainan of the West.” It was a noble ambition, and Hainan had a lot in common with its Hawaiian sister island. Both are tropical destinations known for their strong tourism industry backed by luxury resorts and beautiful beaches.

But Hawaii, as a destination, offers something that Hainan does not: an immersion into a new cultural world. Visitors to Hawaii are indoctrinated into the culture: the language, the food, the drinks, the music, the hula dance, the luau ceremony, the aloha spirit. I have returned to Hainan many times, and I love it there. But I have never felt invited into their culture in the way that I feel in Hawaii. This is what makes Hawaii one of the most extraordinary and meaningful destinations in the world.

This lesson is one I take with me into every resort/leisure destination I work on. How do we not only bring people to a beautiful place, but bring them into a cultural world? That is the leading topic of this week’s Leisure Roundup.

Enjoy,

Jeremy

Luxury hotels become cultural worlds
The World’s 50 Best traces a shift in which luxury hotels are becoming galleries, wellness laboratories, members’ clubs, and social hubs as much as places to stay. The strongest properties are using art, restorative rituals, food, and shared experiences to make hospitality a richer cultural proposition. (The World’s 50 Best)

Surenne Riviera turns longevity into lifestyle
Maybourne’s Surenne Riviera positions healthy aging as an accumulation of pleasures—seasonal food, sunlight, movement, and unhurried time—rather than a clinic-only project. It’s a good example of hospitality that uses setting and culture to support a longer, fuller life. (SmartFlyer)

Screen-time limits need human design
A four-study replication effort found that asking young adults to meet daily social-media limits did not, on its own, improve wellbeing—and that most participants struggled to adhere to those limits. The finding shifts the conversation from blanket restriction toward more personal approaches to attention, entertainment, connection, and digital leisure. (Association for Psychological Science)

Sleep as a signal for healthspan
Research summarized by ScienceDaily links both too little and too much sleep with faster biological aging, while sleep around 6.4 to 7.8 hours aligned with the lowest aging levels across multiple biological clocks. The result gives rest a sharper role in leisure: sleep is more than recovery; it is a condition for sustaining a full life. (ScienceDaily)

IHG takes the hotel beyond the gate
IHG’s US Open Racquet Cruiser turns the trip back to Manhattan into a branded hospitality moment, combining a premium motorcoach with food, express facials, post-match viewing, and loyalty benefits. It is a good example of how hotel groups can extend care, comfort, and recognition across an entire event journey rather than confining the experience to the property. (IHG Hotels & Resorts)

Earnings calls clarify hospitality’s crosscurrents
hotelAVE’s second-quarter hospitality earnings summary consolidates the current results and outlooks of major hotel companies at a moment of uneven travel demand and changing market conditions. The value of this data lies in looking beyond headline growth toward the mix of business, leisure, group, and high-end demand that is shaping operating and investment choices. (hotelAVE)

Amenities become a placemaking system
WATG argues that renovation and amenitization can be more than cosmetic upgrades when hospitality principles guide architecture, landscape, and interiors from the outset. Its framework positions communal spaces and services as the connective tissue that helps existing buildings become destinations where people want to linger and belong. (WATG)

Switzerland’s symphony of the senses
This stunning immersive soundscape from Switzerland Tourism reframes destination marketing by capturing the distinct audio rhythms of ice caves, mountain peaks, and scenic trains. It demonstrates how intentional sound design can deepen a traveler’s emotional connection to a landscape, turning a visual tour into a visceral sensory experience. (Switzerland Tourism)

Featuring exciting updates from Leisure Alchemy clients and partners.

Hospitality Vibes: The future of human connection
Jeremy McCarthy profiles EHL professor Maggie Chen, whose work on "Hospitality Vibes" argues that the industry's enduring value lies in fostering authentic human relationships and a sense of belonging. As digital disruption and AI increase, Chen suggests that spas and hotels must pivot from selling facilities to hosting meaningful social connections that combat modern isolation. (Spa Business)