The spa scene in Boulder is blooming.
Leading the growth is a new, high-end spa right in the triangle of three of Boulder’s biggest hotels.
True Bloom Spa + Wellness opened mid-May at 2660 Canyon Boulevard, near the Boulder Marriott, the Hilton Garden Inn and the Embassy Suites by Hilton. It’s not an in-hotel spa, but travelers are expected to be a big part of the business, in a town lacking diversity in the luxury spa hotel scene. The new spa plans to offer partnerships with the nearby hotels, such as chair massages during break-out sessions in the meeting halls or special high-altitude recovery packages.
That being said, True Bloom is making a special effort to elevate the spa options for locals.
Craig Newton, the spa’s “Chief Experience Officer” (that’s True Bloom for director), calls it a “brand new concept that fits perfectly into Boulder and into the spa industry.” True Bloom is entirely plant-powered. The products are vegan, cruelty-free and sustainable.
“We make moisturizers and exfoliators in-house out of plants, not out of a jar,” Newton says.
They come from the Plant-Powered Ingredient Bar, stocked with fresh, live ingredients that are mixed with oils and serums. Technicians custom-blend products before your service.
‘Bringing Five-Star Service to Boulder’
Also in true Boulder style, innovation, creativity and leadership are also values. That means you’ll see services here before you’ll hear of them anywhere else.
“We want to be the birthplace of new trends,” Newton says.
And he has the experience to make that happen. Newton has been in the industry for more than 20 years and has transformed multiple spas into Forbes 5-Star locations. For context, in 2019 there is only one Forbes 5-Star spa in the entire state of Colorado, the Spa at the Broadmoor. Only four other hotels across the state qualified for the 4-Star rating in 2019, and none in Boulder. (The St Julien Hotel in Boulder did get a Forbes 5-Star rating for its hotel. Only five Colorado properties across all categories — hotels, spas and restaurants — earned 5 Stars.)
It’s an incredibly esteemed honor. And Newton’s not new to it. He’s helped make three Forbes 5-Star spas. He worked with the Wynn Las Vegas and Four Seasons hotels in locations like Vail, Las Vegas, Hawaii and Whistler.
The Vail Four Seasons Spa is credited with bringing beer-related spa treatments to the United States, and now they’re viral. Naturally, True Bloom will have CBD treatments and is bringing LED into the mix.
True Bloom has a unique MicroSilk soaking tub, which has tiny, micro-bubbles that are small enough to penetrate the pores. The spa claims this oxygenates that water up to 70 percent more, and these mini oxygen bubbles can improve skin hydration, cleanse out impurities and even detoxify the system and improve the metabolism. You can take a soak alone or add it onto any treatment.
The spa menu features several different kinds of baths, such as a Remineralizing Bath (to help ease stress, fatigue, jet lag and muscle soreness). The tub is filled with oceanic minerals and freeze-dried seawater.
Even if 20 percent of the new offerings take off, that’s how you become a leader, Newton says.
As he explains the successes on his resume, “I surround myself with people a lot smarter than me. It’s because of the staff that surrounds me.”
That’s his approach in Boulder, too.
“We are bringing five-star service to Boulder,” Newton says. “Boulder is a destination that needs to be a spa destination, as well.”
He says he hopes to work together with the city’s existing spas to turn the town into a premier spa hub, in a similar way as his work with the Las Vegas Spa Association helped turn Vegas into a well-known spa destination.
Personalized Treatments
True Bloom is not a huge spa. It doesn’t have a hot tub or an elaborate hydrotherapy circuit. Instead, Newton says he wants people feel like they’re at home, and the focus is on custom service.
For example, when you enter True Bloom, you aren’t greeted by a traditional receptionist. The therapist or esthetician meets you at the front desk; nothing separates you.
Guests can pick an Intention Card in the lounge to set their intention for the day. This ties into the fact that every treatment can be customized. Is your skin dry from the altitude? There’s a hydrating facial for that, and it can be as personalized as much as you want. Taking it a step further, every service also comes with a take-home recipe to help enhance wellness from the inside, too. These are simple recipes that compliment the treatments.
For the Boulder locals, True Bloom offers a membership package. For a one-time fee, you get 20 percent off everything, seven days a week. (If you visit the spa more than four times a year, it pays for itself.)
Try This
Here are some unique or popular offerings at True Bloom:
Double Hydration, 50 minutes: This is a hydrating skin treatment especially useful for visitors. A HydraBrush Massage will transport Moringa Oil and Hyaluronic Acid biometic fragments into your skin.
True You Massage, 50 or 80 minutes: This fully custom massage starts with a therapist consultation, and the products are blended to match your needs and mood.
Tranquility Pro Sleep Massage, 50 or 80 minutes: This unique, light-touch massage is supposedly equal to three hours of extra sleep at night. It is designed to bring your body and mind into a state of deep rest. It’s inspired by the Indonesian Sea Malay Massage. Pair it with Tranquility Sound and a restful essential oil blend to help recover from jet lag or a rough night.
