Even a cursory scroll through Carillon Miami’s 63-page digital spa and wellness menu clues you into the fact that you’re about to enter a treatment wonderland—a 70,000-square-foot nirvana where every virtually every beauty wish you’ve ever had can be granted. Truly, it’s almost insane how many modalities are on offer at the high-tech-yet-holistic Miami Beach resort. The mind boggles.
And yet, in a testament to Carillon’s dedicated, hand-picked staff, one doesn’t feel lost trying to decide between, say, the body-buffing and polishing Ginger-Coconut-Argan Sugar Glow, the Ayurvedic, stress-busting Tranquility Pro Sleep Ritual, or even a syringe of Jeuveau, a trending new neuro-toxin giving Botox a run for its money.
Wait, what? Ayurveda and injectables?
Yes, somehow—and surely the massive spa real estate has something to do with it—Carillon is able to pull off a huge array of seemingly disparate offerings.
Carillon Miami is a 70,000-square-foot nirvana where every virtually every beauty wish you’ve ever had can be granted.
The Palm Court
To really give you a sense of the place, let’s loosely divide Carillion’s offerings into two big beauty buckets: Eastern and Western. To be clear, these are my delineations, not Carillon’s. But there’s such a pervasive yin yang vibe at the spa that I think it’s helpful to know what you’re in for.
In the Eastern treatment camp, we have a Europe-inspired thermal hydrotherapy circuit that can keep you busy for hours; sea-themed Signature Spa Experiences; a comprehensive selection of massage therapies involving lots of quartz and Himalayan salt; wellness detox and body renewal treatments on dry float beds; organic body rejuvenation; multiple Shankara Ayurvedic modalities; global rituals such as Turkish Rhassoul for Two; and organic and raw facials.
And while it’s more mind/spirit than body, Carillon also has an in-depth Oriental Medicine program offering hypnotherapy, cupping and gua sha, among other treatments. Oh, and there are two on-site energy healers who guide guests through everything from pain management and smoking cessation to full-on addiction recovery.
Straddling the fence between Eastern and Western are what Carillon dubs “Non-Traditional Spa Experiences.” These range from “Uplifting Spirit” Onyx Meditation Ritual and Sensory Deprivation Therapy on the holistic end, to all manner of cryotherapy for the face and body on the high-tech side of the equation.
Meditation Ritual Meets Injectable Facial Fillers
Considering its proximity to Miami, it’s hardly a shocker that Carillon would also want to appeal to more mainstream, Western beauty proclivities. And in a major bid to capture clients who prioritize looking younger, it added a plastic surgery division in January 2019.
Headed by Medical Director James Stern, a board-certified cosmetic surgeon who also heads the Department of Plastic Surgery at Memorial Regional Hospital in nearby Hollywood, Florida, the division offers a multitude of injectable wrinkle-relaxers, a complete roster of dermal fillers, chemical peels, sclerotherapy, and Kybella, a fat-dissolver used to flatten chunky chins. Stern, an affable fellow with a thick mane of silver hair, also makes himself available for consults for more serious stuff like body contouring, breast augmentation, even facelifts.
It’s been a few months since I visited Carillon for a long weekend, but my stay there is fresh in my mind.
The Salt Float Bath
On my first jam-packed day I had a whopping four treatments: 50-minute Kombucha Radiance Facial; 50-minute Ginger-Coconut-Argan Sugar Glow; 30-minute Salt Float Therapy; and 50-minute Himalayan Salt Stone Massage. Of these four, the facial was the standout. After applying a series of organic potions to my Florida-parched skin, my esthetician literally pinched my cheeks into a more uplifted, youthful position. Heaven . . .
The following day, after a game-changing lecture—“8 Ways to Keep Your Lymphatic System Clean”—by holistic therapist Elaine Kroytor, I braved a 30-minute “Fire & Ice: Cryotherapy & Infrared Sauna” experience, followed by an hour-plus of quality time in the thermal area. Pinging from the ceramic-tiled Herbal Laconium to the Experiential Rains chamber, I then made my way to the Igloo, where I was faced with choosing among three “Arctic mists”—menthol, mint, and eucalyptus.
On my last day at Carillon, after another stellar talk by Kroytor (a no-stones-unturned dry body brushing lesson that had everyone in my group silently stroking their limbs in earnest determination), I somehow managed to squeeze-in a last-minute Instant Cryo Face Rejuvenation that allegedly boosts collagen and certainly didn’t freak me out nearly as much as the previous day’s full-body dunk in the deep-freeze tank. In fact, as the icy probe moved from my forehead to my jawline, it felt pretty great.
The author braved full-body cryotherapy
Right before I headed to the airport for my flight home, I had the good fortune to sit privately with Ricardo Kmentt, one of Carillon’s energy healing practitioners. Maybe it was all the massage I’d had in the previous two days, or the half-hour I’d spent in the womb-like flotation tank. Or perhaps it was just Kmentt’s soothing, soulful, respectful demeanor. At any rate, in the space of 15 minutes, I basically disclosed the deepest, darkest secrets of my entire life.
Initially, when I’d first walked into his treatment room and Kmentt asked how I was, I’d said, “Great. Fantastic. This place is incredible.” But within seconds, I’d changed my tune. Sobbing and grabbing tissue after tissue from the box on his desk, I got real. And later, when I spotted my red, blotchy, mascara-smeared face in the mirror, I’d never felt more beautiful.
Dana Wood
Dana Wood is the Contributing Beauty Editor at InsidersGuidetoSpas.com. She has been writing about beauty and wellness for decades, and no matter how many times she taps the words “hyaluronic acid” or “healing modalities” into her keyboard, it never gets old. Dana spent a total of 20 years at Condé Nast, serving as Beauty Director for W, Cookie, and Brides. A transplanted New Yorker, Dana now lives in St. Petersburg, Florida. Her peak spa experience? Dana says it’s impossible to decide between the Coco-Mango Body Buff at the Driftwood Spa at Jakes in Treasure Beach, Jamaica, The Land of Beautiful Waters Anti-Aging Facial at Four Seasons Nevis, and the 80-minute 5 Senses massage at the Spa by JW in Marco Island, Florida.