Background
French-based Club Méditerranée, which operates 80 resorts under the Club Med brand in 40 countries, opened Club Med Cherating Beach in 1979. Located a four-hour drive from Kuala Lumpur on the east coast of Malaysia, the 80-hectare (193-acre) resort has 297 traditionally-designed wooden bungalows built on stilts and is Club Med’s first and only resort in Malaysia. In 2004, it underwent a major refurbishment, which included the upgrading of its rooms and the building of its spa. With its all-inclusive holiday package, including a children’s club plus sports and activities, the resort attracts mainly couples, families and large corporate groups.

The 3,750sq m (40,365sq ft) Club Med Spa Village, is set at the entrance of a jungle, amid lush green trees and the lulling sound of cicadas. The spa comprises two double spa suites with outdoor showers and baths, one double and three single treatment villas, and two beach cabanas for massages. At the Tranquility Centre, a spa boutique, reception and manicure/pedicure area complete the facilities. Treatments are not part of the resort’s all-inclusive package.  

The offer
The spa at Club Med Cherating Beach is managed by Mandara and offers around 20 treatments, including massages and facials by Elemis – Mandara’s sister brand – as well as its signature Mandara treatments such as Balinese and hot stone massage. Prices range from MYR140 (US$46, €35, £29) for a one-hour manicure, to MYR815 (US$270, €202, £169) for a two-hour, 20-minute body indulgence package.

Booking
Club Med runs a central website, but once you’re on the specific page for your resort it’s not easy to know whether the information refers to Club Med in general or the resort you want. There wasn’t a downloadable spa menu for Cherating Beach nor prices for individual treatments. Nor were there any pictures of the spa online.

Location and access
The spa is located right next to the resort’s swimming pool, central to the entire resort, which makes it impossible to miss.

Design
Club Med Cherating Beach is set next to the South China Sea with 4km (2.5 miles) of white sandy beaches in the middle of tropical rainforest. The Spa Village is reached via a wooden footbridge flanked by water features, that leads to a traditional Malay Kampong-style teak building that houses the spa reception, shop and mani/pedi rooms. Because it’s surrounded by glass with large open double doors, this area is airy and offset beautifully by the sounds of the jungle – it’s not unusual to see monkeys on the roof.

From the reception, guests are taken through the jungle to the individual spa villas which are also built from teak. Basic and earthy inside, they match the friendly and tranquil tone of the rest of the resort.

Cleanliness
The spa, like the resort, is maintained very well and is exceptionally clean.

The staff
A quick glance at TripAdvisor will tell you that staff at Club Med are second to none and are one of the reasons people love to go there. While the spa is run as a separate operation, its employees were all equally professional and friendly and spoke excellent English.

The experience
Our family chose a Club Med holiday because we wanted to escape the mayhem of living in a polluted city and to enjoy the benefits of an all-inclusive package. The fact that it was family friendly was also a key factor for us and I was delighted the resort offered to look after my three young kids during my treatment. While I was relaxing in the spa, they were treated to a jungle walk, mask making and an ice cream, under the watchful eye of a qualified childminder. For a mum, it doesn’t get any better than that!

Although the spa isn’t a child-free zone, it doesn’t include any kids’ treatments and given the number of families staying at the resort it’s in an ideal position to do this – and on a particularly quiet afternoon my friend was offered a special mother/daughter manicure. While it wouldn’t work in the main spa – most mums I spoke to wanted ‘me time’ – if offered at a set time or in a restricted area, I imagine children or family-focused spa packages could be a big boost to what I thought was a relatively quiet spa for a resort at 75 per cent occupancy.

I suspect one reason why the spa isn’t particularly busy is the lack of marketing. The spa menu on the website is difficult to navigate and there’s no option to pre-book. No emails before our stay included spa collateral and neither was it mentioned in our welcome talk nor cross-sold by members of staff – although I did find a tatty looking menu in our bedroom. That said, booking over the phone or directly at the spa when we arrived was very simple.

The spa menu was quite limited and I was disappointed there were no signature Malaysian treatments. Surely Mandara can come up with a massage using indigenous Malaysian ingredients! In the end, I opted for a two-hour Frangipani Body Glow, which included a salt rub, Balinese massage, wrap and mini facial, for MYR695 (US$231, €173, £144). 

At the time of booking, I was with a female friend and we both chose the same treatment. Next morning, we were taken to a couples room, which although wasn’t a problem for either of us, did come as a surprise. In the changing room-cum-bathroom, the pair of us were barely able to squeeze in together and the gap between the wardrobe and the wall was so small it made hanging clothes quite tricky. We were both given a gorgeous sarong to wear (much nicer than a dressing gown) and some ugly disposable underwear (not so nice).

The ambience in the room was perfect for a jungle-inspired spa setting. Not too dark, the windows at the front overlooked the sea and the sounds of the birds and the monkeys were lovely. I always prefer a natural setting for spa treatments than a darkened room with candlelight.
Before my treatment commenced, I filled out a questionnaire and noted that my cellulite was a particular concern. Despite this, when my therapist scrubbed me with the ginger and lime salt and body brush, her strokes were very timid and didn’t go towards my heart, which would have had little effect on my circulation (or my thighs!) and even though she did increase her pressure during my massage when I asked her to, it soon dropped off again.

When it came to shower time, I was given the outdoor shower – fantastic – but I felt my friend got the short straw as she had to use the cramped indoor facilities instead. After the treatment was over, we walked back to the reception and at that point, I would have welcomed a cup of tea but nothing was forthcoming.

Summary
The spa was really well designed and exclusive without being intimidating. The staff were helpful and happy to make last minute time changes to subsequent bookings.

Although I have no complaints, my only comment is that as an operation, there is so much more Club Med and Mandara could do to attract more guests.

Yet, overall, our aims of leaving stress-free were accomplished, thanks in no small part to the spa and its impressive team.