Marriott International is embedding a new generation of science-backed wellness technologies across its luxury and upper-upscale properties in North America, signalling a fundamental shift in how the world’s largest hotel group views the commercial and strategic role of spa and wellness.
Leading that effort is Suzanne Holbrook, who took on the role of Head of Global Spa, Fitness and Wellness for Marriott International at the beginning of 2025. Drawing on multiple decades of corporate spa experience at Ritz-Carlton, Holbrook is overseeing a coordinated rollout of what the industry is increasingly calling “welltech” – a broad category of technology-enabled, science-backed treatments that extends well beyond the traditional spa menu.
Beyond the massage table
The conventional understanding of hotel spa – massage, facials, mani-pedis, salon services – is giving way to a more complex, results-driven offering. Marriott’s approach involves integrating what Holbrook describes as multimodal experiences: treatments that activate multiple biochemical restoration pathways simultaneously, bundled into half-day or full-day guest itineraries.
Technologies now being deployed across Marriott’s luxury portfolio include red light therapy, photobiomodulation, vibroacoustic treatments, contrast bathing such as cold plunges, AI-assisted massage, VR meditation and lymphatic drainage. What unites them is a shift in wellness intent – from pampering to purposeful recovery.
According to Holbrook, the market data supports the transition. The global spa industry is projected to grow from $95 billion in 2021 to over $185 billion by 2030. In the US, massage therapy still accounts for 70 per cent of spa visits, but demand for advanced skincare, fitness and tech-enabled treatments is rising steadily.
Ritz-Carlton Amelia Island as a working model
The Ritz-Carlton Spa, Amelia Island has emerged as a reference point for Marriott’s welltech deployment. The property offers the TheraLight 360, which uses full-body red and near-infrared light therapy to reduce inflammation, boost energy and improve skin tone in a 20-minute session. It also offers LPG Endermologie for body contouring and lymphatic support, and the Mind Sync Mediation Zero Gravity Chair – a multisensory experience combining binaural beats, vibroacoustic therapy, chromotherapy and zero-gravity positioning designed to calm the nervous system.
These technologies were selected through internal team collaboration, with a focus on treatments that deliver demonstrable recovery benefits rather than novelty alone.
Packaging as the commercial lever
The most effective commercial application Holbrook has observed is bundling welltech treatments with overnight hotel stays, positioning wellness as a primary draw rather than an ancillary add-on. The JW Marriott Parq Vancouver illustrates this approach through its Serene Escape Package, which includes a complimentary session in the Mind-Sync Harmonic Sleep Lounger per night – weaving a high-tech recovery treatment directly into the rhythm of a guest stay.
The commercial logic is straightforward. Bundled welltech increases spa utilisation rates, generates additional revenue per guest and creates a differentiating narrative for properties competing in a crowded luxury market.
Repurposing underutilised hotel space
One underappreciated dimension of Marriott’s wellness push is spatial. Holbrook has noted that large hair and nail salons – once a standard hotel fixture – are now experiencing declining demand as high street providers intensify competition. The group is working with hotel owners to repurpose these areas as wellness recovery rooms, housing touchless therapies that require minimal staffing.
This approach serves a dual purpose. It reduces the labour intensity of wellness delivery while simultaneously addressing the growing guest appetite for self-directed, technology-enabled recovery experiences. Touchless wellness, in Holbrook’s framing, extends rather than replaces human touch – it broadens the range of guest preferences a property can serve.
Differentiated deployment across chain scales
Marriott’s approach is calibrated by segment. At luxury and upper-upscale properties, welltech is immersive and personalised, incorporating offerings like red light therapy, vibroacoustic beds and biometric diagnostics, integrated into the brand experience. At midscale properties, the focus shifts to scalable, lower-cost solutions such as touchless recovery pods, guided meditation chairs and in-room wellness kits.
The St. Regis Longboat Key Resort offers another illustration of the luxury end of the spectrum, with a Multistep Hydrothermal Wellness Circuit Journey combining steam room or sauna therapy, contrast cold treatments including a Snow Shower, and hydrotherapy pool immersion in a sequenced programme designed to deliver measurable physical and recovery benefits.
Staff training as the operational challenge
Rolling out these technologies at scale presents significant operational complexity. Equipment selection, vendor vetting, staff training and guest communication all require structured management. Marriott has addressed this through brand-specific playbooks developed in partnership with equipment vendors, combining structured education with intuitive technology design to enable staff to deliver consistent, personalised experiences across a large and varied portfolio.
Holbrook has acknowledged that welltech can be daunting for teams unfamiliar with the underlying science. The training investment is therefore not incidental but central to the programme’s viability at scale.
A shift in strategic positioning
For Marriott’s leadership, what is at stake is not simply spa revenue but the group’s positioning within a rapidly expanding wellness economy. The days of treating spas as amenities or cost centres are, according to Holbrook, firmly in the past. Wellness is increasingly expected to function as a revenue driver, a brand differentiator and a factor in guest loyalty.
With the Global Wellness Institute estimating the wellness tourism market will surpass $1.3 trillion globally, the direction of travel for major hotel groups is clear. Marriott’s systematic, technology-backed approach positions it to capture a meaningful share of that growth – provided the operational discipline behind the rollout matches the ambition of the strategy.
