Trust me chaps, join my post-7s wolfpack

“Once you step into Repulse Bay, your mind is settled,” proclaims Antonia Lai, Spa Manager at The Retreat. The newly-converted dairy farm and haven from the city.

I sure hope so, I think to myself having spent much of the last three days surrounded by Lady Gagas, fat boys in morphsuits and Alan wolfpacks,

So how would Retreat for a King, The Retreat signature men’s treatment fare in helping rid my sins, and cure me of the demons pulsing through my head and bloodstream? There’s a lot of wrongs to right.

Carol, my therapist gets straight to work. A swift but very pleasant foot wash kicked things off as I’m handed a clipboard with some very basic but embarrassingly telling questions. How is your skin? How do you feel? Do you have a headache? How much do you drink? (Uh oh, on current form I run the risk of falling into the ‘degenerate alcoholic’ category).

I’m as honest as I feel I need to be. “Just look at me,” I say to myself as I take my position on the table for my treatment. At two and a half hours long, this would be the longest I’ve been horizontal for several days. And oh my God, am I ready for it.

A further examination of my skin helps Carol decide what product she’s going to use to put me right. Today is an Elemis day across the board. I’m a huge fan of Elemis for the attention it pays to its wide and diverse men’s range, and so, it seems, is The Retreat which uses Elemis across many of its treatment offerings. It’s oils, creams and heaven knows what else, combined with Carol’s experienced hands find their way to the spots that needed them most. The brochures promise the deep tissue treatment will both increase circulation and soothe muscles. As Carol softly tells me she’s done, I have no arguments – two ticks in two very much needed boxes!

Time for my Skin IQ facial. The Retreat for a King treatment’s second phase. Appropriately named, I’m comforted by a five minute close examination under the strongest light I’ve ever had thrust in my face. “A little dry here, a little oily there, this part’s very nice, a couple of lines here,” just a handful of Carol’s observations as she assesses which of Elemis’s delight’s she’s going to employ to relax and repair my weary face. “A mixed bag then,” I mutter as Carol smiles back at me. “Better than a bag of spanners” I think to myself!

This, my first ever experience of a facial was really rather pleasant. I must admit I have always had reservations. I’m not a great fan of rubbing things on my face unless I’m in the shower and they can come straight off. But the four-phased treatment (cleanse, tone, exfoliate and mask) certainly re-energized my face, which notwithstanding the onslaught of the weekend’s fun and frolics, suffers a polluted beating day in day out, courtesy of the streets of Central Hong Kong.

Gentlemen, I urge you to give this place a go. If you felt like a member of The Hangover cast as I did on Monday morning, Retreat for a King will sort you out. And here’s a thought: Retreat for a Queen – the fairer sex equivalent reviewed by BBHK just last month – is a perfect excuse to make up for whatever it is you’re still apologizing to the lady of your life for, some four days on! Gentlemen, this is a wolfpack worth joining.

Drew Mills – Male grooming editor

The Retreat
1st floor, 33 Beach Road
Repulse Bay
Hong Kong
Tel:  +852 2803 1860
Fax: +852 2803 1862
info@the-retreat.com.hk
www.the-retreat.com.hk