90. A Destination Where History, Culture & Healing Meet – Daniel Spencer, Séc-he Spa; Colleen Pace, Visit Greater Palm Springs
Today’s episode brings to life three sectors of the global wellness economy, Wellness Tourism, Spas, and Hot Springs, in a delightful journey to one of California’s most popular desert cities that was named after an ancient mineral spring. We’ll travel to Palm Springs and visit the city’s newest spa, Séc-he, a 73,000-square-foot urban oasis located in the center of town above a 12,000-year-old mineral spring.
We’ll talk to Daniel Spencer, the visionary spa director behind Séc-he, and Colleen Pace, from Visit Greater Palm Springs. While tourism now contributes $8.7 billion annually to the local economy—with the area being famous for features like modernist architecture, golf, and music & film festivals—we’ll find out why wellness has been a central theme of the destination for decades. Colleen will explain how the area has been a mecca for Hollywood’s elite since the 20’s and the range of vacation and wellness experiences available in the Coachella Valley. Daniel will share details of the state-of-the-art spa and his passion for democratizing wellness, explaining how his showpiece spa includes a wide range of unique spa experiences in the day pass—from mineral water soaks to Himalayan salt chambers and zero gravity chairs.
In a destination where history, culture, and healing meet, we’ll also explore the unique juxtaposition of ancient with modern and how things have come full circle in this desert destination. It turns out the entire area was originally called Séc-he—which means “boiling water” by the Cahuilla People—and now in our modern day, the same tribe built a cultural plaza on their sacred ancient lands in the middle of town that includes a museum and a day spa, all built over ancient hot springs, 8,000 feet below.
In an architectural nod to the area’s history and culture, both the spa and museum are designed to honor the natural environment and the cultural heritage of the Agua Caliente tribe, with elements like stone, wood, and circular designs reflecting the tribe’s basket-weaving traditions.
Even the Agua Caliente bird song heard as visitors stroll through the Cultural Plaza is significant because it represents a core tradition of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, serving as a way to share their ancestral history, stories, and culture through song, essentially acting as a living record of their migration and experiences passed down through generations. It’s really no coincidence that wellness research has recently found that the rhythmic and melodic patterns of birdsong have a soothing effect on our minds, promoting relaxation and stress relief.
In fact the history of Palm Springs and its native peoples in relation to wellness was recently featured in the digital series produced by BBC StoryWorks for the Global Wellness Institute.
To learn more, visit TheSpaatSeche.com and VisitGreaterPalmSprings.com.
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Hosted by Kim Marshall
Produced by NOVA Media