At hotel spas, CBD oil nets 900% markups - and guests pay happily

When Stephanie Marshall, a retail manager from Columbus, Ohio, signed up for a full-body massage during a weekend getaway at a resort in Pittsburgh, she expected an hour of relaxation.

Instead she got several upsell attempts. “My therapist wasn’t overly pushy,” Marshall said, “but her repeated tries to squeeze more money out of me diminished my overall experience.”

Upsells, or “enhancements,” as they’re often labeled on a spa menu, have long occurred after treatments with aestheticians hawking the high-end products they just used to make you glow.

But they’re now preceding treatments, or taking place in the middle of them.

Chief among these upsells is the use of CBD oil, promoted as a way to help spa-goers find deeper relaxation and to relieve muscle tension.

Craig Oliver, president and founder of Spas of America, said CBD has become so ubiquitous that it’s now featured in 80% of all luxury spas – including brands such as Marriott, Hilton, Rosewood and Mandarin Oriental.

And many of them charge $25 to $100 to swap in cannabidiol for standard lavender or eucalyptus oils, on top of the cost of the treatment itself. (Marshall said she paid an extra $30 for the CBD oil used to enhance her experience.)

The push can be seen as a confluence of several factors. First there’s the mainstream adoption of CBD, which has helped cannabis become a $27 billion global market according to industry analytics firm BDSA.

There’s also the fast-paced growth of wellness travel, which itself is an $814 billion industry per the Global Wellness Institute.

And then there’s the new economic reality for luxury hotels, which in the aftermath of the pandemic learned to expand their margins with slimmer staffs.

Markups on CBD oil are a prime way to profit. One spa director, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because she wasn’t authorized to share such figures, said her resort uses roughly 2 ounces of the oil during a 60-minute CBD massage, which costs the spa only $4 and the client $35 – an almost 900% markup. (The therapists get a $5 commission, so the resort rakes in $26 in pure profit.) That’s in addition to the $220 massage.

According to Gregory Miller, vice president for lodging, experiential leisure and wellness equity research at Truist Securities, spas typically account for 5% to 10% of a resort’s gross revenue.

They can be the deciding factor when travelers are debating between resorts, and are also a key reason for return visitation.

That resonates with Heather Stewart, spa director at Cavallo Point, an urban resort located under San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge.

“Locals who have gotten massages here several times are more likely to try new things with each visit,” Stewart said, adding that a $35 CBD oil is among her spa’s two most popular enhancements.

The other is a warm-oil scalp treatment.

For customers who pay for such upgrades, the extra charge can be worth it, adding novelty to a beloved indulgence or helping spa-goers to really, truly unwind.

For others, it’s stressful sticker shock.

April Snell said that when she visited a resort spa in her hometown of Colorado Springs, she didn’t realize the warm-oil hair and scalp treatment she’d been offered mid-massage came with an additional charge.

“They charged me an extra $25 but never made it clear to me it was an upgrade,” she said.

These types of offerings are everywhere. At Solage, an Auberge Resort in Napa Valley, you can pay $15 to add CBD balm to any treatment.

At the Equinox Hotel in New York City, infusing your rub with CBD adds $35.

It costs $65 to add a CBD lotion muscle rub to a massage at the St. Regis Aspen Resort.

And the Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island uses a CBD-infused bath as extra reason to switch from a $255, 50-minute massage to a $485 100-minute massage – it’s the only way to try the special soak.

Most spa directors work with their staff to make sure such enchantments are presented clearly and without pressure so experiences like Marshall’s and Snell’s are rare.

“Our therapists are trained never to be pushy and to put the guest experience first and foremost,” said Tracy Harper, director of the spa and wellness center at Sun Valley Resort in Idaho.

Although some enhancements may be suggested during a massage, she explains – such as adding a $105 body wrap to help a guest moisturize particularly dry skin – most of the time these extras are suggested before treatment begins.

Lisa Warburton, a data analyst from Phoenix, said that was her experience during a recent visit to the spa at the Grand America Hotel in Salt Lake City.

“I was just going to get a regular massage but decided to add CBD to it for an extra $30,” she said, adding that the spa was “clear and upfront” about the fee and that it was “well worth it.”

Warburton also said she looked over the spa’s services ahead of time so she wouldn’t be surprised by anything and would know her options beforehand – a recommendation Harper echoes.

“It’s great to browse a menu before your service to know what to expect. And don’t worry about telling your therapist upfront if you aren’t interested in any enhancements,” she adds.

Handled correctly, upsells are less a nuisance than a way to get a customized experience.

“Offering a unique and expansive menu of services allows us to tailor the experience to the needs of each guest,” said Morgan Hill, spa manager at the Relâche Spa at Gaylord Opryland Resort in Nashville, where CBD oil can be added to a 50-minute massage for an extra $35.

As she puts it: “Wellness should not be a one-size-fits-all approach.”