No escape into paradise is complete without a day or two at the spa. Sure, lounging by the pool and sipping an Aperol spritz is a close second, but to have an expert knead the body and make all the knots disappear is just the extra treat that we could all use when on vacation. To experience the zenith of this pleasure, One&Only Desaru Coast delivered it to GRAZIA Malaysia on a silver platter: with the cult-favourite niche skincare brand, Augustinus Bader.
It’s a truly exclusive service, one that can only be found here at One&Only Desaru Coast. It is one thing to be able to pamper yourself in the beautiful and innovative formulae of Augustinus Bader, but even doubly so with astonishing views of the South China Sea just a few steps away at the pavilion. The One&Only Spa here is a total oasis—lush greenery everywhere, with waterlilies dotted on the pool, and a towering banyan tree that adds to the grandeur of it all.
Once you’ve found yourself cocooned in a spa suite, the real treat begins. Adorned atop the counter is the complete arsenal of Augustinus Bader’s skincare and body care offerings. For the face, One&Only Spa has the Facial, the Superior Deluxe Facial, and the Eye Ritual, all of which will bring the skin back to its optimal performance. There is also one for the body, dubbed the Augustinus Bader Body Ritual. Promising to revitalise the body through massage techniques and the brand’s award-winning range of beauty goods, this was easily our pick out of the four services.
A Review of One&Only Desaru Coast’s Augustinus Bader Treatment
Once we changed into our robes, the Augustinus Bader Body Ritual began with a foot spa, where the therapist added flower buds and citruses into the warm water to gently exfoliate and detoxify. It included a massage that focused on the soles. This was already beginning to melt away our weariness from an earlier adventure: an hour-long nature walk around the luxury resort.
Then we hopped onto the massage table—kept warm at a cosy temperature—to prepare for the rest of the treatment. Utilising The Body Lotion, The Body Oil, and The Body Cream, the therapist began to gently tackle any and all of our areas of concern. Their near-magical fingerwork expertly loosened knots from our days of manning a desk five days a week, and kinks from bearing the city traffic, that soon enough it became a mere figment of the past.
They are also super attentive, giving verbal cues as to what would happen throughout the entire session. We think this is key for those who are sensitive to touch, and this was a way to include them in the indulgent experience.
Through the uniform successions, it quickly lulled us into a decadent nap—one that felt like a solid eight-hour slumber, even though it was a 90-minute treatment. At the end of it, the bed gently shifted into an upright position. Muscles sore no more, and all the Augustinus Bader products left a supple layer of moisture on the skin that lasted hours after. True to all of the product claims, the creams and oils sank into the skin, leaving no distracting texture—despite being applied liberally throughout.
All that was left to do after that was to find our way to the pavilion and enjoy a reinvigorating cup of ginger tea. The body felt light after the thorough massage, and the warmth of the bed and the tea was a delicious cocoon of comfort. If you’re making a trip to One&Only Desaru Coast yourself, this treatment will not only leave you with a pep in your step, but it will also eradicate any damages incurred from sunbathing, swimming pool and seaside dips, thanks to the innovative and effective Augustinus Bader Range.