Hotels Combine New Fitness Offerings With Lessons in Local Culture

— -- Resorts have long been offering insight into local culture through cooking classes, but now fitness is emerging as the way to immerse guests in their surroundings.

Hotel fitness is going local. Guests who are no longer content with the resort gym or nearby running trails now have the opportunity to learn while staying lean.

Earlier this month, Muay Thai boxing classes were introduced at the Four Seasons Koh Samui. Muay Thai kick-boxing is incredibly popular sport in Thailand, but its roughness isn’t something you might immediate associate with a five-star luxury vacation.

The hotel started the program to give guests the "opportunity to experience the lesser-known side of Thailand's fascinating culture," said Jeff Rednour, General Manager of Four Seasons Resort Koh Samui, Thailand.

The day–long program starts with a private lesson with a professional boxer in the resort’s new training ring and ends in VIP seats watching a Muay Thai match at a nearby stadium. In between? A Thai massage.

"Hotels offering more localized fitness options is definitely an extension of the burgeoning health and wellness trend. Many guests are taking control of their personal wellbeing, so over the years we’ve seen hotels enhancing their amenities with juice bars, in-room work-out equipment like yoga mats, complimentary bikes, and fitness gear available in grab-and-go retail pods," said Taylor L. Cole, travel expert for Hotels.com. "The next obvious trend we’re seeing is allowing guests to experience more of the destination’s culture through the onsite amenities including fitness programs."

At Shanghai’s Hyatt on the Bund, Taichi is taught by local practitioners in the hotel lobby free every morning free of charge.

Cole cited other free programs like Ka’anapali Beach hotel in Hawaii and Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel in Southern California which offer guests complimentary hula lessons and surfing lessons, respectively.

There’s plenty of more local culture fitness opportunities stateside. At the Canyon Ranch in Tucson, Arizona, a 50-minute drumming class invokes local Native American culture while proving an abs – the class sits on balance balls for the duration – and arm workout. . And at the Red Mountain Resort in St. George, Utah, a two-hour archeological hike to view Native American petroglyphs created by the Anasazi Indians, a tribe that mysteriously disappeared some 800 years ago. Hikes are led by an archeologist. In South Carolina, stand-up paddle boarding classes take place along Low Country waters under the guise of seasoned instructors for guests of Charleston’s Wild Dunes Resort. Keep an eye out for dolphins between core-strengthening exercises.

"At Hotels.com," said Cole, "we believe this trend is driven by the need of travelers to have a deeper connection with the destinations they’re visiting."