Why Travelers Are Heading To London For Superclinic Skincare
The 2024 Wellness Tourism Initiative report, by the Global Wellness Institute, pinpoints a 'diagnostic boom in wellness travel' as a major trend for this year. This surge, says the report, reflects 'a growing preference for tailored and proactive health approaches among travellers. Many health and wellness operators now offer comprehensive diagnostic assessments alongside traditional wellness activities, enhancing the overall visitor experience.'
Inside the HVN in Knightsbridge, one of London's 'super clinics'. (Credit: AVC)
The report continues: 'These offerings empower individuals to gain profound insights into their health status and make informed lifestyle choices while indulging in the rejuvenating benefits of travel. As travellers increasingly prioritize preventive healthcare and holistic well-being, the diagnostic booms in wellness travel are set to continue to reshape the tourism industry by seamlessly blending medical expertise with luxury hospitality.'
When it comes to the wellness scene in London, this couldn't be truer. The city has witnessed a growth in state-of-the-art clinics and wellness hubs, of late, that are offering personalised, cutting-edge treatments all with diagnosis at their heart. The luxury club Surrenne, at the five-star hotel The Emory, for instance, is focusing on longevity with functional diagnostics ranging from cardiovascular and hormone tests to microbiome mapping. While the The HVN in Knightsbridge puts personalisation as its priority and offers everything from acupuncture to aesthetic treatments.
In fact, the field of aesthetics has grown to become one of London's big draws for wellness travelers, with a host of expert names, working out of Harley Street and from their own clinics across the capital. Perhaps, unexpectedly, luxury hotels are also catching on to the trend with big name properties offering the latest in skincare by partnering with well-respected aesthetic doctors to offer guests scientific-led treatments.
The Langham is one of London's top hotels which has collaborated with a leading aesthetic doctor, Dr Soni. (credit: AVC)
The Corinthia hotel in Whitehall, for instance has collaborated with The London Regenerative Institute, which has opened up at its ESPAlife spa. Founded by renowned plastic surgeons Mr Tunc Tiryaki and Dr Steve Cohen, the clinic offers restorative aesthetic treatments that enhance longevity.
While at The Lanesborough Club and Spa, guests can book in for 'advanced aesthetic' treatments, such as Soft Wave or Exosome facials, with Dr Galyna, an award-winning aesthetic doctor and wellness expert.
Dr Soni's clinic at The Langham hotel offers the latest in aesthetic and holistic treatments. (Credit: Rebecca Searle)
Dr Aswin Soni, a UK and US trained plastic and reconstructive surgeon (and the founder and owner of The Soni Clinic in Ascot) is the expert at hand at The Langham's Chuan Spa. Known for championing 'gentle rejuvenation' when it comes to anti-ageing treatments, his client-list is full to bursting with A-listers, who arrive for his 'light touch', undetected at the luxury hotel via a private entrance to his consulting room.
Having studied at Imperial College, London, and trained in plastic surgery at Cornell in NYC, John Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore and Royal Marsden Hospital in London, Dr Soni brings a medical approach and advanced know-how to his procedures, which vary from polynucleotides injectables to dermal fillers, with a focus on natural-looking and subtle results.
With a background in plastic surgery, Dr Soni brings a science-led approach to skincare. (Credit: Rebecca Searle)
'It's not about changing how anyone looks,' he says. 'It's all about enhancing. A big part of my job is the consultation. I never give an opinion on what I think needs to be changed, because it is not about me. I listen and ask questions and then we come up with a plan that is bespoke for each of my clients.'
Being based in a central London hotel, many of Dr Soni's clients are, in fact, frequent travelers (as well as high profile names), and he has adapted his approach to treat the effects that long-haul travel can have on their skin.
'Patients who travel a lot have more dehydrated skin in general, as there is lower humidity on planes which leads to skin dryness,' he says. 'Dehydrated skin leads to more fine lines and wrinkles, issues with pores, and changes to the texture and quality of skin.'
The Alumier Aqua Infusion Mask is a must-have for travelers, according to Dr Soni. (credit: Alumier)
He continues: 'I always tell my clients to use a hydrating moisturiser when they are flying and, if they can, to take a hydrating sheet mask to use on board. AlumierMD Aqua Infusion Mask is my secret must-have when I am flying. You simply apply it like a moisturiser, but it infuses the skin with deep hydration.'
London's current spike in wellness offerings has been described in a recent issue of Harpers Bazaar as 'the rise of the superclinic' with the 'new generation of luxurious cosmetic centres here to cater for a discerning consumer for whom tweakments are as normal as a dental check-up.'
Travel and wellness go hand in hand, says Dr Soni. (Credit: Rebecca Searle)
Dr Soni agrees that the landscape in the capital city has changed. 'It certainly feels like an exciting time to be working here,' he says. 'What's more, the narrative within the aesthetic industry has aso evolved over the past few years. Patients no longer want a 'quick fix' but are focusing on long term skin health and quality. It feels more holistic, rather than surface level. As providers, we are not just thinking about what patients will look like in the next few months but, instead, it's more about the next few years.'
'A big development of late has been regenerative injectables, with collagen biostimulators, such as Sculptra by Galderma, and Plinest HPT polynucleotides by Dermafocus, at the forefront of this movement. The worlds of aesthetics and wellness have truly merged.'
Sulptra gives a healthy-looking, youthful result. (Credit: Sculptra)
An 'alternative' to filler, Sculptra is a regenerative injectable that helps stimulate your own natural collagen production to smooth facial wrinkles and improve skin tightness, revealing a 'refreshed-looking' you. Dr Soni explains: 'After the age of 20, we lose about 1% of collagen per year. Sculptra is the first and original poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA-SCA) facial injectable that targets fine lines, wrinkles, sagging, and other signs of ageing due to collagen loss, gradually helping restore skin structure and volume.'
Also in demand, says Dr Soni, is Dermafocus—a combination injectable which combines HPT polynucleotides with a skin booster. 'You get the regenerative effects from the polynucleotides, which includes collagen and elastin stimulation, as well as the hydration from the hyaluronic acid, so it is an all-round winner.'
The Soni Clinic is a hub for those looking for subtle and natural skincare treatments. (Credit: AVC)
'At times, the aesthetics industry has had a bad rep,' says Dr Soni. 'That is mostly down to bad practitioners and horror stories when things go wrong. But, just like with any true luxury experience—including travel—it is all about a personalised, finessed approach, you can say the same for skincare. My advice is to choose your practitioner wisely.'
'At the moment, there is so much innovation going on within the world of skincare and London is at the heart of that. Many science-backed brands are really innovating and researching at an incredible rate. As the trends change towards collagen stimulation, and the health and quality of skin, certain brands are staying ahead, and innovating with thoughtful and innovative peptides, unique antioxidant formulations, and pioneering approaches to sunscreen. It is an industry on the rise and one that is at the forefront of science—the rockbed of the wellness industry, if you like. After all, if you look good, you will feel good.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
30 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Israeli forces kill 63 Palestinian in Gaza within hours of ‘humanitarian pause'
The Israeli military killed at least 63 people across Gaza just hours after declaring daily 'pauses' in operations to facilitate the passage of humanitarian aid, health officials said. The military said on Sunday it would suspend operations daily from 10am until 8pm in parts of central and northern Gaza, including al-Mawasi, Deir el-Balah and Gaza City, and promised to open aid corridors from 6am to 11pm to let in food and medical supplies. However, within hours of the so-called 'humanitarian pause' taking effect, Israeli forces resumed air raids. One reported strike targeted a bakery in an area designated as a 'safe zone', according to Al Jazeera. The humanitarian crisis continued to worsen. Health officials reported six more deaths, including of two children, from starvation in the past 24 hours, taking the total to 133. Among the latest to succumb was five-month-old Zainab Abu Haleeb, who died of malnutrition at the Nasser Hospital. 'Three months inside the hospital and this is what I get in return, that she is dead,' her mother Israa Abu Haleeb told Al Jazeera. The World Food Programme said one in three people in Gaza had gone days without food and about half a million were experiencing famine-like conditions. More than 20 per cent of pregnant and breastfeeding women were malnourished, according to the World Health Organization. Israel maintains that it is working to improve aid access and denies that famine exists in Gaza. But aid organisations say the situation is catastrophic, with a quarter of the population at risk of acute malnutrition. UN officials say the crisis won't ease unless Israel speeds up the movement of aid convoys through its checkpoints. A top UN official said last week Palestinians were beginning to resemble 'walking corpses'. Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, Unrwa, said humanitarian workers were encountering children who were 'emaciated, weak and at high risk of dying' without immediate intervention. 'Families are no longer coping. They're breaking down, unable to survive,' Mr Lazzarini said. 'Their existence is threatened.' Israel has severely limited the flow of food and humanitarian aid into Gaza, allowing only a small number of trucks to enter each day after enforcing an 11-week total blockade earlier this year. UN officials warn the current level of aid is merely a drop in the ocean compared to the scale of need. The Israeli military intercepted an aid ship bound for Gaza that aimed to breach the blockade on the Palestinian territory, detaining 21 international activists and journalists and confiscating all cargo, including baby formula, food, and medicine, according to the Freedom Flotilla Coalition on Sunday. The group said Israeli forces 'violently intercepted' their vessel, Handala, in international waters around 40 nautical miles off the coast of Gaza, cutting off cameras and communication shortly before midnight on Saturday. 'All cargo was non-military, civilian and intended for direct distribution to a population facing deliberate starvation and medical collapse under Israel's illegal blockade,'' the group said in a statement. It was the second ship operated by the coalition that Israeli forces prevented in recent months from delivering aid to Gaza. It was reported on Sunday that Jordan and the UAE had begun airdropping aid into the besieged Palestinian territory. But Mr Lazzarini said 'airdrops will not reverse the deepening starvation'. 'They are expensive, inefficient and can even kill starving civilians. It is a distraction & smokescreen,' he said in an X post. 'A manmade hunger can only be addressed by political will. Lift the siege, open the gates and guarantee safe movements with dignified access to people in need. Israel's war on Gaza has killed nearly 60,000 Palestinians, injured over 144,000, and left most of the densely populated coastal territory in ruins and the majority of its 2.2 million people homeless and starving. Israel launched the war in October 2023 after nearly 1,200 Israelis were killed and 251 taken hostage during a Hamas attack.
Yahoo
30 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Resident doctors strike in the face of a tiring public
Up to 50,000 NHS resident doctors are currently on strike over pay, their twelfth walkout since March 2023. So what? This month Labour announced an ambitious plan meant to revive a health service that is on its knees. Any detail from that has now been overtaken by a downing of tools that will severely disrupt medical treatments; could encourage similar action by nurses; and may lead to patient deaths. Here we go again. Ending resident doctor strikes was one of the health secretary Wes Streeting's first priorities. Last year he struck a deal with the British Medical Association to increase pay by 22 per cent. This was a temporary boost, since it only applied to 2023-25 salaries. For 2025-26, the rise was 5.4 per cent. Not good enough. This is better than the 3.6 per cent pay rise awarded to nurses in June 2025. But the BMA wants full 'pay restoration'. It says the salaries of resident doctors, who are still in training, are 21 per cent lower in real terms than in 2008 because of inflation. Damned statistics. The BMA uses the Retail Price Index (RPI) to reach this number. The government uses another measure, the Consumer Price Index (CPI). This is the official metric used to calculate changes to the cost of living, based on a basket of consumer goods. If CPI is used, pay has only fallen by 4.7 per cent since 2008, according to the Nuffield Trust. Hang on. The BMA's insistence on using RPI is based, in part, on the fact that the government uses it to calculate rail fares and interest payments on student debt. The latter is particularly relevant. Although they earn a relatively high salary after 5 years in training (£61,825 a year, excluding compulsory overtime), doctors emerge from five years of medical school owing as much as £100,000. Ouch. That's nearly double the average debt pile of British graduates. Unlike many other professionals, medical trainees also spend thousands of pounds on exam fees and courses. Another thing. Pay isn't the only grievance, with resident doctors also complaining about a shortage of speciality training posts, which means many get stuck on the middle rungs of the career ladder; an arcane placement system that requires them to move around the country at a few months' notice; and gruelling hours and stressful working conditions. Cash-strapped. This time round, the health secretary is less sympathetic and says there is no more money for pay rises. Last year's increases ate up more than half of the extra £10.4 billion given to the NHS. Streeting would rather be getting on with plans to revamp the health system. These are centred around shifting care from hospitals to the community; making better use of digital tech; and preventing sickness in the first place. Shifting opinions. The public seems to be on his side. In 2024, more than half of Brits supported strike action by trainee doctors. This has fallen to 32 per cent. The head of the Royal College of Nursing has said it is 'grotesque' to hand doctors bigger increases than nurses. Negotiations. In an unsuccessful bid to avert the strikes, Streeting made several last-minute offers, including accelerating doctors' training so they progress through the pay scales faster; giving them part of their pensions upfront; and subsidising exam fees. The toll. Previous rounds of strikes led to the cancellation of 1.5 million planned appointments, as well as five deaths. Labour is eager to avert more cancellations, having made much of bringing down waiting lists. NHS England has not postponed scheduled non-urgent care. What's more… The BMA has criticised this decision, saying it puts lives at risk. Critics have pinned the responsibility on them, saying they chose to strike. Either way, patients will suffer.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
First direct commercial flight launched between Russia and North Korea
Russia has inaugurated a new regular air service between Moscow and Pyongyang, a development underscoring the deepening relationship between the two nations. The inaugural flight, operated by Russian carrier Nordwind, departed Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport on Sunday with more than 400 passengers aboard. Russia's Transport Ministry confirmed plans for one monthly flight to accommodate demand. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who visited North Korea's new Wonsan-Kalma beach resort earlier this month to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, promised to encourage Russian tourists to visit the complex. The resort, which can accommodate nearly 20,000 people, is at the center of Kim's push to boost tourism to improve his country's troubled economy. North Korea has been slowly easing the curbs imposed during the pandemic and reopening its borders in phases. But the country hasn't said if it would fully resume international tourism. Regular flights between Russia's eastern port city of Vladivostok and Pyongyang reopened in 2023 following a break caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Russia and North Korea have sharply expanded military and other ties in recent years, with Pyongyang supplying weapons and troops to back Russia's military action in Ukraine.
