European Health & Spa Awards 2019

The 10th anniversary and the winners of the European Health & Spa Awards 2019 were celebrated!

The highly coveted awards of the wellness industry, the European HEALTH & SPA AWARDs, were presented for the eleventh time. This time at the luxurious Grand Hotel Wien in the heart of the city on the Ring boulevard. The so-called Oscars of the industry are the only independent awards in the health and wellness sector and recognize Europe's best establishments for their outstanding achievements. The awards ceremony took place on Tuesday evening, June 25, 2019. Once again, numerous celebrities and international guests and companies came to celebrate the top-class submissions and the anniversary.


The guests were welcomed with a glass of champagne and were able to use the time for a little networking to exchange information about the latest developments and innovations in the industry.

At around 19:30, the doors to the grand and glamorous ballroom of the Grand Hotel Wien opened and the guests were greeted by a glittering sight. In keeping with the occasion, the hall was bathed in subtle candlelight and shone with understated elegance. As the guests took their seats and it slowly became quiet, the excitement grew. Everyone eagerly awaited the appearance of Ö3 presenter Olivia Peter, who led through the program in her usual charming and humorous manner, while the starter of mixed leaf salad with goat's cheese and figs of the 4-course gala dinner was enjoyed. This was followed by asparagus cream soup made from Marchfeld asparagus, perfectly tempered and topped with a fine cream topping. Before the excitement reached its climax and the winners were awarded, there was salmon trout with delicious fregola, tender organic baby spinach and fresh chanterelles. The crowning glory was a fruity strawberry and yoghurt terrine with roasted white chocolate and strawberries. This was served with Grüner Veltliner, Chardonnay and Rheinriesling fine wines from the Hintermayer winery.


Musical highlights

Once again this year, a great supporting program was offered by the band Gini & Fellas. The quartet's outstanding musicians were singer Gini Lampl, Paul Temmel on piano, Michael Seyfried on drums and Clemens Gigacher on bass. They played everything from sophisticated jazz standards to well-known hits to entertain the audience with relaxed rhythms.


Glitz, glamor and 41 nominations

At 20:30, 41 nominees were able to present themselves to the audience and celebrities, giving a first impression of how innovative the various submissions were. In order to score points at the European HEALTH & SPA AWARD it is necessary to achieve a minimum score and the winners need a score of at least 30 points. The eight evaluation criteria such as health benefits, sustainability, cost-effectiveness, creativity, offer and service play an important role. Corporate social responsibility, which includes measures to ensure good working conditions for employees, is also important. The nominations were made in the categories of Best SPA Manager, SPA Hotel, Thermal Spa, Day SPA, Medical Spa, Signature Treatments, as well as this year's Best Spa Innovation and Best Technical and Best Cosmetic Product Innovation.


Spa Personality of the Year

Harald Kitz, a special personality from the industry, was also honored for the first time this year. He himself has often won the European HEALTH & SPA AWARDs for his haki concept. He himself celebrated his 15th anniversary this year.


Top-class jury

The assessment was carried out by a panel of experts and mystery testers, including experts, leaders and well-known people from business and the media. Since 2013, the points awarded have also been supplemented by "Brilliants", which are awarded from a certain number of points. Under this system, companies can receive 1 to 4 Brilliants, with the number of Brilliants reflecting the quality achieved in a very clear way.


The winners

At 22:30, the excitement of the evening reached its climax: the winners were presented. The organizer of the event and head of the Agency for Health and Wellness, Norbert Hintermayer, together with the jury members, FH Prof. Dr. Mag. Kai Illing, and Judith Ertler, summarized the jury evaluations in short laudations. The winners were given the opportunity to express their joy at winning in original and humorous short interviews with Olivia Peter.

The trends in the much sought-after health and wellness industry were highlighted here in a glamorous evening and new standards were established - another year of intensive preparations to pamper guests and increase the health benefits of spas can begin.


Prominent guests

Prominent guests such as Martina and Dr. Werner Fasslabend BM a.D., Kathi Stumpf & Alexander Beza, Rosalinde Halle, Roswitha Wieland, Carmen Kreuzer, Kimberly Budinsky, Andy Lee Lang followed the award ceremony with excitement and interest.

Photo credit: Agency for Health & Wellness / Andreas Lepsi