Airport Experience® News - ACDBE Issue 2025

Departures Terminal and one pre-security at the Fairmont Vancouver Airport Hotel. “Travelers are once again seeking out our services to help them decompress and reset, and we’re seeing a return to pre-pandemic numbers in our busiest locations.” At Spa Here in Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) there’s also been a steady return of traffic and a positive recovery in revenue as traveler confidence in spa services has increased since the height of the pandemic, notes CEO Marisol Binn. “We’ve emerged from the pandemic stronger, adapting to new safety protocols and shifting traveler needs,” she says. For Be Relax , which has 33 airport spa locations worldwide, being nimble was key to surviving the reopening process after the shutdown. “Covid was a big hit for us but we were able to adjust, rethink our business model and focus on the locations that were performing the best,” says Lorene Pidoux, marketing and design manager. “Traffic

returned quickly and passengers were in need of a place to relax more than ever. Since then, we’ve seen a consistent growth in revenue.” Perhaps no wellness company pivoted quite as effectively as XWell, Inc. , which in 2020 launched XpresCheck, a health and wellness screening service that provided Covid-19 testing at airport locations. “The pandemic posed significant challenges for our industry, but it also prompted us to innovate in new ways,” says XWell CEO Ezra Ernst. “Our XpresCheck initiative not only supported the travel industry’s recovery but also laid the foundation for our collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on the Traveler-based Genomic Surveillance Program, which plays a vital role in monitoring global biosecurity by detecting and analyzing emerging health threats in real time.” “Overall,” Ernst adds, “we’re doing better year over year and are optimistic about the vibe we’re seeing in airports.”

Opposite page, Below: Airport spas that managed to survive the Covid-19 pandemic shutdown and aftermath are seeing a steady return of traffic and revenue. At Absolute Spa—which has three spa locations in Vancouver International Airport—there’s even been a return to pre-pandemic numbers at the spa’s busiest locations.

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AX NEWS JUNE 2025