W Hotels and Bliss Spas have been an unshakable combination for Starwood Hotels. But after a tough year for the travel and tourism industry Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. has sold off the Bliss spa unit for $100 million to Steiner Leisure Limited. The Bliss and Remede brands will stay at the Starwood's W Hotels and St. Regis Hotels. Bloomberg News quotes Chief Executive Officer Frits Van Paasschen who said during a conference call in October that the company was looking at "assets that are non-core or that are so attractive that we can still get a good multiple."

The Bliss spa brand was founded in 1996 in New York City. The brand quickly grew and has become famous for its playful approach ot beauty and skin care treatments. The Bliss brand includes not just the Bliss and Remede spas but also branded products. Bliss products are also sold outside the spas through an e-commerce and catalog business and distribution in Sephora and many major department stores.

The brand is a natural fit for Steiner Leisure Limited which is a provider of spa services. The company operates spas and salons on 126 cruise ships and in 51 resort spas and two luxury day spas for brands that include Carnival Cruise Lines, Celebrity Cruises, Crystal Cruises, Harrah's Entertainment, Hilton Hotels, Holland America Line, InterContinental Hotels and Resorts, Marriott Hotels and many others. Steiner Leisure also owns and operates five schools that offer degree and non-degree programs in massage therapy and,skin care, training spa professionals for health and beauty positions at Steiner spas and salons.

Another resort is planned for the Florida resort community of Singer Island. The Resort at Singer Island will be an all-suite luxury resort that is part of the Starwood Hotels Luxury Collection. The oceanfront hotel has 239 one and two-bedroom suites and 66 residences. There is a formal pool with private cabanas as well as a grotto pool with a slide. The resort will also have a restaurant, rum lounge, spa, meeting space and an outdoor terrace with a wedding gazebo.Each room will measure 800 to 2,100 square feet and comes with a fully equipped kitchen, spacious marble bathroom, flat screen televisions, a Bose CD/DVD player and balconies to take in the views. The new hotel opens in December and they are now accepting reservations for February 2007 onwards.