Julianne DeMars stretched out on a lounge chair at the SpaHalekulani, her skin glowing from a mini-facial. She sipped herbal tea and snacked on skewered cantaloupe and melon while she waited for her manicure.

"I'm really a girly girl," she said with a giggle. "I just love to be pampered."

DeMars is 11 years old.

DeMars, visiting from California with her parents, belongs to a new generation of young travelers who enjoy spa treatments during vacations with their families. These young guests — primarily teen girls — are contributing to a growing interest in resort spas, which have become an important segment of Hawai'i's tourism industry.

Resorts like the Halekulani are eager to cater to these young travelers. The Halekulani this year launched a teen spa program — including make-up lessons, mini-facials and temporary tattoos. The luxury hotel also designated a concierge to cater to teens and tweens.

"So many of our younger families do travel with children nowadays," said Janis Clapoff, Halekulani general manager. "When they get here we want to make sure that we're treating the children just as we do the parents, with lots of options, with fun things to do that are interesting and diverse."

The teen spa program "gives teenagers the chance to indulge in a SpaHalekulani treatment that matches their unique sensibilities."

Spa treatments for teens are a growing trend, said Betsy Isroelit, spokeswoman for Spa Finder Inc., a New York-based spa travel and marketing company.

"It's definitely something we started noticing a few years ago, and we're seeing more of it," Isroelit said. "You've got a generation now of moms and increasingly dads who go to spas. So you've got a generation of girls ... growing up that are seeing their parents take care of themselves in this way. It's kind of a natural evolution that this is something they want to do."

DeMars was accompanied at the SpaHalekulani by her mother, Susan Schroeder, who also treated herself to a facial and a manicure. Both said it's a way to spend time together in a relaxing setting.

"It's like a mom-and-me time," DeMars said.

ADAPTING TO CLIENTS

Spas used to be relatively simple — with just a few treatments or a fitness center — but as customers grew more sophisticated so did the offerings, said Frank Haas, vice president of tourism marketing for the Hawaii Tourism Authority.

"Basically spas are a relatively new phenomenon," Haas said. "Like any developing product they're bringing more and more offerings for different market segments. So you're finding special treatments for teens and tweens, you're also finding couple's massages, you're finding special massages and treatments for golf."

Other Hawai'i resort properties have also tapped into the younger spa market. Some have minimum age requirements and require minors to be accompanied by a parent or adult. Such offerings can be pricey for parents. While some spa menus have items for about $25 or less, some spa treatments can run close to or more than $100.

The Mandara Spa just launched a "YSPA" teen menu last month at the Hilton Hawaiian Village Beach Resort & Spa and the Waikoloa Beach Marriott Resort. The body and facial spa treatments, which have a minimum age of 16 years, include a "surfers scrub" and "acne attack facial."

"We recognize the fact that being a teenager is stressful," said Kanani Pilares, Mandara Spa regional sales and marketing manager in Hawai'i and the South Pacific. "This is a way for them to detach from the world."

RETAINING INTEREST

The Grand Wailea Resort Hotel & Spa offers a variety of teen and even keiki spa treatments, from braids and henna tattoos to facials and body wraps, according to its Web site.

The Na Ho'ola Spa at the Hyatt Regency Waikiki Resort & Spa began offering teen facials more than a year ago and allows teenagers as young as 13 to get spa treatments (as long as parents remain in the room for those younger than 16.)

The number of teens seeking spa treatments is still relatively small compared to the spa's overall clientele, but it's growing, said spa director Jerry Ferreira. Sometimes mothers and daughters get massages side by side in the spa's couple's room, he said.

"It's a growing trend in the spa industry," he said. "Spas are becoming more of an opportunity for families to go and experience treatments.

"We're starting to realize that the teenagers are going to be the people who are actually going to spas within the next five to 10 years," Ferreira said. "So the earlier that we can make them aware of what spas have to offer, the sooner they'll get hooked on it and they'll want to come back. ... We understand that at any age nowadays stress is very high, so what better way to unwind."

Reach Lynda Arakawa at larakawa@honoluluadvertiser.com.