Schloss Elmau · Bavaria, Germany
Moving Schloss Elmau beyond the familiar spa story
The UK knew Schloss Elmau as a family spa hotel. ASA built its communications around the part of the property that made it harder to categorise: the meeting of culture, music, wellness and nature.
The property and moment
When ASA began working with Schloss Elmau in 2018, wellness and family travel dominated its UK profile. Both mattered, but neither expressed the full character of the property or explained why it was different from other Alpine retreats.
Schloss Elmau also had a concert hall, a substantial cultural programme and a long relationship with internationally recognised performers and thinkers. The communications opportunity was to bring those elements forward without losing the health, wellness and landscape that already drew guests there.
AGREED AIM
Broaden UK understanding of Schloss Elmau beyond the family-spa category by making culture, music, wellness and nature visible together. Work began in 2018.
CONDITIONS
The existing perception was well established, while the UK wellness market was crowded. Media needed to experience the property for the distinction to become clear.
The case we made
The strongest case was not that Schloss Elmau was another luxury spa. It was that few properties bring intellectual and cultural life into the guest experience with the same level and consistency.
ASA developed stories around the relationship between music and wellness, the programme of concerts and performances, and the landscape beyond the hotel. Together they gave travel, cultural, lifestyle and wellness editors several ways into one coherent proposition.
What ASA did
ASA developed the UK strategy and media narrative, then translated it into tailored pitches for travel, luxury, wellness and cultural titles. We arranged individual and group media visits, hosted writers and relevant creators, and pursued guide and award opportunities where they supported the same positioning.
The work continued through stories, media relationships and experiences that allowed journalists to encounter the cultural programme directly. Schloss Elmau provided access to the property, performances, wellness offer and surrounding landscape.
IN HOUSE / PARTNERS
ASA led UK strategy, story development, media relations, visits, guide submissions and award opportunities. Schloss Elmau hosted the experiences.
REVIEWED
The brief was not formally reviewed. The same positioning was developed through successive stories and visits.
What happened
The resulting coverage presented more than a spa. The Telegraph used a dance retreat to explore the property’s cultural life. The Financial Times, Tatler, The Independent and BBC Two each approached the combination of culture, landscape and wellbeing from a different direction.
Schloss Elmau was also named winner of The Culturalist Award at the 2026 OutThere Experientialist Awards.
What came next
ASA continues to develop stories about culture, music, wellness and nature. Each new angle can add to the wider picture without returning to the narrower family-spa description.