Austria's foremost "spa and wellness" expert says technology is cutting into clients' ability to relax, even while at spas, and that this could render spas irrelevant if they don't address the challenge.

Speaking Thursday at ITB Berlin, Franz Linser of Linser Hospitality, said guests are having trouble unplugging at spas due to an onslaught of technology in what he called "an era of self-design in which we now find ourselves."

"At work, at play, even when we are sleeping, we are trying to be more efficient," Linser said. "We want to look younger, to be more attractive or efficient. This presents a challenge to spas as we know them."

Linser showed a video from Unilever's Dove to underscore his point that just as women often find themselves – consciously or not – trying to conform to unrealistic  beauty ideals, many executives he meets feel they should be able to always be able to perform.

He said that too many people to whom he consults are "more and more out of balance."

"They seek quiet and tranquility," he said. "It is in our intuition to find silence and a sense of nature. For this reason, we go to resorts and areas with concepts of wellness. People want to ‘refill themselves as people' and need help to re-center themselves. They need to regain perspective."

Linser said that "wellness and spa organizations are challenged with this new task. The branch once saw its role as helping people be healthier and to reduce their stress. But they must now also help people ‘optimize their selves.'"

Linser said that many wellness centers and spas have resorted to offering botox and other facial treatments. He said he feels this not optimal, and recommends that spas create therapy and life coaching programs where individuals' can hone techniques to reduce stress after they leave the spa.

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Jabeen Bhatti is a reporter and editor in Berlin, Germany. Originally from the Washington, D.C. area, she has spent most of her career in hard news and currently manages the international journalism organization, Associated Reporters Abroad (ARA). She gets out of Berlin whenever she can, enjoying local nibbles everywhere and finding the perfect hotel room many times over.