BEWARE: Note that all the better reviews for this spa are from 2006-2008!
I am an avid day spa-goer and know what a facial and massage should be like and I know what they should NOT be like - the latter is exactly what I got at the Downtown Day Spa.
THE PLACE itself is cluttered - nothing nice or serene about it. I was never in the previous location, but the old adobe home that is the current Downtown Day Spa could have easily been made quaint and inviting, but it just looks messy and run-down.
THE FACIAL was horrible: started with a simple face cleansing, followed by a mask; I was left alone for 15 minutes while it set. She returned to remove the mask and gave me a short shoulder/neck massage - the only pleasant 5 minutes of my whole facial. She then applied another mask and said it would need to sit for 8 minutes – at which time she left me alone again! She reappeared to remove the mask, added a moisturizer to my face, eyes, and lips – and she was done! She was in the room with me for a total of 10-15 minutes during my entire facial. Where was the steam? The extractions? The arm/hand massage and scalp massage? Aren’t these standard in hour-long facials? If not, then I’ve been very lucky at the spas I’ve chosen up until now.
THE MASSAGE could have been nice, but the room was so cold that the therapist had to put three blankets on me. Of course, each time she had to remove a part of the blanket to work on me I would freeze. Also, the massage room has squeaky hard-wood floors. Every time the therapist moved, it creaked. Between the cold and the noisy floor, I couldn’t relax enough to enjoy the massage.
It was such a horrible experience that I could hardly wait to get out of there. The only upside to this is that I had a special – buy one treatment, get the other free. I’m still not happy that I spent $100 for a totally frustrating experience, but it could have been worse – I could have spent $200!
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