Before diving into my spa review, I wanted to let everyone know this will be my last post for Spa Hopper. While I’ve enjoyed sharing with everyone my spa experiences and news, my life is going to take a major step in the corporate world and, though I’ll definitely need to go to a spa more often, I won’t have time to write any reviews.
Thanks for reading my posts and keep track of me on my personal blog MarCom Land. I hope you all remember to take some time to relax and unwind.
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Whether you work a standard 40 hour work week or sporadic night serving shifts, it’s really easy to end up feeling run down. Everyone needs a day or two to unwind, but many don’t feel like they have the time to take a vacation. I’m definitely one of those people. I’m always on the run and I’ve been told multiple times that I need to take a break. As it ends up, all you need is a few hours at a day spa to feel refreshed and revitalized. My spa of choice this time around? Harmony and Health Day Spa.
Welcome to Harmony
When I first entered the spa, I was greeted pleasantly, chatted for a minute and signed in. The lady at the counter gave me a short tour of the facilities. The decor was a pleasant mix of modern with natural colors and themes. Just the sort of calm, soothing tones one would hope for in spa.
I’d signed up to try out their infrared sauna before starting my afternoon. The staff member showed me how to work the sauna, it’s a pretty easy system to use, and told me she’d be back after my time was up. I’d come prepared with loose fitting clothes and my own towel, although they had fluffy towels available for use.
Infrared Saunas
Nope. This isn’t your ordinary sauna. I’d never used — or heard of — an infrared sauna until I planned out my visits to Harmony & Health Day Spa. I couldn’t help but hold in my mind an image of a steam sauna, the kind of thing that you see in those weird locker room movies where old men sit around in towels. Don’t worry, this is different.
An infrared sauna is a sort of large wooden box with a bench inside. The door is some sort of plastic or glass so you don’t feel claustrophobic when you step inside. It’s very small. there’s a comfortable amount of room for your legs, but not really any room to walk around. Basically, you go inside, turn on the sauna and relax until your time is up. They have different options for lengths of time, and since this was my first time I just did the basic 15 minutes.
A neat addition to the sauna that I hadn’t expected was the option to change the colors of the lights. It’s supposed to have something to do with light therapy, but I really just enjoyed soaking up the heat. By the way, you really soak up the heat. There’s no steam. It’s almost feels like the temperature of a room for hot yoga. You just sit, bask in heat and sweat. This is silly, but I wasn’t really expecting to sweat quite so much from an infrared sauna. I read that, while you do sweat, it’s more waste than water. Trust me, you still sweat a lot!
Harmony keeps their infrared sauna curtained off for privacy. Honestly, my only complaint about the sauna was that there wasn’t anything to look once the curtain was closed. On one hand, I do want privacy while I bask and sweat in the heat, but on the other hand, while the sauna itself isn’t too small, the closed curtain really made me feel boxed in.
When my 15 minutes was up, I toweled off and was escorted to the next stop. A spa pedicure.
A Spa Pedicure
I have a confession. I hate to have my feet touched, but I’ve still fallen in love with spa pedicures. I can paint my toenails for next to nothing at home, but a spa pedicure is one of the most amazing experiences and it’s worth every penny. I was sucked in once as part of a bridal party and now I love to spoil myself with them.
At Harmony they offer you a choice of beverage. I stuck with water since I’d just participated in the infrared sauna detox. Next, I climbed up on my cushy chair and sunk my feet into a warm pool of water. They also put a warm cloth, they called it an herbal neck wrap, around my neck. Between the heat of the sauna still in my bones, the warm neck wrap and the foot bath, I really felt like I was melting. There were also some aromatherapy-type herbs in the water. Overall, it was really pleasant.
The best part of this service, though, was the calf massage and exfoliation. By the time they were done working my legs I felt like jelly. I love the exfoliation stuff that they use. It’s just on the right side of tickling, so I don’t squirm and can just enjoy the sensation. The pedicurist painted my nails a pretty shade of red that I’d picked out prior to sitting down before I moved on to my next event.
Manicure
The final stop on my trek was what Harmony calls a Standard Manicure. I just wanted my nails shaped and polished, and even with a standard manicure, they still included a hand massage. The manicurist was really friendly, and this was really a great finish to the afternoon. It was overall a really lovely experience.
This was the longest period that I’ve spent in a day spa. I’ve been to other establishments for massages, a body wrap, and I’ve even tried microdermabrasion, but I haven’t spent more than an hour at a spa before. I’d also never had more than one treatment during a visit. This whole process took about two hours from introduction to exit.
Overall, the services offered by Harmony & Health Day Spa were top notch. The staff was friendly and the facility was clean and relaxing. It was just what I was looking for. On the spa scale I’d definitely rank this at, at least an 8 on a 10 point Spale score.
I think that the next spa afternoon — or day — that I take will probably have a different variation of services. I felt a bit out of place moving from the sweaty sauna to the cool — but comfortable — mani/pedi area. Also, while the sauna itself was very relaxing, and it’s definitely a good way to unwind, I felt more isolated than I thought I would, almost like I’d lost the calming feel that the rest of the decor had brought. But hey, at least the curtain really enforces privacy.
I’ll definitely go back for another visit soon. Overall, this spa is definitely worth a visit.
Take some time to relax and unwind.
Alicia
Photo by Harmony & Health Day Spa’s website.