9 Things To Expect When Visiting A Full Spa For The First Time

You see them all over the place these days with their grand entrances and high impact brand names. You’d like to walk in one day and be treated like royalty. Yet something is stopping you from walking through that entrance.

You don’t know what to expect. And you don’t want to look like a fool entering a place like that.

I’m not talking about those little stores nestled in retail malls that cramp everything into less than 2000 square feet. I’m talking about those big ones… that can sometimes take up a 5 storey building by itself.

Here’s what you can look forward to when visiting a real spa with a full range of facilities inside.

1) You will be immediately ushered into the changing room

If you are going into one of these places for the first time, you’d probably spend some time inquiring about prices at the reception counter.

You can do that and reveal yourself as a newbie… or you can just walk in and allow yourself to be welcomed into the changing room immediately.

There will basically be an affordable cover charge for use of facilities. If you bring home an average income, you will be able to afford this cover charge. The expensive stuff are for treatment and massages that will be offered to you when you are relaxing inside the spa.

You can always say no to these extra services.

Expect the friendly staff to give you a number tag which you can wrap around your wrist with an elastic band. This is to prevent you from losing this tag.

Women will go to the women’s section while the men will go to the men’s section. If you are going as a couple, don’t expect to see your partner until you leave the pool area in #2.

This tag will also be the key to your locker in the changing room. Reputable spas will also have their staff secure your locker with a password which you will provide on the spot. This is to prevent other patron from stealing your belonging by pretending to be you should you lose your number tag.

You will be expected to strip naked and given a towel or robe. As the first facility you will go to is the pool.

If you refuse to strip, people will start looking at you with amusement. Anyway, after observing other patrons stripping, you’d probably feel comfortable enough to do it too.

2) The pool is next

After wrapping yourself up with a towel, you will most likely walk into a pool area.

A proper spa should have at least 4 pools in this area.

1. main pool that has aqua therapy features
2. hot water pool
3. cold water pool
4. warm water pool

Just a warning that you should test the cold water pool before jumping in.

You will be going into the pool naked. Hanging stands with numbers on each hook will be located at the entrance into the pool where you can hang your towel.

Have fun with the hydrotherapy stations.

If you had brought along your cell phone and cigarettes, there will be small lockers to secure your personal belongings while you enter the pool.

At the perimeter of the pool, there should be tables and chairs where you can sit down and relax. Depending on how upscale the place is, you might also find snack bars beside the pool where you can consume some light snacks. It comes with the cover charge.

There will also be sinks with disposable toothbrushes that you can use to brush your teeth.

While hanging out in this area, you might also be approached by salespeople who will introduce the available treatment and massage services.

But you don’t have to decide now. Because should you say no to these services, the manager will usually come chat you up again later in a friendly manner.

3) Sauna

Within this section of the spa, the sauna is usually located in very close vicinity to the pool.

If you like saunas in health centres, just remember to have a drink of water before entering. You don’t want heatstroke to ruin your day of relaxation.

And grab a face towel before you get in. You’ll know why you need one about a minute into the cauldron.

4) Bath time

The bathing section is usually also located in this area. After all that sweat from the sauna, surely you need to wash up?

You will find a whole range of bathing lotion and shampoo in every shower cubicle. You don’t have to be frugal here. Use what you want to clean up.

You want to feel fresh and mint while you enjoy the rest of the facilities. The luxury shower heads sure go a long way.

Once you finish your bath, you will be guided to another changing room where you will be given casually loose shirts and shorts to wear. They might look like pajamas. But this attire helps the staff identify you as having finished with the pool, sauna, and bath.

It’s important in the sense that staff in charge of other areas will know to attend to you.

If had already decided to get a massage, you might then be guided immediately to the massage room. Otherwise, you will be advised to go to the lounge.

5) Lounge

This is where you can relax in luxurious chairs while watching TV or just having a chat with your friends.

If you had not purchased a treatment or massage, this is often when the staff will approach you again.

Just a word of warning. Salespeople at spas are very well trained. You will find it very hard to turn down what they are offering, especially when you are already in an indulging mode to pamper yourself.

In this area of the premises, you should also find a proper buffet consisting of simple meals and light finger food. Just eat whatever you want as they are part of the cover charge.

If you have to wait for your masseur or have just bought a treatment session, this is also a place where you can relax and wait for a manager to inform you that the masseur is ready.

If nothing else, this should also be a section where you can get basic manicure and pedicure services.

6) Massage

You might have reasons to avoid a massage. But then again, why would you go to a spa if getting a massage is not on your mind?

There be a whole range of therapies to select from including those of herbal baths, body scrubs, Thai massage, etc. Take your pick and let a professional make you feel good.

The standard duration seems to be 90 minutes these days. But of course there should be options available for you to extend it. It all about price at this point.

7) Luxury sofa

Some people go to this area without even using the lounge. They usually don’t have a massage to look forward to.

After your massage where you are most relaxed physically, you’d probably just want to find a place and lay down and take it all in.

A big establishment might have hundreds of individual sofa seats properly laid out in this area. These luxury sofa seats are so comfortable that you might not even want to leave the place.

It might be a reason why management allows customer to spend as much as 24 hours within the premises. This is so that patrons who want spend the night can easily do so without worrying about extra charges.

In each seat, there will also be a well mounted TV set that you can position in front of you. Expect a flurry of movies that you can watch digitally. If not, check out the local TV stations to find a show that you fancy.

Waiters will also walk right up to you to offer you a drink or snacks.

It can be so easy to fall asleep in this area. So do keep track of time if you have a deadline to meet.

8) Time to go

When you are done and finally found the courage to say goodbye to your heavenly experience, make your way back to the changing room where friendly staff will help you get dressed just like how they served you to undress.

Hopefully, you still have your wrist tag with you. Losing them can result in a lot of hassle.

9) Payment

This is the moment of reckoning. There is a price for pleasure.

If you are going in a group, it might be better to keep everything in 1 receipt so that you can accumulate reward points and maybe even get a discount.

If there is some type of packaged membership available that actually offers good value compared to the bill, you will be informed of it.

For example, if the overall price is $500, you might be invited to sign up for a $600 membership which offers $500 in vouchers and $200 in credits. It will be good value if you intend to visit the place again.

Don’t forget to use a credit card that offers cashback 😀