To Your Health

Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine, Oct, 2001 by Christopher Elliott, Christine Pulfrey

TRAVEL | Sometimes it's okay to lose your shirt--especially if you're being pampered at the RIGHT SPA.

BARBARA SILLS can tell a good hotel from a bad one. The retired concert pianist from Verona, N.J., spent so much of her career traveling that she began describing herself as "part gypsy." But ask her about a good spa and you'll get a more tentative answer. Although she has visited some of the best-known resorts in the world--including the Golden Door, near San Diego, and the Hotel de Paris, in Monte Carlo--she says that "you can never be sure what you're getting at a spa."

She's right: When picking a spa, it's a good idea to be cautious. The $5-billion-a-year spa business is among the least-regulated but fastest-growing segments in the U.S. travel industry. According to a recent PricewaterhouseCoopers survey, spa revenues climbed by 129% between 1997 and 1999, employment at spas doubled, and the number of visits increased by nearly 60%, to almost 91 million, in that same time period.

Part of the reason for the increases is that people made so much money in the boom 1990s that they can afford to pamper themselves, says hotel-operations consultant Kyle Richey. The flip side is that folks who became so stressed out making all that money need what spas sell: muscles kneaded to a state of nirvana, nostrils filled with exotic aromas meant to sooth frayed nerves, and an assortment of stuff, such as mud and seaweed, applied to run-down baby-boomer bodies.

Industry experts say the recent demand for spa services has often been filled by some marginal players--especially among day spas. "There has been a huge race in the hotel and resort industry to build spas and make money," says Richey. "So there's a shortage of talent in the industry, both in massage therapists and managements." Judy Colbert, author of The Spa Guide, agrees: "Any property with a hot tub is calling itself a spa these days. You really have to find out where the massage therapists are trained to make sure you're getting a real massage and not a skin rub with baby oil." That will make you smell like a baby rather than elevate you to a state of bliss.

The first step in achieving bliss is understanding the three main spa classifications. A resort spa is a facility owned by and located within a resort or hotel that offers spa services, such as massage, aromatherapy and other pampering treatments. A destination spa is a resort that helps you manage stress and reach health goals, such as to lose weight or become physically fit (see the box at right for a sample of top resort and destination spas). A day spa offers services on a day-use basis. Costs are usually lower than at resort and destination spas.

There's the rub

AND WHILE SPAS offer treatments other than massage, the expertise of the massage therapists (who generally make up the majority of the staff) usually signals the overall quality of the spa. So checking qualifications is key. The educational requirements to become a massage therapist vary by state, and only 30 states and the District of Columbia regulate the industry at all. (A list of the credentials required for licensing is available at the American Massage Therapy Association's Web site, www.amtamassage.org.)

Most regulating states require at least 500 hours of instruction from an approved school, which experts consider adequate. In all states, a massage therapist's credentials must be made available. If a spa isn't forthcoming with its therapists' credentials, it's best to look for another spa.

In the states that don't license massage therapists, evaluating their qualifications is a little more problematic. Steve Olson, president of the AMTA, says that regulation in those states usually reverts to adult-entertainment codes--which is no help for a consumer seeking a therapeutic rather than an "exotic" massage.

However, you can check out the AMTA's state-by-state massage-therapist finders guide on its Web site (or call 888-843-2682 to order one). Each therapist in the guide has met the AMTA's standards, which include graduation from a qualified program.

The National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork, an industry group, certifies therapists who have had 500 hours of instruction in an approved program, or have equivalent professional experience and have passed a written exam. You can find massage therapists it has certified at www.ncbtmb.com, or call 800-296-0664.

But be aware that both these groups say they do not actively police therapists who hold their credentials. Generally, a license is yanked only if clients complain, and a lost license is a rarity. According to Susan Scoboria, the certification board's chairwoman, less than a dozen certifications are stripped from the group's therapists every year.

Most masseurs and masseuses are trained in Swedish massage, a treatment offered by practically every facility. A masseur or masseuse uses long strokes, kneading of individual muscles, and vibration to improve circulation and ease muscle aches.