To Your Health

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

However, growing in popularity is shiatsu massage, which was developed in Japan in the 1940s and is a cross between Swedish massage and acupressure (which is supposed to stimulate the body's inner powers of balance and healing by putting thumb, elbow and palm pressure on special points of the body). If you're used to the gliding and rubbing motion of Swedish massage, shiatsu will feel as if some poking and prodding has been added.

Or you may want to try Thai massage, which involves stretching and kneading. The treatment is almost like going to a chiropractor, except that instead of your skeletal system, it's your muscle and soft tissue that's manipulated.

Aromatherapy massage adds natural oils to the process, the odors of which are supposed to treat emotional troubles, organ dysfunction and skin problems. And in a rock massage, your body is slowly rubbed with basalt stones heated to about 130 degrees. The stones may also be placed on key points of the body or alternated with cold stones. The process is said to promote better circulation and reduce muscle soreness.

Check the specials

AT A QUALITY SPA, not only will your queries be readily answered, but you'll be asked lots of questions, too. A top-notch operation should inquire whether you prefer a male or female therapist, and find out if you have any relevant medical conditions. Also look into the property's staff-to-guest ratio. The minimum ratio at a quality destination spa is three to one. At a resort spa, the ratio should be two to one; at a day spa, nearly one to one.

But finding a good value isn't an exact science, and you'll run across plenty of barriers. The spa industry seems to go out of its way to keep you from comparison shopping. If you ask the International Spa Association to share its surveys on pricing, it'll be a quick conversation. There are none.

But here are some guidelines: In very general terms, the per-hour rate should break down to $1 to $1.50 a minute for a 50-minute session. The lower end of that range is usually available at day spas, where the facilities don't have overhead costs and aren't as expensive to build and maintain. An aromatherapy massage is normally priced $5 to $10 more than a Swedish massage. (The more exotic treatments, such as herbal wraps or hydrotherapy, are usually priced at $1.50 a minute and higher.)

With a spa vacation, as with a stay at any resort, the longer you're there, the cheaper the daily rate. For example, expect to save between $50 and $100 a day if you extend your overnight stay to a week. Such weekly packages can range from $1,500 to more than $5,000. They generally include meals and at least one spa treatment per day at the low end and all spa treatments at the high end.

But it may be shortsighted to measure a spa experience in dollars and cents, says hotel consultant Richey. "A spa is like a restaurant," she says. "I mean, how do you put a value on a steak? There are other things that matter, such as ambiance and service. You can't just say that a steak is worth x. It's the same thing for a spa."