By Mary Rambin

To me, Vegas is more than poker and all-night parties. I’m really only there for Spearmint Rhino. Kidding! I like to spend all night wining and dining at one of the many fabulous restaurants and all day melting away at the luxurious spas. For years I’ve headed straight to Canyon Ranch on the top of the Venetian. If you’re a “spaddict” and haven’t experienced one of their resorts (Michelle blogged Canyon Ranch Miami last winter), you’re missing out. However, when the Aria finally opened, I thought such a expansive property must have a spa facility to knock my robe off.

I will not tell a lie and say their spa is THE BEST on the strip, but what I can tell you, is that you can pinch EVERY PENNY out of your treatment fee.

Let me explain. I called ahead to see what facilities (steam room, sauna, etc) they have. The kind receptionist said, “you will have access to the pool, the gym, and all of the specialty rooms.” SCORE!  My 5 star hotel, I won’t name names, had a small gym and no pool to speak of (if you know Vegas, you’ll guess it). So I planned to spend my whole day at the Aria for the price of one massage!

First I hit the gym. As an avid gym rat, I’m not happy without at least an hour workout to detox after a night of heavy Vegas intox. Most gyms in Vegas will charge you an entrance fee, even if you’re a guest of the hotel. More importantly there are two unique qualities to this gym: natural light floods through the wall of glass AND it’s populated. Other people are there working out so I could fuel myself off of their motivation. Because let’s be honest, in Vegas, no one really wants to be in the gym. The equipment is new and clean, and even had a legit spinning bike for me to conquer my cardio. If you really need an extra kick in the butt, they also offer group fitness classes.

I’m sure you’ve guessed my next move was to the pool where I ordered a lime beverage to recharge my energy (gatorade, margarita, they’re the same color). An hour nap by the pool would have been nice, but I decided to people watch instead. It’s Vegas; the crazy characters walking around there are priceless!

When I went up to the spa itself, I found it to be modern and minimal. Spas these days don’t really have an ambiance, have you noticed? I slipped on my delicious robe and found my way to the steam room where I sprawled out and commenced detox 2 for the day. After my muscles were thoroughly heated and I gave my body a quick rinse, I headed into the massage with John. As an athlete, I often opt for the intense deep tissue massage that often can be more painful than pleasurable. John was able to find a nice middle ground so I could doze off as he rubbed my aching feet. They offer an array of Thai massages but sometimes the straight ahead deep tissue or aromatherapy wins me over for its simplicity.

Afterwards he led me to the Shio Salt Relaxation room which cleans out your lungs, but it was too bright in there for me. Instead I de-robed again in “hot stone room” which is technically called the Ganbanyoku beds. The Aria is the only facility in the US to offer these traditional Japanese stone beds that enhance your circulation and metabolism. Wait, there’s more!  Other relaxation areas include: soaking pools, a fireside lounge, and co-ed infinity pool.

Needless to say, after the entire day at the Aria, it’s a miracle I was able to walk out of there on my own two feet.

Bottom Line: If there’s availability, book the reservation and enjoy an entire day at the Aria.

And this isn’t the first time a guest blogger recommended this!  Check out Sarah Berkley’s review of the Spa & Salon at ARIA.

Their $50 Spa Week treatments this Fall are:

• 50 Min Seaweed Wrap
• 50 Min Signature Exotic Manicure

The Spa & Salon at ARIA is located at 3730 Las Vegas Boulevard South, Las Vegas, Nevada. Call 702.590.9600 to book your appointment (and all-day relaxation) now!

Mary Rambin of MoreThanMary.com is a professional blogger and travel features writer for The Houston Chronicle. In NYC, she co-founded NonSociety and produced a weekly web series called TMI Weekly. Now she trains small businesses in the basics of social media amidst her travels all over the world.  Follow Mary on Twitter at @MaryRambin.

Gym photo via

It is a little known fact that the Spa Week Daily team moonlights as matchmakers. We hook up the most exclusive spas and the most fabulous bloggers on blind dates. Then bloggers preview a $50 Spa Week treatment, ensuring sparks will fly in a new media relationship.

Why do we pair up these hopeless romantics? For YOU! Check out their previews of eligible $50 Spa Week treatments, get the details and book it for yourself for next week at SpaWeek.com.

50 Min Hot Lava Shell Massage

The Happy Couple: Quattra Via Aveda and Stacey from SanDiegoBargainMama.com

Romantic Location: San Diego, CA

Quote of the Date: “Lava Shell Massage uses heated seashells for a super-relaxing massage experience. The session includes a beverage, foot massage, aroma therapy, music therapy and other treats you will enjoy for yourself.”

Read all about Stacey’s volcanic experience

50 Min Kiwi Pineapple Wrap

The Happy Couple: The Catamaran Spa and Rachel from BusyMommyMedia.com

Romatic Location: San Diego, CA

Quote of the Date: “I had such a great time during my spa mini-getaway that it got me thinking. What holds me back from pampering myself more often?”

Click here for Rachel’s tasty wrap up

50 Min Customized European Facial With Yam & Pumpkin Enzyme Peel Upgrade

The Happy Couple: Serenity Spa & Salon and Chelsea from www.SomeDayIllLearn.com

Romantic Location: San Diego, CA

Quote of the Date: “Everything she brushed onto my skin smelled delicious, and I was totally at ease knowing that the salon insists on high-quality organic ingredients as opposed to the harsh chemicals that so many places use nowadays.”

Check out Chelsea’s yummy, organic treat…ment

60 Min Hot Stone Treatment

The Happy Couple: Integrative Healing Arts and Sondra from HappyHealthHip.com

Romantic Location: San Diego, CA

Quote of the Date: “Having the hot stone massage was amazing and I highly recommend it to anyone who is able to take advantage of next week’s discounts during the official Spa Week.”

Read why Sondra says: “Everybody must get stoned!”

Check back! More happy spa couples to come!

It’s official: I’m BRINGING THE BANYA BACK.

Don’t ask me where it went or when it was ever here, and if you are Russian, don’t correct me by saying that it never left. Because in all seriousness, these Eastern European therapeutic spa havens are not present enough. There’s no reason why the Banya can’t become a mainstream way to spend a leisurely Saturday.

THE BROOKLYN BANYA

I took my cousin Karen along with me for an afternoon/evening at the Coney Island/Brooklyn Banya, located just off the Q train in Brooklyn, New York. Her boyfriend had wished her “good luck,” indicating his perception that bathhouses are filled with hairy, naked Russians in hot tubs. He is not alone in his perception, but I am thrilled to inform you that he is not accurate. Nobody was naked, not everyone was Russian, and very few of them were hairy!

Karen and I were greeted in the bright, clean facility and seated at a table by the pools and served our choice of flavorful hot pitchers of tea. The table was home base, where we ate, caught up on life, determined that the Russian music videos are slightly hotter than American ones, and observed our wet, social surroundings: A hot tub, a small pool, 2 saunas (one wet, one dry, both nearly 200 degrees) a steam room, cold showers, spa treatment rooms for massages, scrubs and other specialty services, and a generally laid back crowd of couples, friends and families.

There was a 21st birthday party going on too, and they were having a blast. Fifteen friends splashed around with blow-up duckies, lounged in the hot tub, drank beer, ate shish kabobs and did karaoke in bikinis on a cold November day. Amazing! Although the beer is a bit of a step back, these coming-of-age youngsters were actually doing great things for their bodies, too. Moving from hot to cold sensations is wonderful for your circulation and heart health, and one of the #1 reasons people go to Banyas.

I met an 11 year old girl in the steam room who goes to banyas all the time. “I have to,” she said. “I’m a dancer and a cheerleader and a gymnist and an ice skater.” Show off.

After testing the various hot and cold (mostly hot) attractions, it was time for the main event:

THE PLATZA

Platza is an ancient, invigorating form of Russian massage that involves the use bundles of birch, oak, or eucalyptus leaves to smack, splash, infuse heat into your body, and rock you into what I’d can only describe as Spa Coma.

Don’t be alarmed when your Platza-giver removes a “venik”—the leaf bundle—from a bucket of mysterious soapy water in preparation for your smackdown. A soak in hot water makes the venik soft and fragrant, providing an organic aromatherapy throughout.

I laid face down on towels on the sauna bench, and at first, the smacking was extremely enjoyable. The aggressive pitter patter of leaves up and down my body was awakening and soothing at the same time. Then, I heard something sizzle in the sauna oven, like a wet washcloth on a stove. Suddenly a gust of heat rushed over me and the veniks coming down on my body were now like miniature iron whips branding my body like it’s Colonial 1799.

Okay, maybe that is a slight exaggeration, but WOAH, those babies were hot. He alternated smacking with pressing the leaves into my body, as though I was a stubborn shirt crease and he was an iron. The crazy part is, it didn’t even feel terrible. It was a tolerable stinging heat that I could feel penetrating my body on a mission to torch away any aches, pains and tightness within.

After about 15 minutes, I could no longer stand the heat. It was not because the veniks were hot against my skin—it was because I felt like a drunk asthmatic on mile 25 of a marathon in the middle of August. I got up and stumbled out of the sauna, only meaning to step outside for a minute to catch my breath, but since I couldn’t say it in Russian, that ended up being it.

In a fog, I was escorted to an ice cold shower which came spilling onto my head, too stunned to even flinch, and then was held by the hand until I softly descended into the pool where I floated mindlessly for about 5 minutes, slowly regaining strength. They set up a lounge chair next to the pool, beckoned me to come lay down there, and covered me in soft towels. As I laid still and giggled like a child on laughing gas, I could hear the navigation lady in my head say: “You have arrived at your destination, and may never move again.”

What an experience! I could feel my body kissing and thanking me for this sublimely rude awakening.

Karen didn’t last quite as long in her Platza treatment, and for someone who doesn’t try crazy spa treatments for a living, this was hands down the most outer body physical experience she’d ever had.

As we plucked the remaining leaves off our legs, there was one thing we both agreed upon completely: Our bodies felt awesomely brand spankin’ new.

Did I mention this is also a gourmet restaurant? We finished off our day at the Coney Island Banya with a delicious traditional Russian/Greek feast of bread soaked in butter, a Shepared Salad, Whole Grilled Branzini and Caviar Blinkies. One of the owners came over towards the end of our meal for an unexpected dessert twist:

SALT AND HONEY FACIALS

Our hostess mixed our tea honey with salt and had us apply it to our faces. Honey has wonderful skincare benefits such as acne healing, strengthening, tissue healing, scar reducing, and when mixed with salt, it also works as an exfoliant. We applied to our cheeks and chins in an upward motion, scrubbing the salt into our freshly steamed skin and let it sit for about 5 minutes. The perfect ending to our alternative spa day. Try it at home!

Speaking of trying… I encourage you to GO TRY A BANYA. Not just because I’m on a mission to bring the banya back; because I know you will love it. Bring a date! Throw your holiday party there! And GET. THE. PLATZA.

Check out the Coney Island Banyas for yourself. Here’s a little video and their information. They have festive dance parties every month, which I plan on attending too. Come join the Banya movement! For more photos, click here.

Brooklyn Banya
602 Coney Island Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11218
718.853.1300

Venik photo courtesy of communitrip.com

Disclosure

Guest post by Julia Allison, Media Personality and “machine of happiness”

Sufficiently relaxed *thanks to Spa Merge’s massage,* I hopped on my pink & white bike, Cupcake (yes, I named my bicycle) for the 15 block ride downtown to Spa Catchi.  Located at 115 East 39th Street, on a quiet, leafy block in the no man’s land of Midtown East, Spa Catchi was designed as a companion to their plastic surgery center, just next door.  In theory, you could get breast implants followed by a mani-pedi – or a facial chased with lipo.  I’m not quite sure who actually wants to combine such procedures, but my sense is that Spa Catchi, which just opened a few months back, is attempting to establish this as a one-stop-shop for all your beauty maintenance needs.

The Spa itself is quite small – more like a nail salon than anything else – but the people are super-friendly, and exceptionally good at their jobs.  I was scheduled for a 60 minute Catchi Signature Facial followed by a 135 minute combination Catchi Singature Mani-Pedi.  I’m not really a facial kind of girl (although I’ve always felt that I could be, were I to discover the right sort of facialist, and, uh … a surfeit of discretionary income), but I certainly know when something feels good.  And ohhhh, did this facial feel good.  Good enough, in fact, that I lapsed into a trance-like pleasure coma for a solid 40 of the 60 minutes.  Plus, when I emerged, my skin looked tighter, firmer and almost … pore-less.  Now, I have absolutely no idea how or why this worked, but I’m not about to argue with results.  Especially when the facialist, Yelena, herself had the most gorgeous skin I’ve seen outside of a fake, totally airbrushed magazine.  I actually pointed at her and said “That! I want that!!”  When she laughed (apparently it’s not the first time she’s heard such a request), she followed up by saying that she “works incredibly hard” on her skin, and it requires facials AT LEAST once a month.  I was sold.  Why even bother to advertise?

Now, I may not know a lot about facials, but I practically have a PhD in mani-pedi.  I get them at least once every two weeks, and have for the past five years (hey, some people have a wine habit or a shoe habit or a drug habit.  I have a mani-pedi habit.)  Although the salon itself isn’t particularly fancy – and until I asked them to turn it off, they had a headache-inducing five-minute informercial for their plastic surgery center running on an endless loop – it was clean and, most importantly, the manicurist was top-notch.  They had a small selection of colors (unfortunately none of the trendy “alt” hues like yellow/blue/green/brown), but the shade I selected, a pretty purple which just so happened to match my iPhone cover, has elicited many compliments in the intervening week.  They didn’t have a gel technician to administer the type of calgel mani I’ve been doing for the past six months, so we went natural – just paint, no acrylics or silk wraps or gels or tips.  Nada.  And yet, after Michelle was finished, there wasn’t a single smudge, and the nails – both on my toes and my hands, which get quite a bit of abuse with all the typing I do – are still practically perfect a week later.

Hands down (har), one of the top manicures/pedicures in New York City.

Take this quick and relaxing Spa Catchi video tour, created by the spa:

Spa Catchi Retreat from Spa Catchi on Vimeo.

Spa Catchi
115 East 39th Street
New York, NY 10016
212.980.3880

They just joined twitter too, follow them @SpaCatchi!

$50 Spa Week Treatments, October 11-17:
60 Min Catchi Signature Massage
60 Min Catchi Signature Facial
60 Min Combination Catchi Signature Manicure and Pedicure

We sent guest blogger Sarah Berkley to test out one of our Spa Week treatments, a Thai Poultice Massage, because she spent last summer in Thailand, giving her an authentic basis for comparison. Turns out things happen a little differently in Las Vegas… (and there’s definitely no Spa Week in Thailand)!

Having been to Thailand and gotten a few fabulous full body massages on the beach there, I thought I knew exactly what to expect when arriving at The Spa at ARIA in Las Vegas for a 50 minute Thai Poultice Massage. What I did not know, was what a poultice was. A poultice is basically a little warm sponge type thing (think of a half a lemon you sometimes get in a restaurant when you order salmon) infused with lemongrass, ginger and some other delicious smelling herbs.

I arrived about an hour early to take full advantage of the spa’s hot tub and steam room. I also spent a few minutes laying out on their outdoor deck which overlooks the main pool area with it’s own private pool. After that first hour, I was already completely relaxed, however the Thai Poultice Massage melted my body even more.

There are aspects of the massage that are very common, it’s a full body massage but then they rub the warm poultice all over you in a way that massages, exfoliates, warms and lightly tickles your body all at the same time. Mix that in with some stretches (which was perfect after my 4 mile run the day before) and I could not be anymore blissful.

When the massage ended and I wiped away a tear, I was taken to another area of the spa, which one can take full advantage of after a treatment. There is a room filled with hot stone beds (called Gabanyoku) where you simply lie down on a hot surface and close your eyes. After that, I visited the Shio Salt Room where you sit in a comfy chair with headphones on, and the chair vibrates to the music. My masseuse, Renee, explained that the walls are made of salt, which is extremely good for your upper respiratory system. Apparently, salt miners are in the right profession because they have a history of rarely ever getting respiratory diseases.

Book an appointment now for Spa Week at the ARIA! Check out the treatment offerings for Fall Spa Week, September 13-19.