If the internet has revealed anything about human nature it is that people are weird; they do weird things and they like weird things done to them, and spa traditions are no exception. There are some odd treatments out there!
Some feel strange because they're from cultures we unfamiliar with and others are marketing gimmicks, but there are a few that just have no excuse for existing.
Discussed in this Article
There was a time when a hot rocks were a novel twist on massage, but with the fierce competition in the spa industry (ironic for business based solely on reducing stress) spas and resorts are constantly having to invent new eye catching treatments to attract clients. So river rocks have given way to more exotic rocks; diamond massages, ice treatments & tequila (hold the rocks...)
Add to these modern twist, some century old traditions from far away lands and you have a cornucopia of creepy, kooky cringe treatments to choose from.
Geisha Facial - The Ikeda Spa in Singapore has a facial based on the gross traditional Geisha practice of using Uguisa (Nightingale) Poo as a mask. That's right, they rubbed bird droppings on their face because they believed it counteracted the effects of their lead-based make-up.
The spa today mixes the bird poop into rice bran, camellia oil, Azuki red beans and peach moon water to make it more appealing, but it would still be a NO for me.
Fish Pedicure - is a foot bath trend where the feet are soaked in a basin of warm water & Garra Rufa, or 'Doctor Fish,' that feed on the dead skin of the feet.^
The first record of a fish 'pedicure' is from Egypt 4,000 years ago. Today they're practiced in many place in the East, from hot sprigs in China to spas in Turkey to a lake in the crevice of a collapsed cave in Greece, Lake Vouliagmeni, where Garra Rufa are abundant.
The modern re-incarnation of the spa trend started in South Korea in the 2000's.
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^There are safety concerns around fish pedicures, the waters the fish live in are prone to bacteria build up and the nature of the treatment includes the risk of bites that pierce the skin leaving clients vulnerable to infection. The treatment is prohibited in parts of the United States, Canada, and Europe.
Dao Liao, Chinese Knife Massage, - also known as Knife Therapy is full body Chinese massage using the blades of (dull) butcher’s knives applied in a chopping motion to target Qi acupoints.
Snake Massage - where the client lays motionless while snakes of various sizes slither all over them, entwining their limbs.
The practice has a long history and can be found in the Philippines, Brazil, Russia, Israel and at the Bali Heritage Reflexology & Spa in Jakarta, Indonesia. You can even get one with a snake priestess turned therapist/ Serpentessa, in New York.
This one actually scares me, but as long as they aren't venomous that may just be reason to actually try it.
Bee Sting Treatments - those without allergies and a hankering for pain can try BVT - Bee Venom Therapy where you intentionally allow yourself to be stung by live bees. The theory seems to be not that the bee venom helps, so much as it stimulates or jump starts the bodies production of cortisol.
Less invasive are Bee venom infused cleansers and moisturizers used in facials, that are meant to reduce inflammation (which seems counterintuitive to me, since a stings make me swell up pretty bad, but what do I know..) or even more mild still, can Bee pollen infused products.
The Golf Ball Massage - a treatment at the Dromoland Castle spa in Ireland, where the therapist rolls golf balls on the muscles.
It sounds silly, but I have done variations of self ball massage, I can attest that the pointed pressure a hard sphere provides is actually quite effective. I imagine the added texture of the golf ball just makes the trigger point therapy more effect.
Nakieri Cactus Massage - Also known as Hakali massage, is practiced in Mexico. Nakieri means something along the lines of self-love.
It uses heated paddles from nopal cactus' for the massage. It's meant to sooth sunburn, but with the spikes removed the cactus as a tool is not much different than using stones or any other added tool for the massage.
Fire Facials - Popular in China they involve covering the face with a towel dipped in alcohol and a 'beautifying cocktail' - then setting it on fire.
The towel is only left on the face for a few seconds after lit. It's supposed to helps reduce wrinkles... (with a slight risk of reduced eyebrows as a bonus!)
Ramen Bath - The Yunessun Spa Resort in Hakone, Japan is half spa half theme park with a variety of specialized baths, like chocolate, coffee, green tea and wine, but perhaps the weirdest is turning your bath into a giant cup- o- noodles with their Ramen bath. (Noodles & egg not included, you bathe in the peppery broth.)
Lava Shell Massage - The Shine Spa at the Sheraton Grand Pune Bund Garden Hotel in India is a massage using Filipino tiger-striped clam shells filled with a sachet of minerals, dried sea kelp, algae, and sea water. The materials create a chemical reaction that heat up the shells - it's essentially an alternative to a hot stone massage.
Tequila Rub Down - The Vidanta’s Brio Spa in Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico does a deep tissue & lymphatic massage using tequila oil that ends with a refreshing blended margarita.
Fire and Ice Treatments- There are lots of variations of these floating about, in both facial and full body treatment form.
The 'Fire' portions are some version of wraps, masks or chemical peels that are theoretically fiery (though not always actuality, hot, which seems weird to me.)
Chemical Peels are the first nutty part to me - intentionally acid burning your face..
Next there's a cooling mask or application to calm the skin and then the 'Ice' portion; and the real crazy part: a cryotherapy or cool sculpting treatment.
Cryotherapy = cold therapy and it may mean standing in a cryo-chamber (essentially a giant, dry freezer), using cool-sculpting lasers to basically 'freezer burn' away unwanted body fat, or using cryotherapy frozen facial balls to 'shock' the skin into improved circulation and flush away toxins.^
Sometimes there is then a light therapy treatment to finish.
Why anyone would voluntarily make themself freezing cold is beyond me, and weird enough on its own but the cool-sculpt is truly wacky when you think about it - it's a 'health' treatment designed not to make the body function better but to actively kill cells in parts of your own body with targeted frostbite.
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^This is actually a nonsense theory, since the ice contracts the blood vessels decreasing blood flow... and 'toxins' is total woo, but whatever, it feels good, or at least stimulating, which is why they do it.
Glam Treatments
Not all weird spa services lean towards the gross - some are strange simply because they use unusually rare and expensive materials - possibly for no other reason than making spa goer feel fancy. So if you're the kind of person who uses $100 bills to light a cigar you may want to try a...
Diamond Facial @ The Thief Spa on Tjuvholmen (thief islet) in Oslo, Norway does a ‘Carita anti-ageing facial’ with real diamond and tourmaline powder.
Gold Treatments - Cleopatra was said to sleep with a gold mask on for her skin and today they are a multitude of spas that will paint your face with gold leaf or wrap you after a gold scrub.
Conch & Mother of Pearl Scrub @ The Palms Turks & Caicos Spa with hand-crushed queen conch shell mixed with sea salts and aromatherapy oils to for an abrasive scrub followed by a massage and special mother of pearl body milk.
The peels and glam treatments don't sound worth it to me but I'm intrigued by some of the others... How about you? Be honest, would you give any of these a go? Let me know the weirdest treatment you've had in comments!
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