Are you looking for a new sparkle in your spa routine? How about moving one step up from the ordinary? Maybe you’d like a ticklish pedicure delivered by a shoal of Turkish fish nibbling on the dead skin of your feet? Or would you prefer a rejuvenating massage in a majestic spa boat as it sails around Lake Pichola in Udaipur?

How about a healing whiff of your favourite fragrance oil helping you relax at an aromatherapy spa? And if you thought spas were all about massages and body wraps, take a look at Gurgaon based FOS Laser Spa, which offers a host of beauty enhancing laser treatments. Alternatively, there’s now the Turkish-style spa at the newly-opened Aman New Delhi, with three steam chambers all heated to different temperatures along with a team of highly-trained masseurs.

“The spa customer is becoming more discerning as the market for spas evolves. To deliver a top-notch product and maintain the quality, the treatments have to be unique and the therapists must be thorough professionals with a magic touch,” says Geetanjalee Agrawal, brand manager, Harnn. “Most spas in India today are as good as the well-known international chains,” says Parineeta Sethi, publisher and chief editor, Asia Spa India. Sethi reckons spa owners in India work hard to make their products uniquely attractive in a competitive market.

Take a look at some new-fangled spas which are luring spa enthusiasts to experience the latest techniques of rejuvenation and well being.

Little Dermatologists

If you fancy an exotic pedicure, this definitely fits the bill. It works very simply: all you do is immerse your feet into a tub of water which is filled with tiny Turkish Garra Rufas fish. Within seconds, a shoal of these small fish also known as the ‘kissing fish’ will find your feet and start nibbling on the dead skin, thus giving the healthy skin a better chance to grow.

This hot new pedi-spa was brought to India by entrepreneur Shikha Chandra who was impressed by a fish pedi-spa she visited in the Middle East last year. She lost no time, learnt all there was to know about fish spas and started her own outfit called Happy Feet in South Delhi’s Select City Walk mall. “A spa like this in a mall helps shoppers relax and pamper their feet which start hurting after hours of walking around the huge mall,” says Chandra.

How it works is that in the spa tub you’ll find a multitude of Garra Rufas swimming in 800 litres of water. You start with a quick foot wash and a quick massage and then dip your feet in the tub. Once your feet get used to the tickling sensation it all starts to feel like a stimulating and relaxing massage. At Happy Feet, the Pedi-spa along with a neck and shoulder dry massage comes for Rs 550. Chandra has launched another fish spa at Delhi’s DLF Mall and is planning a manicure spa, next.

Smell and Tell

This one is for both the body and mind. On offer is a treasure trove of fragrant oils. You can take your pick of aromatic oils like jasmine, lavender, water lily and much more at the newly launched Harnn Heritage Spa. Spread across a spacious 4,000sq ft, Harnn is divided into a retail boutique, café and spa. Guests are welcomed with herbal tea followed by a foot massage. From there it’s off to a massage room where the therapist offers them a chance to sniff the oils and pick the one which they think is most soothing.

The treatments here are inspired by Thai, Chinese, Japanese and Indian traditional massages and are administered by experienced Thai therapists. “Each therapist has three to four years of experience as a therapist in reputed spas from Thailand,” says Agrawal.

The aromatic oils are teamed with traditional massage techniques, such as stretching, acupressure, warm compress and herbal scrubs to reduce tension, improve circulation and to help you feel rejuvenated.

Perhaps you’d like to try the Harnn Herbal Therapy treatment which includes a manual body massage with Oriental herbal oil and the application of a heated sesame compress, to stimulate blood circulation. This treatment costs Rs 2,550 while the 60-minute Thai heritage massage costs Rs 1,650. The body massage and a warm herbal compress are perfect for soothing tired muscles.

Steamy Indulgence

Turkey’s hamams are the stuff of legend. But you don’t have to travel all the way there to try out one.

You can experience the Turkish bath at Amanresorts’ latest property in Delhi where guests get pampered for three hours if they opt for the Traditional Hamam session for Rs 10,700. The off-white hamam, made out of Jaipur Kandi marble, is divided into four sections.

Amidst the arched mosaic ceilings, the hamam experience begins with the guests enjoying the heated chambers with warm and cold dip pools where the steam temperature is 32°C. The next room gets even steamier with 38°C and has a big sitting area to accommodate more than a dozen people. In the last section the steam temperature goes up to 48°C. “We suggest a minimum of 10 minutes in each of our four chambers to obtain full detoxing benefits,” says spa manager, Karen Biancardi.

The guest is made to lie down on the heated marble slab where, for exfoliation a trained therapist scrubs the body with olive oil soap. The soap is washed off with fresh eucalyptus water. This can be followed by a signature massage with sandalwood and pomegranate oils and an Aman Natural Facial to complete the hamam experience.

Hair Care

How about pampering the scalp and hair with treatments exclusively designed for your hair type? At Aman’s Kim Robinson studios the hair treatments contain a high level of nutrients and essential oils to restore the natural balance of hair.

“The scalp needs to be pampered in order to make the hair grow healthily,” says Rod Anker, creative director of the hair spa. While the hair treatment is on, ancient massage techniques are performed on the arms and legs to relax them. The salon is brimming with state-of-the-art treatment facilities.

In the spa room the client can comfortably lie down in the custom-built hair spa lounge that reclines 180°C and turns into a flat shampoo bed. But before giving any treatments, the client’s scalp is analysed using a technique called micro vision to figure out the scalp and hair type.

To bring dull hair back to life, the spa offers a Nourishing/Hydrating Anti-ageing treatment (Rs 9,300) — a moisturising treatment that prevents ageing and helps sun-damaged hair and scalp. For strengthening the hair, the spa offers its Calming-Re-Balancing treatment (Rs 9,300), which uses essential oils to stimulate the hair roots.

Beauty Beams

Hi-technology is making its presence felt in a big way in the spa scene. At Gurgaon’s FOS Laser Spa clients can not only try out the therapeutic Thai massages but also have a number of laser treatments to ensure a glowing and scar-free skin .

The spa is equipped with the latest machines and its cutting-edge beauty treatment is carried out using a pixel laser machine which removes acne scars in about three sittings. By gently creating thousands of microscopic perforations on the treatment site this new-age pixel technology stimulates new collagen. The price for the Pixel Perfect treatment is Rs 12,000 per sitting.

Also, the spa offers LASER 570 treatment for what’s called a complete skin resurfacing, skin tightening and skin colour improvement. It also offers a ProWave Ice treatment using a non-abrasive radio frequency machine for non-surgical face-lifts and body contouring. This machine comes with a chiller with an ice tip at which the temperature is -5 °C. This treatment stimulates the gradual growth of new collagen and reduces wrinkles and renews facial and body contours. The ProWave Ice System delivers RF (radio frequency) energy to the tissues while simultaneously cooling to preserve the epidermal layer. The spa also boasts of a latest low frequency ultrasound machine which makes the fat cells break down into fatty acids resulting in fat reduction. The low frequency ultrasound treatment is a non-invasive way to improve shape and to reduce volume. Its low frequency ultrasonic waves break triglycerides (the chemical form in which most fat exists in food as well as in the body) into free fatty acids. These fatty acids are metabolised and excreted through the normal physiological processes.

Water Therapy

How about clubbing a boat ride with a spa experience and having twice the fun? The place to try this is on board the 14.5m / 4.2m Jiva Spa boat at The Taj Lake Palace in Udaipur. The boat sails around in Lake Pichola and it has a spacious, air conditioned double spa suite, a relaxation lounge, steam bath and shower.

Guests can go for Royal Spa Sojourn (three hours), which is a luxurious pre-bathing ritual, and which includes a gentle scrub using natural ingredients, followed by a relaxing massage. The price of the package is Rs 13,650 for one person and Rs 21,000 for two.

For holidaying couples the boat offers the Romantic Spa Escapade package with includes an exfoliating herbal scrub, a heat-stimulating wrap of spices and herbs, followed by a rejuvenating massage. The spa package costs Rs 13,650 for one person and Rs 21, 000 for two people.

In south India, another similar luxurious indulgence with water therapy is available at the Country Club Treasure Cove in Kovalam which has a floating spa with hydrotherapy and a recreational pool. “The floating spa utilises compressed air and high pressure water for the therapies,” says Dr Sibi M. S. who is in charge of the Country Club Treasure Trove. This floating spa has various high pressure jets, water massage beds plus a Jacuzzi and whirlpool section. In addition, the centre offers Ayurvedic and naturopathic treatments.

All-in-one

Would you like to step into a spa and come out looking younger and perfectly sculpted? If your spa offers specialised head to toe beauty treatments wouldn’t you be inclined to try it out? Take a look at Shilpa Shetty and her business partner Kiran Bawa’s recently-launched Iosis Medi Spa in Mumbai which goes by ‘Fusion of 4’ technique, which combines skin, figure styling, salon and spa treatments. A medi-spa is a cross between a medical clinic and a day spa and, importantly, it’s supervised by a qualified medical practitioner.

This non-invasive medi-spa utilises lasers and intense pulsed light technology as well as medical microdermabrasion, photo facials, Botox and Restylene injections, peels and even traditional spa body treatments.

Another hot spot for medi-spa followers is Delhi’s A+ medi-spa where Ayurvedic massage therapy, aesthetic medical skin care, aesthetic surgery, cosmetic dentistry, purification and holistic treatments are blended together.

With the latest FDA approved technologies the spa combines skin and aesthetic surgery treatments with Ayurvedic healing, spa therapies and purification techniques. “These are complemented by holistic measures such as reflexology, nutritional therapy and antioxidant testing,” says Nazia A. Quadri, manager, marketing and brand communication, A+ medispa.