Spoil yourself in style

The day spa is the latest urban phenomenon that is helping us deal with the pressures of modern life.

With the modern hectic pace of life, everyone's looking for a way to escape. Most of us can't afford "" in terms of time, if not money "" to pack up and head to a destination spa for a weekend full of orange peel facials, milk and honey baths and massages that seem to last days.

But now, the gods of good and effective consumerism have ensured that we can have our cake and eat it too "" that is, they have created and popularised the concept of day spas. You get almost everything you would at a destination spa "" down to the milk bath "" right in the middle of your city, for a couple of hours, every day if you so choose. (You have to be willing to substitute birdsong and the chirp of the crickets to the odd horn blaring and screech of tyres, but it's a small price to pay).

"Spas are the new buzzword. Women today don't have enough time to pamper themselves. That's why our day spa is so popular; it emphasises de-stressing and detoxification, and it's completely attainable," says Mini Mahant, centre manager of the VLCC in New Delhi's Vasant Vihar.

VLCC has been known for its weight loss regimens, but with its new spa services, it hopes to reach out to a whole new clientele.

"Our USP is that we have trained masseurs, and we individualise our service. For instance, we would direct an athlete to a Swedish or Thai massage, but if you're looking to just relax and de-stress, we would try an aromatherapy massage on you." A Swedish massage at VLCC is Rs 1,300, and an aromatherapy massage Rs 2,000.

As it's the wedding season, VLCC also gets many brides, and for them there's no better answer than a Javanese Mandi Lulur, a treatment that pampers you to the extent of giving you a bath in milk and honey.

Each massage will also drain your lymphatic system and do a host of other complicated things, but it's really about the two hours that you spend not answering your email or worrying about the next presentation; the most taxing thing you have to do here is try not to fall asleep.

Facials, oddly enough, are more expensive than massages at most of these spas. At VLCC, a Papaya Enzyme facial will put you out Rs 3,500, and the story is not so different in other metros.

Acquamarine Day Spa, Mumbai's first day spa outside of five-star hotels, offers facials for Rs 2,500 and massages for Rs 2,000 and upwards. The 2,500 sq ft spa has had a fantastic response, says CEO Anatoli Troumpel, in the two months that it has been in business.

"Few women in Mumbai have the time to spend the entire day here, but there are clients who come for 4-5 hours. We get an average of 10-15 people a day," he says. Acquamarine also offers marine-based coffees and teas, herbal infusions, and fresh fruits for lunch.

At the Frank Provost spa in Juhu, the response to the spa has been so good that they're opening another floor, and a second spa in Bandra in March. The spa also offers maternity massages (the only ones in Mumbai to offer this) by a specially trained maternity masseuse.

The most popular treatment is a package called 'escape for the day' "" a 3-hour package that includes a body massage, facial, manicure and pedicure, and costs Rs 4,500.

In Kolkata, most spas are attached to five-star hotels. One exception, however, is Solace. Attendance here is a slightly low average of eight customers a day, but the management claims that footfalls are growing at the rate of 20 per cent a year.

Prices are also slightly lower than Delhi or Mumbai, at least for facials, which start at Rs 700, but a combination of a massage and scrub and a wrap can put you out up to Rs 5,000. Solace also offers the Cleopatra milk bath so popular in Delhi, and another off-the-beaten-track treatment is the chocolate souffle facial.

"Because of a lack of awareness, most people in Kolkata opt for facials in the summer, whereas the extra moisture that chocolate provides could best tackle winter dryness," says Carroll Ann Hooper, spa manager.

Another trend is skin clinics, Kaya being the best example. Started with six clinics in 2002, Kaya now has 45 across the country.

"People are very open to spa treatments, and the consumer has become discerning as well," says Rakesh Pandey, CEO.

"Our treatments are medically based, so that you can get the advantages of skincare and dermatology, in a spa-like ambience. The Kaya skin clinic boasts personalised solutions, so that very few people go for only one sitting (for around Rs 600). Rather, you set up an appointment with a dermatologist, and create a package that can last months (with one sitting costing up to Rs 1,200- 1,400 per month).

Pandey agrees that the spa segment is booming, but he cautions that it is an investment-intensive segment, and spas will not work unless they have trained professionals working with them.

So much competition can only mean one thing "" better service and more options. Now bring on the milk baths and the chocolate facials!

Additional reporting: Arati Menon Carroll in Mumbai and Gargi Gupta in Kolkata