Kinda mixed review here. I could give 5 stars and i could give 2.
I went 1/22/2024. If you want a short read, skip to the summary at the end.
Here's what's great about it 1st:
7 saunas, each different, all amazing. They seemed clean. The turkish Hammam sauna was 100% humid, all tiled or marble. Marble sinks with basins to douse yourself with. Amazing. The infrared sauna was hotter than any I've ever been to. My toenails started to feel like they were burning! I kept coming back in small doses. There's a wet russian sauna and a dry russian sauna. Both hotter than the infrared! In one of them I got a fantastic beating (platza) with a broom of oak leaves (venik) by Andrij, the excellent & super professional masseuse. Amazing experience. So incredibly hot in there that you step out and douse yourself in a torrential shower of ice cold water several times throughout the treatment. I have never been so completely relaxed, mind and body. He sat me down at a table and clearly I understood I'd better not move for a while. There's also a sauna with frozen walls, like the inside of an old fashioned fridge freezer. The hot & cold alternation is brilliant, ancient, and fabulous. My husband got a deep tissue massage with cupping by Andrij. Had that been all we did, it would've been a grand, 5 star experience, even though there were many disappointments.
Lounging around the pool in swim suits (plenty of robes, towels and slippers provided), eating, chatting on their phones ... patrons really enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere, as did we. That by itself makes this a cut above an american style spa where you go for your treatment and pretty much have to leave. This can be a 4 hour retreat from the cold winter world.
Now for the 2 star review:
The website and reality are 2 very different things. The only service they provide now is deep tissue massage and the platza treatment. No oxygen sauna, which I was keen to try. No hydrotherapy, no other services listed on the website. And no appointments in advance. You come, and if he's there, great. If not, oh well. And a huge disappointment is the pool. It is supposed to be heated but the (owner? manager?) said something was wrong with the heater and by the way he responded, you could tell it isn't in the plan to get fixed. So this amazing pool sits there, totally ready, and nobody goes into it because it's just too cold. Also their deep cold plunge pool in the sauna area is no longer working. Apparently the swimming pool is colder.
I did enjoy the 2 big whirlpool hot tubs adjacent to the pool though. But I have a feeling they may not switch out the water much, just keep dousing it with chemicals. Ok, it may not be disease filled as a result, but we both smelled so badly of chlorine later that I regretted going in.
There is a very interesting menu. We didn't partake, but it sure got my attention. A patron told me the dumplings (pyrogies) would disappoint a connoisseur. Which surprises me--in that neighborhood, there are 100 babushkas who would keep them flush in pyrogies for a small fee. There's a cottage industry they could easily be supporting.
So,
in summary,
if you want to go for the 7 saunas and Andrij's skills and a lounging experience by the pool with an interesting menu, I say 4+ stars. If you are coming for the other amenities listed on the website--hot tub, pool, various other treatments or special experiences, I would have to give it a zero, or perhaps a 1 since the hot tub exists at least.
But Russian baths are rare. From my internet search, there are only a few dozen at best worldwide, maybe 10 in the US. And if this spa was functioning as the website conveys, it would be hands above all the others in what they provide.
The reason given was Covid--they had to close for a year, short staffed now, hard to keep those other amenities sanitary. Ok. I can get that with a working staff all those amenities could be returned. Maybe they haven't recovered financially enough to invest. Well, that's fair.
And in that case, I sure hope they get their act together to restore it to its full potential. In the meantime, for $55 to experience 7 saunas, and for $60 more to get an excellent beating with oak leaves, then to lounge poolside in slippers and robe deeply and utterly relaxed, well, that's a fantastic opportunity. Just go with the correct expectations and you'll be thrilled.
You will feel safe & at ease, not pampered but totally cared for, and be deeply relaxed after. read more