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Ithaca Spa Trail (Ithaca, NY)
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Ithaca is known for its Discovery Trail and Art Trail. The area is also known for its location at the southern end of the Cayuga Wine Trail, in the Finger Lakes Region of New York State. And while you won’t find an Ithaca Spa Trail formally featured in any travel guidebook, it’s no surprise that Ithaca has some great spas. After all, the city is home to The Finger Lakes School of Massage and Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration where courses in spa development and spa management are taught.
If you’re visiting one of Ithaca’s many attractions and want to incorporate some relaxation, three spas are worth a visit: August Moon Spa, Rasa Spa and Satori salon/spa/shopping experience. These three spas couldn’t be more different, yet they appeal to a wide variety of spa goers with their unique and varied service offerings, settings and vibes.
The spa trail begins as you approach Ithaca from the North.
In the Northeast corner of Ithaca, Satori, a salon/spa/shopping experience is where beauty, knowledge and fun come together. Satori is a Zen word meaning “the moment of enlightenment, a flash of clarity”. Best friends for many years, Lynette Grider and Christie Boothe opened Satori in August of 2005.
Satori was voted “Best of Ithaca – Best Salon 2008” and 2008 New Business of the Year Award by the Ithaca/Tompkins Chamber of Commerce.
Satori is a contemporary mix of blue and brown representing the sand and sea. The open ceiling and track lighting give the space a modern yet warm warehouse feel.
A three quarter height curved wall, known as “the wave”, separates the salon and boutique shopping area from the spa party area that was designed with fun and celebrations in mind. Bring your friends to the four manicure and pedicure stations in the open layout - food and wine are always welcome; you can bring your own or Satori can arrange for a catered affair with one of the local restaurants. To up the fun and celebratory quotient a bit, a glass of wine is served with every spa treatment.
Photo credit: Wendy Woods
Satori might be all about having a good time, but it’s also about community. The space was designed so that you can have fun with the members of your community even if you don’t know them. “If you come in and have and experience here, then you belong here”, says co-owner Lynette Grider. This is further evidenced by Satori’s heavy sponsorship of charity events, like Women Swimmin’ that benefits Hospicare and Palliative Care Services of Tompkins County.
Join Satori’s VIP Program and receive a monthly newsletter filled with special offers.
Waxing, massage, body treatments and skin care take place in three soundproof private treatment rooms. Guests can choose facials from two product lines: the botanical based Aveda skin care line, or Institut Esthederm Paris. The blissful 90 minute Signature Massage ($150) combines peppermint and tea tree aromatherapy infused hot towels, hot stones, Swedish massage for the feet and legs and deep tissue massage for the back.
The spa trail continues heading south of the city, where August Moon Spa opened in October of 2005 at the 70 acre, 54 room La Tourelle Resort. The 4,500 square foot Asian themed spa features 7 treatment rooms including a tiled wet room for Vichy Shower treatments, known as Waterfall Treatments in a nod to Ithaca’s many beautiful waterfalls. There is a couples treatment room with oversized jacuzzi, skin care room and manicure/pedicure station.
August Moon Spa
The menu consists of a variety of unique treatments with an emphasis on local elements such as waterfalls and vinotherapy. Guests can select from nine music choices to customize the treatment experience. If the treatment involves aromatherapy, five customized blends are offered at check-in.
Men’s and women’s locker room feature keyless lockers, showers, standard vanity amenities, a dry sauna and steam room. Fire and water themed tranquility rooms are directly across the hall from each other – one featuring a fireplace and the other with water trickling down a wall of rock. Guests relax in total comfort with comfy lounge chairs and loveseats, a great variety of magazines, cozy throw blankets and pillows. Soft music, ambient lighting and candles create a relaxing atmosphere in the water themed tranquility room. Natural light streams in through windows in the fire themed tranquility room that is surrounded by green plants.
Monday through Thursday, a 30-minute therapeutic water soak is included with any 50-minute spa treatment. Frequent spa guests who spend $500 on products or treatments receive a free 50-minute treatment. On Wednesday evenings, August Moon Spa hosts a Tranquility hour. Healthy snacks are served to guests who schedule appointments during the 4:00, 5:00 and 6:00 timeslots.
I enjoyed a signature waterfall treatment known as the Taughannock Falls
($125, 50 minutes); a Vichy shower scrub that uses sea salt, jojoba oil and a choice of aromatherapy blends. After the scrub, the guest is treated to a hot stone aromatherapy massage under the Vichy shower. It was heaven, even on a sweltering 90-degree day in August.
Other treatments on the extensive menu include a wonderful variety of skincare, facials, microdermabrasion and waxing. Massage therapies, therapeutic water soaks, body wraps, vinotherapy and gentlemen’s services round out the comprehensive list of offerings. August Moon Spa also offers iridology, in-room meditation instruction and in-room yoga instruction.
The final stop on the spa trail is in Northwest Ithaca, where Rasa Spa opened in November of 2006 in the Island Health Center. Rasa shares building space with Cayuga Medical Center at Ithaca, Island Health & Fitness, the Inlet Island Café and a host of other health and wellness related facilities. This partnership and proximity to total body wellness is one of the many factors that make Rasa unique. While the Island Health Center is an attractive building with abundant natural light and views of the Cayuga Inlet, you’ll be struck by the beauty and atmosphere once you step foot inside Rasa.
Rasa Spa Tranquility Room
Rachel Hogancamp is the co-founder of Rasa Spa in partnership with Island Health & Fitness. Rachel serves as Rasa’s managing partner and Spa Director, while also owning and operating Bodyworks in Ithaca. Rachel, who attended and now instructs at the Finger Lakes School of Massage, has been a Licensed Massage Therapist since 1994.
The women’s locker room features dark wood lockers, rich wall coloring and earth-tone tile floors. Guests can shower off post-treatment in one of Rasa’s two showers with stacks of fresh towels and washcloths nearby. The handcrafted bowl sink and vanity area is visually stunning, with earthy colors and leaf-like textures. The showers and locker room are stocked with high quality products from EO. There is a dry sauna in the locker room area.
Rasa has 6 treatment rooms including two aesthetic/skincare rooms and one couples treatment room. Want to listen to your own music during your treatment? No problem. Bring your iPod and listen to whatever you like during your service.
Rasa’s crowning glory, besides the creative, inventive spa treatments and nurturing therapists, is the tranquility room. Quite possibly the most beautiful spa relaxation area I’ve seen; vibrant jewel-toned colors adorn richly textured area rugs, throw pillows, and cozy blankets. Every wall and corner is decorated with unique pieces of handcrafted furniture from local artisans.
In the tranquility room guests can nap in a padded lounge chair, read one of the inspiring and motivational books and magazines or have an intimate conversation with a good friend over a cup of tea.
Just off the tranquility lounge is a richly decorated meditation room for small group or private meditation, where you can enjoy the 18th century Tibetan Singing Bowl. Need some help learning or perfecting your meditation technique? Sign up for a meditation consultation, which takes place in the soothing meditation room. If you enjoy art, your artistic side will be satisfied at Rasa. The walls are adorned with paintings and artwork from local artists.
Rasa offers clients many generous specials like memberships; birthday discounts and discounted monthly treatment specials. Purchase a series of six massages or facials and save 10%. You can purchase a day spa pass for $20
I loved the Red Flower Hammam ($170, 90 minutes), a deeply relaxing and multi-step detoxifying ritual that is meant to purify, invigorate, detoxify, relax and devote.
The most popular treatment at Rasa is the Ananda Hot Oil Scalp Treatment. (60 minutes, $105). Other treatments and services offered at Rasa include a variety of massage therapies, Reiki, weekly meditation in the tranquility room, private yoga, skincare, waxing, scrubs and wraps, Shamballa, and The Feldenkrais Method. Treatments are high touch with great attention to client comfort and detail. Rasa Spa utilizes signature therapeutic body and skin treatments, as well as exclusive all-natural product lines, organic oils, and natural elements. Product lines used during treatments include Eminence, Naturopathica and Red Flower.
August Moon Spa and Rasa Spa are founding members of the Ithaca Tompkins Spa Association, founded in March of 2008. For more information, go to http://www.ithaca-tompkins-spa-assoc.com/index.html.
Contact information for spas featured in this article:
Satori
a salon/spa/shopping experience
Village Green Plaza
840 Hansahw Rd.
Ithaca, NY 14850
(607) 266-0130
La Tourelle Resort & August Moon Spa:
1150 Danby Rd # 96B
Ithaca, NY 14850-9406
(607) 273-2734
Rasa Spa
310 Taughannock Blvd.
Island Health Center
Ithaca, NY 14850
(607) 273-1740
If you liked this article, you may also be interested in these articles:
Spa Review: La Tourelle & August Moon Spa (Ithaca, NY)
Spa Review: Rasa Spa (Ithaca, NY)
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