The blurb
Find peace in the hubbub on Central London; just a stroll from the bustle of Trafalgar Square is the golden opulence of the Thai Square Spa. A prize winner at the World Spa Awards in 2017, the list of available treatments at the Thai Square Spa is longer than this review; for men and women, top-to-toe, if a part of you needs some pampering the Thai Square Spa will have a treatment for it.
Stepping off the busy Northumberland Avenue street into its gilded entrance the feeling of calm is surprisingly instant (considering its mere moments away from some of London’s largest tourist attractions). And if the entrance and changing rooms upstairs are all gold, red and black Thai-style opulence then the downstairs area (where you can find the therapy rooms, relaxation area and Senspace) is all low-lit intimacy and made up to look more like a Grecian temple than the far east.
The process
From the smorgasbord of available therapies, I was treated to the hour-long Ritual Massage (priced at £80) followed by a further hour in the Sen Space (£30, or £40 bought without a treatment), courtesy of my delightful masseuse, Tak.
While the staff at the desk were efficient (if perhaps not overly warm), the lovely Tak very kindly took as much time as I needed, from chatting to me about any particular tensions or problem areas, to genuinely taking her time with the treatment itself (I’ve felt therapists clock-watching in the past, but not here).
The treatment began with a foot bath using salt and rose water, before Tak helped me on to the (very pleasantly) heated massage table. The massage itself began with being wrapped and quickly rubbed down with warm towels from toe to finger-tip (pleasantly invigorating before the relaxation fully commenced), followed by the application of (divine smelling) Adaman Aramasoul oil and a complete neck to toe massage. Tak used a combination of traditional strokes as well as attention to pressure points, and a few energetic taps and clicks to round things off. No area felt rushed or overly lingered over, Tak’s instincts on how to treat each area seemed absolutely spot on.
My request for ‘medium-firm pressure’ was met perfectly, and despite my initial comment of “Oh, I don’t really get much back pain” she expertly found all the little knots I mostly ignore and teased them out. The only small missteps (for me) were a sort of ‘finger snap’ action at the end of having my arms massaged that felt a little like the massage equivalent of nails on a blackboard. But otherwise, I came away feeling a (mental) stone lighter and was encouraged to sit in the Greek-temple style waiting area with a delicious caffeine free traditional Thai tea afterwards.
I then spent my hour in the Sen space, which consists of a sauna, steam room, whirlpool and ice bath. It was beautifully decorated in gold tiles and complimented by yet more low-lighting, and would have been heavenly if it was indeed a private space (for £30-40 a pop, I slightly expected it to be). But unfortunately, it is a little on the small side and any more than two people in there at once (I was joined by a pair of rather loud city boys who sadly robbed the space of its Sen) feels on the crowded side.
The results
The massage itself was heavenly and I’m sure would have lasted the rest of the day, were it not for those pesky noisy city boys!
