Auriga Spa
Capella Singapore 1 The Knolls, Sentosa Island 65915023 | auriga-spa.com
The treatment: Auriga Signature Massage. I chose the New Moon treatment, based on Swedish Massage techniques, which promised a deep and stimulating full-body muscle massage to revitalise and invigorate body and spirit ($180 for 60 minutes). The experience: Auriga offers the chance to luxuriate in the facilities for 45 minutes to unwind and get into relaxation mode before your treatment begins. Go early to fully appreciate the steam room, ice bath, vitality pool – a hot bath with therapeutic bubbles, which I could have stayed in forever – and the experience showers.
Clothed in the provided bathrobe and slippers, I was then accompanied from the cosy salon to a restful treatment room. My massage therapist Lala asked me some basic questions about my preferences for pressure and areas to avoid. She took my request for complete relaxation seriously and did all she could to make me comfortable, offering an eye mask and eucalyptus to breathe, and even raising my ankles on a bolster. During the massage, she applied pressure where needed, but never made me flinch – in fact, I fell asleep twice during one of the most relaxing massages of my life. To finish my spa experience, Lala applied a hot towel to my feet – a lovely way to revive me – and led me to a salon to “recover”! Good to know: The spa uses 100 percent natural products from the Organics Pharmacy; my massage included a lovely, lightly scented rose and jasmine oil. Since the signature treatments are dedicated to a particular phase of the moon, they are best experienced when they correspond to the moon’s particular stage – in my case, the new moon. Winding down: At the end of the hour, I was so relaxed that I needed 20 minutes on a vibrating lounger with a ginger tea to come back to earth. Bliss!
The treatment: So Glowing experience, a three-hour-and-15-minute, five-course spa extravaganza for $395. The experience: The friendly spa staff held an umbrella overhead as I was whisked away to my own private villa – it actually felt like I’d stepped right into Bali. After selecting my preferred oils and scrubs (coconut and vanilla for me!), and receiving a quick foot soak, I started my experience with the super-relaxing body scrub.
Following my full- body exfoliation was a tropical body wrap, during which I drifted in and out of consciousness, thanks to the soothing scalp massage (what else to do when you’re waiting for your body to hydrate beneath layers of plastic wrap and blankets?) – it was glorious. And that was just the beginning! I rinsed off in my private bathroom and excitedly got back on the table for my one-hour So Relaxing Massage, a full body rubdown with a focus on my back, as requested. This was followed by an express facial, which included a cleanse, scrub and mask. Winding down: Feeling blissed out and smooth-skinned, I relaxed in the steam room and Jacuzzi before emerging to snack on a fresh fruit platter (included in the spa package) by the pool. If it were sunny, I would have stayed all day to lounge by the main pool, lie on a raft in the “floating” pool and indulge in the mud pool – there’s even a meditation area in the Outdoor Spa Garden. But, since it was raining, that’ll just have to wait until next time; in fact, I was kindly provided with a complimentary pass to use the facilities on a rain-free day – something they give to spa guests when the weather isn’t ideal for taking advantage of everything So SPA has to offer.
With such a fabulous selection of spa packages and treatments, not to mention a Bali-esque escape feel, you can bet I’ll be back very soon – whether it be with a group of girlfriends or my husband.