Experience Thai-Style Natural Healing A massage to restore balance among the elements.
A herbal sauna to cleanse and rejuvenate the body. A herbal
pack to calm nerves and redirect the energy. All this
may sound very New Aged in the West, but it has been part
of daily life here for centuries.
Before the arrival of modern medicine, herbalists filled
the dual role of doctor-pharmacist. Originally, village
doctors were monks or former monks, since Buddhist temples
were the center of learning, not only of religion but
of more worldly matters like astrology and medicine
as well.
Thai traditional medicine holds that the body has four
elements: wind, water, earth and fire, and ill health
results from an imbalance between them. To remedy an
ailment, the village "doctor" would make a
herbal pack for the patient to ingest, rub onto the
skin, or add to a steam compress. Another major component
of traditional medicine is energy. When the energy lines
are blocked, the individual will become ill, physically
or emotionally. A massage or sauna would be prescribed.
Experience Thai Massage
Traditional Thai massage is a proven physical therapy
that dates back to ancient India sometime before the
lifetime of Buddha. It has been practiced here for centuries,
and many swear by it as effective cure for common ailments
such as aches and pains, fevers and nervous strains.
Traditional massage reached the peak of popularity in
the early 18th century. King Rama III, great-grandfather
of the present monarch, had all available knowledge
on the subject gathered and inscribed on stone slabs.
These now stand on a corner of the Temple of the Reclining
Buddha (Wat Pho), along with stone figures of rishis
demonstrating various massage postures. You can try
this ancient therapy in its original form at the temple;
masseuses trained at Wat Pho massage school offer their
service seven days a week at very reasonable prices.
Most hotels rated three stars and above offer traditional
massage as part of their health and fitness services.
All the spa resorts include it in their therapy programs.
Despite common misconceptions, clothes stay on the whole
time. If you are interested in learning the techniques,
Wat Pho's massage school offers a 10-day course that
costs 6,000 baht. Contact the school, in the temple's
compounds, Chetupon Road, or call (662) 225-4771.
Thai-Style Herbal Therapies
Herbal sauna is no newcomer to Thailand. For many centuries
people with just about any kind of affliction would
visit a sauna, where herbal packs formulated just for
the ailment would be added to a water heater. The resulting
steam would be absorbed both through the nose and the
skin. The heat also sweated out toxins and cleansed
the pores.
As recently as the beginning of this century, hundreds
of these saunas existed in Thailand, but with the arrival
of modern medicine most of these went out of business.
But even today, home-made herbal sauna-along with a
diet regimen packed with herbs is the post-natal therapy
Thai women, especially those living in the countryside
still swear by. Herbs also dominated Thai women's beauty
and skincare regimens.
Sour tamarind worked wonders as a body scrub, for example,
while crushed turmeric would be rubbed onto the skin
to keep it soft and smooth. With the recent revival
in holistic therapies, indigenous herbs are being discovered
anew for their health and beauty benefits. Discover
Thai-style herbal experience at the following facilities,
or at the spas listed in the next section:
Natural Healing Facilities
Herbs also dominated Thai women's beauty and skincare
regimens. Sour tamarind worked wonders as a body scrub,
for example, while crushed turmeric would be rubbed
onto the skin to keep it soft and smooth. With the recent
revival in holistic therapies, indigenous herbs are
being discovered anew for their health and beauty benefits.
Discover Thai-style herbal experience at the following
facilities, or at the spas listed in the next section:
The Regent Resort Mae Rim
Old Mae Rim-Samoeng Road, Amphoe Maerim, Chiang Mai
Tel: (66-53) 298-180 Fax: (66-53) 298-190
This luxury resort in Chiang Mai's Mae Rim Valley deftly
blends Thai cultural heritage and hospitality with the
modern luxury and comfort. Its spa would fulfill any
and all herbal therapy needs. In addition to the steam
room and massage facilities, you can enjoy herbal facials
and body scrubs, herbal foot massages, aromatherapy
using essential oils from local as well as exotic plants,
and Thai and oriental massages.
Tamarind Springs, Lamai Beach, Koh Samui, Surat Thani
This wonderful new herbal-steam facility is very Thai
in its construction. Its unique steam room is built
between two huge boulders surrounded by coconut palms
and leafy trees. Its roster of herbal treatments include
facials, massage (full body, shoulder, or back), and
traditional Thai massage.
Modern Spa Experience
Spa treatments are now such a rage that it's easy to
forget that as recently as six years ago there was no
spa facility here. Soon after the opening of Banyan
Tree Spa Phuket in 1993, Thailand started to gain a
reputation as a new spa destination. The country now
has five spas that are attracting new groups of visitors,
some of whom planning their trips as pure spa vacation.
All five spas have integrated traditional healing into
their programs.
Chiva-Som International
Health Resort, Hua Hin
73/4 Petchkasem Road, Hua Hin
Tel: (66-32) 536-536 Fax: (66-32) 511-154
Bangkok office Tel: (662) 381-4459-60, 381-4462-3
Fax: (662) 381-5852, (66-32) 536-536
This exclusive beacheside health resort, whose name aptly
translates as "Heaven of Life" offers a complete
spa experience. Guests receive a private consultation
on arrival, before starting on their treatments and
activities. Its treatment range is certainly one of
the most extensive anywhere: face and body massages,
scrubs and wraps, electrical face and body toning and
reshaping, aromatherapy and reflexology.
Its state-of-the-art hydrotherapy suite features computerized
massage baths, a jet shower room and a flotation chamber.
For fitness buffs there's a fully-equipped gym. You
can also opt for an aerobic class, power-walking along
the beach, yoga, Tai Chi or any exercise your heart--and
your body--desire.
Chiva-Som's packages, ranging from three to eight days,
include spa meals planned by its staff doctors and dietitians.
The resort provides complimentary transfers to and from
hotels in Hua Hin area for guests not staying on the
compounds. No guests under 16 are allowed at the resort.
Banyan Tree Spa Phuket
33 Moo 4 Tumbon Choeng Talay, Amphoe Thalang, Phuket
Tel: (66-76) 324-374 Fax: (66-76) 324-375
The first luxury, non-clinical garden spa in Southeast
Asia, the Banyan Tree Spa attracts spa aficionados from
Asia and all over the world with its quality service
and wonderful setting on one of the most beautiful corners
of Phuket.
It offers extensive therapy and treatment programs,
most of them unique to the Banyan Tree brand. Its talented
team of specialist created a line of aromatherapy essential
oils from local plants and herbs, and these are now
used at all Banyan Tree spas-in Indonesia, the Maldives
and Bangkok. Its spa cuisine is also very innovative
and should banish the notion of "fat farms"
from spa land forever.
Banyan Tree
Spa Bangkok
Thai Wah Building, 51th-54th Floors, South Sathorn Road,
Bangkok
Tel: (662) 679-1052 Fax: (662) 679-1053
Like its sister on the island of Phuket, this Bangkok
spa offers the ultimate pampering experience that promises
a fitter, better-toned body and rejuvenated mind. Located
in a skyscraper in the business district, this garden
spa has treatment rooms with panoramic views of the
city. Spa services include a long list of massages-Swedish,
Lomi Lomi, Thai, Indonesian, Asian Blend, Sports, and
Tension Release, among others- as well as facials, body
rubs and wraps, and heat treatments.
Many of these incorporate herbs and plant extracts used
in Thai traditional medicine for centuries. Beauty and
hair care is also available. The spa is part of the
Westin Banyan Tree, and you can arrange a stay in the
hotel if you don't want to travel in Bangkok traffic.
The Oriental Spa Thai Health and Beauty
Center
48 Oriental Avenue, Bangkok
Direct Tel: (662) 439-7613-4 Fax: (662) 439-7587
Billed as a "temple of wellbeing," the Oriental
Spa Thai Health and Beauty Center offers half-day and
full-day programs as well as three-day retreats. The
Center, located across the river from the hotel proper,
offers a combination of Thai herbal treatments, European
traditions and American innovations.
Its spa therapies and treatments include body polish,
herbal wraps, jet lag and sunburn treatments, body toning
and contouring treatments, massages, and facials. For
a complete spa experience, try the Spa Cuisine from
the Oriental's kitchen. This recent addition to The
Oriental franchise is very popular and reservations
should be made two weeks in advance.
Grande
Spa & Fitness Club
Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit, 333 Sukhumvit Road, Bangkok
Tel: (662) 653-0333 Fax: (662) 653-0400
The Grande Spa and Fitness Club is a haven for total-body
fitness and pampering in downtown Bangkok. Its spa treatments
include Thai, Swedish and aromatherapy massages, reflex-zone
foot massage, facials and body wraps and water thalassotherapy.
Its face- and body-toning treatments employ state-of-the-art
non-surgical cosmetology equipment using microcurrents
similar to those used by physiotherapists. Steam, sauna
and fitness facilities are all housed on the third floor
of the Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit. Reservations for spa
treatments are highly recommended.