At a Korean spa, you don’t just relax. You relax hard. It’s about making time to refocus, rest and improve your overall health by getting rid of aches, inflammation and stress. Those benefits, of course, come with a slight cultural shock, if you’re not used to communal shower areas or unconventional spa treatments. But is it worth it? Heck yes! After our initial experience last weekend at King Spa in Niles, Illinois, we can certainly say we’re ready to try this again! And here’s why…
Saunas have amazing natural properties.
Not only will you be releasing toxins as you sweat, but many of the saunas are made with rocks and materials that are beneficial to your health. At King Spa, for instance, you have a charcoal room, which has powerful detoxifying agents that neutralize hazardous substances. Their salt room exposes the skin to the natural preservation properties in salt and minerals such as natrium, calcium, iron and zinc. Their golden pyramid provides great relaxation and healing energy. That's because the exposure to gold purifies the body from impurities. And every room is different, so it’s worth trying them all. Just make sure you drink enough water between treatments to avoid dehydration. Also try not to stay in a single room for more than 20 minutes.
It is NOT a fashion show.
You’re given a uniform once you get to the spa. Nobody is wearing fancy Lululemon pants or tight Under Armor bro tanks. Girls wear pink (or any given color) and guys wear grey, and the uniform is pretty loose so you’re comfortable and well covered.
The food is delicious!
You’ll find lots of authentic Korean dishes, like sundubu-jjigae, bulgogi, bibimbap and mandu. A classic Korean sauna snack are the baked eggs, which are baked with the heat from the saunas. You can also get great teas and cooling treats, like patbingsu. But be advised, that the prices at the spa can be a bit higher than at a regular Korean restaurant, so don’t forget to ask.
You don’t need to carry around a bag or your wallet.
This can actually be good and bad. The spa gives you a wrist key holder with your uniform so you can easily access your locker. This key can be used to purchase food, beauty products and spa services. That way, you don’t have to carry your stuff around. However, because you don’t see how much you spend, you can easily hike up your bill.
You learn to be comfortable with the uncomfortable.
There’s no better way to immerse yourself in a culture than to experience rituals such as this one. Both of us grew up in a culture where nakedness is a bit taboo. Having the opportunity to experience a culture where you get together as a community to take care of your body makes you even more conscious of the fact that the body is just that… a body. You take care of it to live a fuller life and by doing so, you somehow also take care of what’s inside of you. Nabol and I walked out of the spa amazed at how we coped with the whole situation. We were so focused on enjoying the experience and the benefits of the spa that the uncomfortable part of it didn’t feel like a big deal after all.
So what do you think? Is this something that you might want to try? You’ll notice that we don’t talk about the famous Korean scrub treatment. That’s because it was $90 at King spa! That’s quite a bit of money for our budget. Maybe we’ll try it next time. We hear it’s painful because they literally scrub the heck out of your skin until all of your old skin is removed. It does sounds scary, but after everything we’ve experienced, might as well try that too! Hope you enjoy the video.
Not only will you be releasing toxins as you sweat, but many of the saunas are made with rocks and materials that are beneficial to your health. At King Spa, for instance, you have a charcoal room, which has powerful detoxifying agents that neutralize hazardous substances. Their salt room exposes the skin to the natural preservation properties in salt and minerals such as natrium, calcium, iron and zinc. Their golden pyramid provides great relaxation and healing energy. That's because the exposure to gold purifies the body from impurities. And every room is different, so it’s worth trying them all. Just make sure you drink enough water between treatments to avoid dehydration. Also try not to stay in a single room for more than 20 minutes.
It is NOT a fashion show.
You’re given a uniform once you get to the spa. Nobody is wearing fancy Lululemon pants or tight Under Armor bro tanks. Girls wear pink (or any given color) and guys wear grey, and the uniform is pretty loose so you’re comfortable and well covered.
You’ll find lots of authentic Korean dishes, like sundubu-jjigae, bulgogi, bibimbap and mandu. A classic Korean sauna snack are the baked eggs, which are baked with the heat from the saunas. You can also get great teas and cooling treats, like patbingsu. But be advised, that the prices at the spa can be a bit higher than at a regular Korean restaurant, so don’t forget to ask.
You don’t need to carry around a bag or your wallet.
This can actually be good and bad. The spa gives you a wrist key holder with your uniform so you can easily access your locker. This key can be used to purchase food, beauty products and spa services. That way, you don’t have to carry your stuff around. However, because you don’t see how much you spend, you can easily hike up your bill.
You learn to be comfortable with the uncomfortable.
There’s no better way to immerse yourself in a culture than to experience rituals such as this one. Both of us grew up in a culture where nakedness is a bit taboo. Having the opportunity to experience a culture where you get together as a community to take care of your body makes you even more conscious of the fact that the body is just that… a body. You take care of it to live a fuller life and by doing so, you somehow also take care of what’s inside of you. Nabol and I walked out of the spa amazed at how we coped with the whole situation. We were so focused on enjoying the experience and the benefits of the spa that the uncomfortable part of it didn’t feel like a big deal after all.
So what do you think? Is this something that you might want to try? You’ll notice that we don’t talk about the famous Korean scrub treatment. That’s because it was $90 at King spa! That’s quite a bit of money for our budget. Maybe we’ll try it next time. We hear it’s painful because they literally scrub the heck out of your skin until all of your old skin is removed. It does sounds scary, but after everything we’ve experienced, might as well try that too! Hope you enjoy the video.
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