What's the difference between day spa and a spa?

For those of us who don’t frequent spas as often as we would like too, the difference between a day spa and a resort spa may be very small to us. But for those who are regulars in the all-relaxing atmosphere know exactly what the differences are between a day spa and a resort spa. Victoria Boscarino is a licensed massage therapist who has been involved in day spas for more than 10 years now. She currently is the manager and director of Amadeus Spas for the Napa Valley Marriott Hotel and Spa in Napa, California. Boscarino said the major difference between a day spa and resort spa is simply location of the spa. “Some spas are associated with a hotel,” she said. “The location and the size of the hotel will differentiate whether you are a resort, a hotel spa or day spa. Basically, if you are not associated with any hotel you do not have the overnight stay option. That’s what differentiates a day spa from a hotel or a resort spa.” Boscarino and other experts in the field of day spas agree that potential clients should do as much research as possible prior to your visit to the day spa. Also, knowing if the spa is connected with a hotel can help or hinder in the process. Spas that are located inside of hotels offer their patrons a much wider array of relaxing and pampering options. For example, anyone registered in the hotel of a resort spa will likely receive benefits and options that others would not receive. Boscarino contests that this treatment is not based on any type of discrimination. The biggest reason why they receive special treatments is because of the convenience of staying just a few feet from their room. Also, most spas, whether they are hotel, day or resort, should offer similar services and treatments. “Depending on the type of spa you go to, it’s mostly about body care, facials, nails, and hair,” Boscarino said. “We basically offer every single treatment possible. That means massages, facials, body treatments, nail care, foot care, and hair care. Hair care could be anything from a simple shampoo and style to color to black tie evenings and that sort of thing.” A tip for potential clients looking to visit a day spa on vacation would be to look for a specific resort that features a spa. Boscarino said that the bookings of hotels with spas have become overwhelming in the last few years because of the convenience they provide vacationers. “A lot of people now have started booking vacations based on the hotel offering a spa,” she said. “A lot of people will stay with us specifically for that reason. The spa has become a wonderful addendum to a hotel or resort because, just as in the past a golfer would have booked a hotel on a golf course, now a lot of people will book a hotel because of the spa. It works out perfectly for a guy who wants to play golf while his wife spends a day in the spa.”





The difference between a day spa and a medical spa is the type of treatments offered and the results of those treatments. Day spas are good for relaxing, and making you feel good-there is usually extra pampering such as a steam room available, but while the facial treatments might feel good, a lot of the products are not strong enough to give you a result that can make a noticable difference in your skin. Medical spas are in between day spas and plastic surgeon offices. They still pamper you and are a relaxing environment but are combined with non-surgical laser and other treatments to give you much more noticable differences in your skin. All of the product is physcian grade and the treatments generally penetrate deeper and can make a difference in the texture, tone, and pigmentation of your skin. Winter Park Laser %26amp; Anti-Aging Center offers complimentary consultations to explain the difference between the treatments that we offer and other ';day-spas'; offer.