Chula Vista Spa and Massage

Inside a 1,000-square-foot beachfront studio, D'ames Day Spa's skilled aestheticians soothe clients with hot towels and warm, scented lotions during every beautifying service. Many of the treatments, such as facials and body wraps, use scent-packed, natural ingredients—including herbs, fruits, chocolate, and a distillation of childhood memories—to soften and nourish skin while enveloping the room in calming aromas. Luxe massages, ranging from soothing hot stone to pain-ousting deep tissue, ease taut muscles and diffuse oxygen throughout the body.

Today’s Groupon is the Silk Road that leads to a land of pampering. For $50, you get $125 worth of indulgent spa services at Sè Spa, an Asian-influenced, beautifully sleek relaxation oasis located at the Sè San Diego Hotel.

When the aestheticians of The Upper Level Spa blend water, lemon juice, and sugar, they're not making lemonade. Rather, they're forming a paste that uproots hair and temporary tattoos without causing skin damage. Unlike traditional waxing, sugaring eschews artificial ingredients, scents, dyes, and even heat—though the paste is warm, it will never burn skin, making it ideal for large or highly sensitive areas. In addition to sugaring, the skincare specialists offer vitamin-infused facials, 15 types of chemical peels, and natural airbrush tans. A massage therapist complements these and other spa services with bodywork sessions in a variety of modalities.

With its start in haircare more than a quarter century ago, Model Call Salon continues to pamper clients with hair and beauty treatments fueled by brand-name products such as Number 4 Hair, Bumble and bumble, L'Oréal Professionnel, and Unite. Each service in the salon or spa service starts off with a one-on-one consultation during which clients discuss what they want their hair to look like, their skin to feel like, or their eyebrows to furrow like. Hairstylists at both locations boast extra certifications beyond their years of hands-on experience and participate in continuing education to stay current in hair-design trends. When it comes to spa treatments, aestheticians improve skin with paraffin treatments, microdermabrasion, and facials, and perform tanning services to help clients walk out feeling more confident than when they arrived. While the San Diego location sports a rust-dripped sign and vintage furnishings, both locations feature modern design elements such as clean, straight lines and large, black-framed styling mirrors.

Spa owner Anke Stoner hand selects each of the therapists and aestheticians at ASerenity Skin Care & Spa based on experience and expertise in their field. She herself has more than 20 years of industry experience—the California board-certified aesthetician originally trained in Germany, where she focused on microdermabrasion, galvanic techniques, and chemical peels. She more recently earned certification in manual lymph drainage techniques from Dr. Vodder School International.

Now at ASerenity, she and her staff have high, results-oriented expectations for each skin and bodycare treatment they perform using professional products from Image Skincare, Christina Company, and Clarisonic. The spa was ahead of the curve more than a decade ago when they began to perform microdermabrasion and chemical peels, each of which employ varying degrees of exfoliation to help diminish facial discoloration, fine lines, and compulsive winking.

The act of mashing together sugar and peppermint leaves can make tasty summer drinks and refreshing, exfoliating body scrubs. That’s why EnviouSkin calls this vegan and organic treatment the “mojito,” and it is perhaps the reason why EnviouSkin was featured as part of the city’s Spa Week and on San Diego 6, along with spa owner Kim. She studied skincare across Europe, practicing cutting-edge techniques with experts and familiarizing herself with new products, before settling in San Diego. She has designed a spa whose soothing confines reflect nature with an earth-toned color scheme, flowering plants, and smooth stone walls that catch flickering candlelight in their mouths. By creating luxurious facials, massages, peels, and waxing treatments, she is following her lifelong dream of keeping skin healthier via signature services and client education.