Day Spas in Coral Gables

Almost a decade ago, Barbara Ballán—an accomplished entrepreneur and recording artist—opened the first Barbra Hair Salon & Spa in the World Trade Center Mexico City. Since then, positive feedback from locals, international celebrities, and enchanted mannequins masquerading as people has inspired Ballán to open a second location at the DoubleTree Grand Hotel in Miami.

Amid contemporary and minimalist decor—including stark white tiles, chic black furnishings, and red accents—stylists cut, color, and straighten strands using Keratin Complex and Moroccanoil products. The salon also features a blow-dry bar, which is quite literally a bar where clients can sit and sip a complimentary glass of wine, coffee, or juice while stylists blow-dry and style strands. Over at the spa end, aestheticians cleanse and moisturize faces with European facials, and nail technicians decorate digits with acrylic, gel, and Shellac polishes.

Nestled inside the five-star Hilton Bentley Miami hotel, Ocean Drive Spa tends to aesthetic and stress-relief needs with authentic ayurvedic services lead by ayurvedic doctor Vishwanath Guddadar. A practice of medicine that developed in India more than 5,000 years ago, ayurveda balances and strengthens the body and mind through a combination of herbal medicines, detoxification, massage, exercise, and incorporeal duels.

Ocean Drive’s providers, all trained in India, work to heal problems including fatigue, joint pain, headaches, and insomnia. Dr. Ivan Rusilko helms the weight-loss and anti-aging programs, which detoxify physical forms with herbs and lymphatic massage or relaxation and meditation. Ornate fabrics drape over plush treatment beds inside private rooms decorated in rich woods, cascading curtains, and polished metal antiques for heating aromatic oils or completing Victorian chemistry sets.

Hemi Day Spa specializes in technologically enhanced treatments that address problem areas and signs of aging on both the face and body with little pain, side effects, or downtime. The trained staff mans a fleet of high-tech devices, such as the Derma Pod, which delivers exfoliating microdermabrasions; the Presojet, a set of inflatable bands that presses and decompresses around the body to purge toxins; and the Thermojet, which sends infrared light rays deep into bodies to speed up the body's metabolism of unwanted curves. The spa's services enhance natural beauty without a time-consuming recovery period or painful, invasive methods, such as liposuction surgery or peacock-feather transplants.

As one would expect of a place named one of the best hair salons in the country by Elle, Roberto Giordano's eponymous salon and spa is the product of decades of hard work. Roberto himself divides his time between the styling station and the runway, where he organizes fashion shows.

Bumble and bumble., Kérastase, and Goldwell products beautify locks in the open-design salon, where mirrors float above tawny stylists' tables between sprays of purple orchids. Aestheticians rule over a separate spa suite to deliver facials, massages, and waxing with yonka products.

Allure Day Spa Miami pampers clients with spa services that include facials and massages. During each treatment, clients enjoy a private experience complete with wine, cheese, or tea. Unlike a neighbor who refuses to wear pants while gardening, the spa is a responsible member of the community, often raising money for worthy causes such as the National Breast Cancer Foundation.

A wildly successful alternative to traditional day spas—its more than 300 locations blanket 36 states and half a dozen countries—Planet Beach Contempo Spa is a futuristic relaxation station where state-of-the-art machines administer all the spa and tanning services. These friendly automatons sometimes replace familiar treatments, as in the Luminous facial, a light-based service that delivers blemish-busting results similar to those of a conventional facial. But other equipment maps out new spa territory entirely: the Hydro-Derma Fusion chamber moisturizes the whole body with nutrient-rich steam in order to offset the effects of a dry climate or a rear-end collision with a salt truck. Other machines whiten teeth, spray tan skin, and massage muscles.

Planet Beach operates on a gym-style membership system, meaning that members purchase packages or pay flat monthly rates. As members spend more time at the spa, they get to know the helpful assistants who are always on hand to demonstrate how to use the equipment without activating its ability to cry.