Fort Lauderdale Spa and Massage

For 25 years, the team of specialists at New Age Massage and Health Center has promoted balanced bodies and minds with a variety of holistic services. Massage therapist Nicky Dhanani not only loosens muscles with acupressure massages or ancient Indian shirodhara treatments, but also remedies digestive woes as an instructor with the International Association for Colon Hydrotherapy and knowledge acquired at a naturopathy hospital in Mumbai, India. Dhanani is also a reiki master and teacher, and uses pranic healing and chakra balancing to address concerns such as pain, stress, or a chronic inability to find Waldo.

Between Nicky and Sneha Dhanani, who is a licensed skincare expert completing studies in holistic nutrition, guests should be able to find an alternative-medicine treatment for any concern, be it physical or emotional.

A deep love of her work has kept licensed therapist Monica Gonda practicing bodywork for more than 14 years, and it is this positive energy that emanates from her fingertips during each session. In her repertoire of seven massage modalities, lomi lomi—_loving hands_ in Hawaiian—stands out for its use of the forearms to send waves of relaxation into deep layers of muscle without attracting beach bums. Monica also practices a lymphatic-drainage technique that notably reduces swelling caused by fluid buildup in connective tissue. The most unique therapy is the crystal massages. A blend of body and energy work, warm semiprecious stones bathe acupressure points in soothing heat and redirect energy flows to achieve mental clarity or emotional well-being.

Monica awakens senses with organic tea and chocolates and can expand olfactory pleasure with her nuanced understanding of how geranium, lemongrass, and clare sage influence mood through sensory and monetary payoffs. Monica extends the reach of her goodwill by donating 5% of her profits to cancer research, an issue close to her heart because she practices oncology massage for lung-cancer patients.

Inside the terra-cotta-tiled entrance to Glamour Center, stylists cut and color men's and women's hair with carefully selected European products. Skilled in color, color correction, highlights, and lowlights, the staff can tint all hair types—long, short, curly, or stolen off a mannequin. Nail services pamper hands and feet, and facial waxes outfit customers with perfectly arched brows and smooth skin.

Dark hardwood floors and creamy white walls form the basis for Luxe Day Spa's tranquil environs, where guests bask in skin and body treatments that polish them from head to toe. An array of facials harnesses nutrients, organic enzymes, or high-tech LED devices to treat blemishes and reduce the signs of aging, whereas seven styles of massage melt away chronic tension. While reclining in a zero-gravity chair with a heated pillow under their neck and a toenail-themed romance novel over their eyes, guests enjoy relaxing pedicures enhanced by hydrating paraffin treatments. Meanwhile, specialists imbue or remove ink in the skin with permanent makeup, which brightens eyes, brows, or lips with smudge-free color that lasts for years, or tattoo-removal treatments that eschew skin-bleaching lasers in favor of invisible injections.

In addition to helping clients to unwind with massages facials, and synergy sauna sessions, the de-stress specialists at Shiraz Spa offer comfort to patients in the post-op stages of cosmetic surgery with a catalog of healing treatments. They also burnish bodies with permanent hair-removal sessions performed with state-of-the-art electrolysis and intense pulsed light (IPL) equipment.

Marie Swan Black first received her massage training in 1992 in Austin. She felt drawn to aesthetics because, as she explains on her website, "practicing massage without the ability to treat the skin felt incomplete." This led her to offer a more-comprehensive list of services to treat the whole body from the inside out. Today at Acorn Organica, she performs facials with thoughtfully chosen natural products free of parabens and artificial fragrances, as well as microdermabrasion treatments and fruit-based peels. Her bodywork therapies use modalities such as energetic balancing, which relieves stress and energetic blockages, and special therapies to alleviate pain in spots such as the jaw.