Gloucester City, NJ Spa and Massage

Ellen Ehrlich's 30-minute Clinical Facial incorporates cleansing and a milia removal, leaving skin with that warm, just-lit glow ($70). The Clinical Facial Deluxe ($90) offers the same features of the Clinical Facial, but adds a specialized mask treatment into the mix. A wheatgrass and sage purifying mask sooths blemished skin and renews the balance of oils, calming a stormy face-sea. Sufferers of parched pores can indulge in the Norwegian blueberry and honey mask to restore moisture and Valhallan luminescence. To combat the effects of aging brought on by J.J. Abrams plots, consult one of the medical aestheticians to determine which peel is right for your skin. Available in 30% ($70) or 70% ($80) varieties, the glycolic-acid peel reduces the appearance of fine lines, evens out skin tone, stimulates collagen production, and makes your face shine like Ken Jennings at trivia night. Other areas of treatment include neck, arms, décolleté, back, and legs.

With more than 30 licensed massage therapists and four area locations, Healing Hands Massage is on call seven days a week to bring relief to gridlocked muscles. Swedish-style therapeutic massages calm tense muscles and overworked minds with light-to-firm pressure and various kneading techniques. Deep pressure massages assuage tight muscles that require extra convincing, and pregnancy massages provide relief to expecting mothers whose joints ache from the added weight of carrying around future grown-ups. Massage therapists also make house calls for customers who’d rather receive bodywork in the comfort of their homes, and haul their massage chairs to offices or conventions to appease the overworked masses.

At reYou Massage, therapists specialize in a handful of massage styles that aim to undermine bodily aches. The staff pulls from a repertoire that includes massage modalities such as Swedish, medical, deep-tissue, and Esalen—a soothing modality featuring long, slow strokes that can travel the body's full length—to blast through tension faster than a house of cards divided against itself falls. After a session of up to two hours, many clients note a heightened sense of relaxation, a boost in circulation, and a greater range of motion, which in turn improves the believability of their windmill impressions.

Inside a spacious home office warmed by a crackling fire, Venus Salon and Day Spa's three-person team uses products from brand names such as Schwarzkopf and Bioelements to restore softness and glow to clients’ hair and skin. In the salon, stylist Amanda Smart draws upon more than 10 years of experience to fashion updos, condition tresses, or permanently or temporarily imbue hair with custom color.

Meanwhile, licensed aesthetician Andrea exfoliates bodies with chocolate cherry sugar scrubs and faces with diamond microdermabrasions. She can also treat men’s skin concerns, removing blackheads and uncaught baseballs from pores during custom facials. Licensed massage therapist Mark kneads muscles with four variations on massage, including prenatal and hot stone.

The aestheticians at Cham-Pagne Salon & Spa take stock of each client's beauty behests before launching into treatments that rely on brand-name products. Nail nurses decorate digits with OPI and Essie polishes during manicures, and stylists shampoo strands with Italian-imported Davines products before shaping them into chic new 'dos. Cham-Pagne's stylists can trim the tresses of anyone in the family, and they even host Princess Parties, during which girls can emulate Mom by enjoying miniature versions of manicures, pedicures, and makeup applications. Grownup pedicures find technicians kneading arches with rolled-up copies of Reader's Digest and one of the spa's signature scents. The salon's 30-minute crystal body-art sessions add twinkling contrast to the dark shades that UV-free airbrush tans bequeath to bodies.

Each staff member at Natural Wellness and Spa has personally experienced the benefits of massage, and seeks to demonstrate its soothing powers through diverse bodywork therapies and classes. Practitioners thoroughly investigate each patient's concerns before employing a particular, specialized approach, such as deep-tissue, trigger-point, or Swedish massage. Students get hands-on practice in self-massage and aromatherapy during 90-minute classes, which prove easier than learning massage techniques through trial and error in a physics lab.