Beauty & Spas in Hanover

At Nutrapy, owner and director Jimmy Chung and his team promote internal wellness and external beauty in a tranquil, eco-friendly environment. Chung addresses physical aches and pains not only as a licensed massage therapist, but as a reiki master and certified polarity therapist, specializing in energy work designed to facilitate healing. For the well-being of their clients and the environment, he and his staff perform services using organic products wherever possible, nourishing faces with the Éminence Organic Skin Care line and pampering nails with toxin-free polish. Chung is also working on his master's degree in Chinese medicine, so it's no surprise that the center also offers Eastern-based services such as acupuncture and tai chi classes. Located in the South Shore, Nutrapy also features a raw herbal dispensary and has tested 200 medicinal herbs.

Before treatments even start, Nutrapy helps guests feel calmer and more centered as they walk into the holistic haven, which is decorated with orchids and soothing brown and blue-green earth tones. Once inside, patrons relax in pipe-less pedicure spas that resemble overstuffed recliners, or on a cushy suede couch in the candlelit relaxation room. In the corner, a small, rock-bordered pond teems with bright orange fish and features a soothing waterfall that gurgles Beatles classics.

Light Tuscan stonework surrounds the entrance of Dolce Med Spa & Boutique, welcoming guests to this 5,000-square-foot oasis of pampering. Owner Tracey Lively opened this luxurious escape just last year and offers a menu of medical-spa and day-spa services for men and women alike because, as she noted in an article in the Patriot Ledger, many spas in the region weren't meeting the beautification needs of both genders. Harvard-trained plastic surgeon Dr. Daniel Del Vecchio and the medical aestheticians on staff tend to chemical peels and assorted laser treatments, and a troop of skin experts and body therapists slathers bodies with Glysomed professional facial products, soothing massage oils, and Cinnabon frosting.

The Face Place’s client-centered skincare specialists prettify earthly edifices with surface-sprucing services inside a cozy cabana of chassis restoration. A classic facial refurbishes frontispieces weathered from stress, age, or radioactive cheese fondue with essential oils. Meanwhile, a 60-minute pedicure pampers human paws with a sugar-butter scrub, a calf-cooling leg-and-foot massage, and a sole-swaddling hot-towel wrap that feels akin to donning a pair of fluffy, fresh-from-the-dryer croissants.

Spa Ujala’s aestheticians strive to reinvent clients' appearances through custom combinations of organic or botanically derived products. During the facial treatments, they can slather cheekbones with antioxidant-filled seaweed, organic mud masks, or balms with enough vitamin C to get through the next orange strike. The spa's body wraps also seek to leave skin soft and vibrant by first nourishing it in a bath of coconut, mung bean, and lavender. For an even more tactile experience, the massage therapists unravel knots near the surface of muscles by using gentle, flowing Swedish strokes. They also utilize deep-tissue techniques or hot stones to delve a bit further into the musculature.

Bethany Simons’s approach to massage is one of therapy rather than just relaxation. At BethanyHealth and Wellness, she specializes in pain relief, trying to assist the body’s natural healing functions by eliminating chronic aching in the muscles and connective tissues. Treatments are customized to each client, and can incorporate techniques such as deep-tissue, trigger-point, and reflexology massage. Bethany supplements her treatments by educating clients on how to prevent further injury through therapeutic exercise and business suits made of bubble wrap.

Darlene McKenney, the founder of First Hand Massage Therapy, marshals two decades of experience as both a massage therapist and a physical therapist. It seems natural that her specialty is sports massage. She starts off her sessions by discussing treatments, which include deep-tissue massage—complete with limb-loosening stretches drawn from her physical therapy background—designed to help athletes overcome the lingering effects of injury. She performs other modalities as well, including hot stone, Swedish, and pregnancy massage.