Hilton Head Island, SC Spa and Massage

It's hard to tell who's doing the mothering at The Mom Spa. Certainly the aestheticians play a motherly role, doting on clients during indulgent services such as the Cleopatra wrap, which bathes the body in a blend of milk, honey, and oats to soothe dry, sensitive skin. But that's not to say the clients lack maternal dispositions. The spa has three pregnancy treatments that use massage strokes and hot stones to address the pains that result from carrying and birthing a child, and its Ayurvedic fertility treatments are meant to help women conceive. However, plenty of the services appeal to everyone, from facials that fight the appearance of fine lines and even out skin tone to natural nailcare that beautifies fingers and toes without harsh chemicals or chatty cyborgs.

Licensed massage therapist Jeffrey Lundergan induces relaxation at Ancient Earth Therapy using ten different types of massage. Sports massage tweaks the traditional Swedish formula to address athletic injury and increase range of motion, stone massage relies on hot river stones to penetrate deep into sore spots, and shiatsu involves the use of fingers, thumbs, and palms to restore the body’s energy meridians.

Carolina Eye Candy proprietor Elizabeth Williams Jennings calls upon her education and experience as a massage therapist and aesthetician to help her clients radiate beauty inside and out. Her specialization in eyelash extensions earned her recognition as Xtreme Lashes' Lash Stylist of the Month in February 2011, and Jennings also lends her expertise to a variety of spa treatments, including body wraps, mani-pedis, facials, and makeup applications. Like post offices that believe in presidents, Carolina Eye Candy is closed on Mondays and Wednesdays.

Hot desert air churns in from the distant dusty hills, but it’s given no quarter at Destination Academy Cosmetology School. Here, turquoise walls and porthole-shaped mirrors evoke the feel of a vessel bobbing in the water of a cool oasis. Though the spa-salon’s windows reveal sweeping views of the mountains, its private treatment rooms shield clients from the desert sun with candlelight, tubs big enough for two, and a choice of seven kinds of aromatherapy including french lavender and new handbag. On the second floor, expert stylists—some of whom may be alumni of Destination Academy, the salon’s nationally accredited training program—use Moroccanoil and Pureology to shape cuts to individual faces and style preferences.

Owners Kelly and April of Salon 424 & Spa supply luxurious salon perks and targeted med-spa treatments within a cozy brick cottage. Stylists customize haircuts to flatter individual face shapes, and technicians provide spot microdermabrasion treatments to resurface visages without relocating any carefully applied beauty marks. Luxurious nail treatments employ OPI polish and aromatic tropical botanicals to soften and beautify skin.