Oakdale, CA Spa and Massage

Alainn Tu is stocked with a staff of friendly and experienced stylists and aestheticians, and the salon and spa's commitment to eco-friendly business practices shows a worldview beyond the keratin fences of customer's toenails. Customers can get smoother than a freshly buffed professional bowler with waxing options, including brow ($18–$35), lip ($7), and chin ($10–$15) treatments, or increase the drama of their eye accessories by tinting their lashes ($25) or brows ($15). For skin showing signs of stress, forget direct injections of soothing elevator music and instead opt for the 60-minute 302 Signature regeneration treatment ($75), which includes cleansing, extractions (as necessary), and an enzyme mask. The quickie break-time treatment ($50), men's signature treatment ($75), or flash treatments replenish the skin better than repeatedly dipping frontispieces into bowls of punch.

Minx Salon and Spa’s owner, Maddison Bell, stockpiles nine years of experience as a stylist and colorist and shares that knowledge through her work as an artistic educator for Matrix Professional haircare. Maddison and her talented, professional team perfect hair, massage, skincare, and nail services within the comforts of a charming home. The two-story building was made in the early 1900s in the American Craftsman style, an architectural movement that lost steam in the '30s after the Great Depression triggered the Hooverville fad. The modern furnishings and contemporary interior décor follow a sleek black-and-white color scheme with elegant chandeliers hanging over hairstyling stations, luxurious pedicure chairs, and six spa-treatment rooms.

From styling celebrity hair to revitalizing complexions with relaxing facials, the team at Willo Aveda, an Aveda concept salon, aims to fill local mirrors with visions of beauty. Stylists of five different experience levels wash and rinse hair before breathing new life into languishing strands with a tailored cut and blow-dry. Alternatively, hair artisans can deploy Aveda's 97%–99% naturally derived formulas to refresh hair with a single-process color or nourish locks with conditioning plant oils that leave hair shinier than a freshly licked ring pop. Aestheticians address hyperpigmentation or acne with skin-specific facials, and nail techs can upgrade the signature manicure with durable Shellac gel polish that lasts up to two weeks.

Serendipity Day Spa & Wellness Center finds inspiration for its massage, skincare, and energy therapies almost everywhere on earth. Its menu of Aveda services channels the wholesome properties of plant essences, and certain body treatments—such as the chocolate cake scrub and organic pumpkin body wrap—evoke delightful kitchen aromas. Like walruses painting a landscape, the spa's masks draw from the land and ocean simultaneously, incorporating clay and seaweed components that transfer vitamins to visages.

The staff applies deft kneads and skin-clearing solutions in a quiet environment to minimize stress. Though cell phone use is prohibited, packages and party options allow groups to socialize while on the receiving end of facials and waxing forays.

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.

Nestled in the Pacific Complementary Medicine Center, Hands on Healing’s all-female staff removes pain and tends to skin needs, each boasting an individual specialty such as energy work, myofascial release, and trigger-point therapy. The variety of specialties helps Hands on Healing address clients’ specific needs by matching them with the caregiver whose honed skills best correct the problem. The staff employs professional equipment designed to help release tension, detoxify the body, and create skin smooth enough to infiltrate a pod of dolphins.