Pennsauken, NJ Spa and Massage

Master-level certified in Ashiatsu Oriental Bar Therapy, massage therapist Daniel Caruso customizes both Swedish and ashiatsu massages to suit individual clients' needs. Each session begins with a deep breath atop a lambskin-covered, heated table, cleansing the mind of stress and catchy TV theme songs as Caruso assesses for any particularly tense or troublesome muscle areas. During Swedish massages, hot stones, music, and aromatherapy help patrons relax as he blends trigger-point therapy with light- to medium-pressured strokes to reduce stress and promote circulation.

In a Better Philly feature, Pierre & Carlo European Salon & Spa defines itself as a stylish haven where beauty thrives and stress melts into obsolescence. Glowing panels cooperate with track lighting to illuminate clients as hair whisperers practice their cutting and styling craft. In private treatment rooms, candles' gentle presence complements the soft touches of aestheticians with encouraging flickers. Clients can feast thirsty eyes on the spa's waterfall wall before strolling to service stations where therapeutic facials flush the flaws from skin, be it dry, acne-ridden, or covered in decoupage. Before and after any of five massages, visitors are welcome to relax their minds and muscles in a chromatherapy soak tub lit by colorful LEDs. Owner Dorina D'Amore has established in her list of services a special Men's Club, exhorting each passing man to bust his way through Pierre & Carlo's doors for an invigorating herbal-infusion wrap or a signature mani-pedi.

Rustic wood floors, french doors, and calming white walls create a cozy atmosphere that complements T.A.R. Salon and Spa's roster of relaxing services. Skilled hands untie muscular knots during massage and bodywork sessions. During hair-related appointments, they'll clip fresh coifs from overgrown scalps, outdated 'dos, or over-powdered wigs. Nailcare and waxing round out the salon’s services, and patrons can opt to combine any number of treatments to usher in a full day of self-pampering.

Tundella & Co.'s owners, Margarita Gazaryan (Russian-born of Armenian descent) and Gustavo Tundela (from Brazil), seemed destined to end up in the beauty industry. Raised by grandparents who were both hairdressers, Margarita fell in love with the industry early on, whereas Gustavo honed his skills and ability to dry hair by spinning a chair really fast as a fashion model. Today, the duo and team continues to hone avant-garde styling techniques, and Gustavo works as an educator and platform artist for Hotheads Hair Extensions and OLEZ Advanced Organic Keratin. This experience ensures customers can rest easy while getting pampered with a variety of hair services and hair-removal and skin-pampering treatments.

Twenty years of experience and degrees in chemistry, holistic spirituality, and theology decorate massage therapist Jonathan Nidock’s walls, hinting at his dual commitment to therapeutic bodywork and spiritual nurturing. Jonathan pairs this commitment with a thorough knowledge of anatomy and physiology to administer relaxing massages that call upon modalities such as myofascial release and neuromuscular therapy. Though each maintains its specific focus, Jonathan’s massages all work to stimulate blood and lymphatic circulation, dissipate tension, and curb chronic aches caused by wearing Kick Me signs made of concrete. Ideal for addressing uncertainties in the organs and nervous system, Jonathan’s holistic foot reflexology treatments promote well-being through the application of thumb pressure to specific points on the feet, which are thought to correspond to various organs in the body.

Billy Engstrom, the licensed massage therapist behind Philadelphia Massage Studio, knows how the body and its muscles move. Not only has he been a massage therapist for the past 10 years, he's also flexed his own muscles as a wrestler since the age of 6. He puts this experience to work in his private studio, a space where he performs a range of different massages. His bread and butter, however, is custom massage. As each client's body, problem, and symptoms are different, so too is each of Billy's treatments unique.