Spa Near Nature At The Polo Club

Spas are all about the experience, isn’t it? But for me, one let-down is how after forking out a good wad of money to be kneaded to bliss, I have to rouse myself, put on my clothes and fight through the crowds in a mall back to my car. In that 10 minutes walk, all the relaxation and bliss would have gone up in smoke. As such, I like quieter spas where the entire journey is relaxing.

I recently popped into Lush Spa at the Polo Club and wondered why in the world I didn’t know this place existed before. It was a real treat, for one morning spent there felt like a real getaway even for a while. Why?

For one, there’s lots of tranquil nature to set the tone for your spa. You park under huge old trees at the visitors’ carpark, and walk al fresco to the clubhouse, polo grounds yawning to your right, lush greenery on your left, and the whistle of cicadas in your ear. Set on the second floor of the new wing of the club house right next to the gym, Lush Spa is a medium-size set up, it’s dimmed, cosy interiors a soothing cocoon for your senses.

After a cup of tea, I am brought across the stepping stones perched over a water feature, into one of the treatment rooms. While it is quite dark inside – its window covered with a bamboo blind – it sets the restful tone even if I am fumbling around a little to hang my clothes up and put my things away in the cupboard provided. What’s a thoughtful touch is the shower cubicle within the room – I won’t have to scuttle out to shower in a common bathroom. What’s more, there’s a rain shower to boot!

The therapist, Ela, potters in soon, and indulges me with a foot bath. Then it’s on to the massage – the Lush Equestrian ($175 for 90 minutes), so aptly named, which is designed to soothe the back, thigh, calves and heels. They added a hot stone element to it as well. First, I was covered in towels and hot stones placed on certain points of my back and shoulders. It was nice and warming….When the massage started, I asked Ela to focus on my back and shoulders too, for I am not a horse rider but spend more time over my computer. With long firm strokes with medium to hard pressure, she was a balm to my tired muscles. The massage was great on my legs, especially on the calves and upper thighs. She massaged my forearms a little too, right to the muscles and it was really gooood! Pity that didn’t feature much on this Equestrian massage!

In the dimmed interior – indeed it was one of the dimmer spas I have seen – it was easy to fall asleep. At this point, she tried to do a little hot stone massage, using the hot stones directly on my skin. Ouch! That was when I woke up – it was too hot for me. Despite Ela’s efforts to cool the stones down a little, it still didn’t sit well with me, so after several attempts, we decided to give up on the stones, and just massage in the conventional manner…which suited me fine, really. Ela commented that most people could take the hot stones, but sorry – that wasn’t my thing.

The 90-minute session was perfect for a morning’s treat. When it was over, it was so good to have a rain shower in my own treatment room. And there’s something rather nice about showing in the relative darkness, with the gentle hum of post-massage relaxation still coursing through my veins. My only complaint was there was no hair dryer in the entire spa and I had to later pop into the club’s changing room to use it shared one. (The staff at Lush Spa explained that using a hair dryer in the spa would disturb the peace and I could accept that even though it was inconvenient.)

After that, I appreciated that  I didn’t have to weave through crowds to get to my car but a stroll past the pool, under the large trees, cicadas overhead. If I had a friend with me, I might have popped into the clubhouse for a spot of lunch by the polo grounds, but next time…definitely.

Super Stylish Sparties!
Lush Spa was started by two media executives who got tired of the stressful corporate world and went into this happy business, offering spa sessions at offices. From there, Lynette Loh and her partner set up Lush Spa several years ago, and these ladies certainly know how to set up a spa party for the girls (and guys)!
 
Apart from the usual spa treatments, one thing that pops out is Lush Spa’s range of really stylish range of ‘sparties’ (min 4 people). They have one called Mini Spa & Martini Bar ($155 per person), which gets you and your friends a foot soak and polish, a 50-minute massage or facial, 20-min foot massage or hand treatment, then a stylish spread of duck rilletes, chocolate mousse cake, mini chicken and avocado wraps, other nibbles and of course, a lychee martini!  There’s also a Chocolate Sparty ($158 per person) with milk footbath, choc body scrub, body & foot massage or facial & scalp massage, followed by nibbles like chocolate fudge cake, bacon & hazelnut choc French toast (!) and chocolate martini. What’s more, you’re welcome to bring your own bottle of wine at no extra charge! Log onto their website http://www.massageatwork.com.sg/lush/spartys.html to see their fulll scintillating spread! We just love it!

Singapore Polo Club
80 Mount Pleasant Road
Tel: 6254 9091
10am – 9pm daily
(Images courtesy of Lush Spa)