Business Description
So SPA is certainly not so-so. The gastronomic-inspired treatment menu is literally good enough to eat.
The emerald green exfoliating thyme scrub pasted onto our face mid-treatment is so potent we’re tempted to break with social convention and lick our face.
Fortunately, the decorum inspired Cinq Mondes’ philosophy practised within our treatment parlour halts us. The elegant ‘five worlds’ concept uses traditional, medicinal plants from remote lands to treat mind, body and soul, and aims to envelop the client in sensory serenity.
The carefully edited and somewhat poetic treatment menu is unpredictable, and has many options, such as the 90-minute rose hamman ritual priced at Dhs740.
This particular hamman starts with a deep cleanse and healing rose clay body mask to nourish the skin before SHIFFA’s organic rose bliss body balm ‘seals in your new found softness’. The 60-minute five flower facial ritual, Dhs450, sounds similarly divine as an ‘ancestral Balinese ritual’ utilising the magical properties of tropical petals.
We want to feel re-energised and rebalanced, and the 60-minute Carita Essential Facial Treatment promises to brighten our tired complexion using lymphatic drainage techniques to remove impurities and reduce puffiness.
We’re pleased that specific serums and creams from Carita, the latest line in French cosmetology, are selected to match our sensitive, combination skin after filling out a short questionnaire.
After wrapping up in a soft and fluffy robe and slippers, we lie on a gloriously heated bed which instantly endears us to So SPA. We wish the therapist had asked us to remove our make-up before we start, as the ritual of placing cotton pads over each eye a dozen times to swirl the mascara off each individual lash, is tiresome.
That is a brief irritation, for when the treatment properly begins we quickly slip away to another planet. Layer upon layer of delicate serum, dry lemon oil and sensitive moisturiser is applied to our face and décolletage in firm, symmetrical movements.
Each application is followed by a hot compress to open the pores and sweep away the previous products in preparation for the next. There are three particular focal points; a pressure point massage studies tension in the neck and temples as a cold, clay mask works its magic.
We fall into a weightless sleep as the dulcet sound of waves and bird song wash over the room. Our therapist is skilled and gentle and we truly feel like someone is taking care of us.
Another highlight is the aforementioned thyme and oil scrub that smells incredible. However, we strongly recommend you don’t venture out for a hot date straight after the treatment as we smell faintly like herby pizza until we next take
a shower.
The scrub is worked into the skin until it falls off as dry flakes and we feel as if we have shed a layer of stress – our skin has been woken up and switched on. Three days later, our skin is still silky soft, our fine lines have disappeared and our face appears leaner and eyes more sparkly.
At 60 minutes, the treatment is the perfect length of time and we open our eyes as if we have been sleeping in a cool forest for months.
We are ushered behind a white curtain and treated to a steaming cup of restorative green tea, a pile of magazines and bowls of dried apricots, raisins and almonds. This peaceful sanctum at Sofitel on the Corniche is truly impressive.
60-minute facial Dhs450, 90 minutes Dhs620. Open daily 9am-9pm. So SPA, Sofitel Abu Dhabi Corniche, Corniche East Road (02 813 7777)
A menu good enough to eat
Starter: So Fresh facial.
This express facial is a 15-minute back massage that includes an enzymatic peeling to remove unwanted layers of dull flaky skin to leave the skin smooth and visibly clearer. Dhs325.
Main course: Slimming and silhouetting udvartana ritual.
An ancient Indian slimming technique including lymphatic drainage aids to eliminate aqueous cellulite on the legs abdomen and arms. Followed by a warming wrap to boost detox performance giving amazing results. Dhs495.
Side order: Indian head massage.
The head, neck and face are massaged and exfoliated, targeting a variety of skin care needs such as clogged pores, bad acne and dehydrated skin. Dhs215.
Dessert: 1001 roses milk bath.
Relax and indulge in a journey encased with the scent of 1001 Arabian roses. This luxurious SHIFFA milk bath is infused with precious rose extract and rich milk to soften and nourish the skin. Dhs300
