The day spa, once only a place for the rich and famous, is now becoming a regular destination for the “everyday” person to enjoy. With more people becoming better educated about what spas are all about, the day spa phenomenon is spreading like wildfire. Many of today’s day spa consumers are looking for health promoting services that relieve stress and aching muscles, improve fitness and nutrition education, and boost mental and emotional wellness. The day spas of today can provide all of those services and more to a wider range of clients with varying spa experiences than every before. So, just where did the concept of the day spa come from anyway?

The idea of going to a bath house for cleansing, pain relief, and leisure time goes back to the ancient days of Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece, and Rome. Initially reserved for the wealthy, public baths became popular destinations for the “common” peoples of these ancient societies. Roman emperors often constructed elaborate bath houses for their citizens to enjoy, making them bigger, better, and more elaborate with every new reigning emperor. These “day spas” offered their visitors a variety of services, including hot and cold water therapies, hot oil massages, steam baths, exfoliation treatments, and often even included a library or meeting room for people to gather after their spa visit.

Since those ancient times, the day spa experience has enjoyed varying levels of popularity over the years. During the Middle Ages, mineral and hot spring spas were built throughout Europe and Asia and used for healing and relaxation. In the early twentieth century, Germany built health spas throughout the country as doctors began treating the “whole” body rather than a specific ailment or symptom. For decades, Germans have regularly visited day and stay spas in order to practice preventative medicine by relaxing and pampering the body, mind, and soul as a whole.

The term “day spa” was first coined in the United States in the early 1900s. Elizabeth Arden opened the very first day spa, The Red Door Salon, in Manhattan in 1910. As a single, independent business woman, Arden worked hard to develop products and services that improved a woman’s appearance and expressed her individuality in the early days of women’s suffrage. The Red Door Salon offered facials, manicures, waxing, and access to newly developed and gradually improving cosmetics and lotions. The spa also served as a finishing school for young, independent women to assert their newfound rights and freedoms.

With the great success of her New York day spa and expanding cosmetics line, Arden branched out into the destination spa business by opening a “beauty spa” in Maine in 1934 where woman would spend more than $500 to spend a week losing weight, soaking in luxurious bath salts, and trying out the latest lotions, makeup, and beauty treatments. Through the Depression, Elizabeth Arden successfully managed to keep women beautiful and pampered, no matter what the cost.

The day spa industry has certainly grown by leaps and bounds since those early days. In the 1980s, the “Me Generation” began splurging on luxuries, such as fine wines, gourmet foods, extravagant vacations, and spa treatments. The Dot-Com boom of the 1990s gave more and more people discretionary income to use on luxury items, while the popularity of the Internet offered access to new and exciting information about things that regular people knew little about until then. All of these factors combined have helped the day spa phenomenon explode into a multi-million dollar business.

According to the International Spa Association (ISPA), today there are more than 14,000 spas throughout the United States and Canada. Of these, nearly 70 percent are day spas, and the business of pampering continues to grow rapidly each year. With the increased levels of daily stress and responsibilities that both men and women experience in today’s modern and complicated world, the day spa has become a place for people to go to escape the problems of the world. While resort and destination spas remain a popular choice for people to go to on a yearly holiday, day spas offer people access to the kinds of treatments they would receive at a stay spa on a regular basis.

Over the centuries, people have understood the importance of rest, relaxation, and the need for the body to renew and revitalize itself. Pampering ones’ self should never be reserved for just those who can afford expensive treatments and services. The day spa offers people of all backgrounds and means the opportunity to live the good life for at least a few hours a week or per month. While resort spas are a great place to go and relax for an entire week every year, you can’t forget about the other 51 weeks! More and more people are taking advantage of the ease, affordability, and accessibility the day spa offers. With more than 10,000 day spas available to choose from, it’s never been simpler to enjoy a day of pampering for yourself. Give it a try because you won’t regret it!

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