The first thing I noticed about Toppers Spa was the massive, beautifully carved doors I passed through as I entered. The reception desk was faced by the same carved wood. The rest of the reception area was equally inviting. The walls were a calming, deep rust color and the exotic wood floor was highlighted with stripes of metallic rust, gold and silver stripes. Inviting seating was adjacent to a small boutique.

Boutique in the Reception Area of Toppers Spa

Lisa, the very friendly and pleasant receptionist greeted me, checked me in and led me to the women's changing room. As we walked, she explained that the carved wood and other decorations in the spa were authentic and had been made in Bali for the spa. We passed a glass door to the lounge flanked by carved stone blocks. Interesting statues sat at the end of the halls. The heavy doors to the changing rooms used Balinese masks to identify men's and women's. I was beginning to feel transported.

Flip flops in the Women's Changing Room at Toppers Spa	Lockers in the Women's Changing Room at Toppers Spa
Shower in the Women's Changing Room at Toppers Spa	Vanity in the Women's Changing Room at Toppers Spa

When I finished changing, I met Lisa in the hallway. She escorted me to the co-ed lounge. Lounge chairs, sofas and chairs were comfortably arranged under two authentic, imported balés from Bali.

My esthetician, Amy, escorted me to the treatment room. I got settled on the table while she waited outside. After a few minutes, Amy returned to the room and started the facial by massaging my face with lavender oil to decongest the skin. The aroma was lovely, and Amy's technique was light, smooth and unhurried. Already relaxed, I went into a deeper relaxation immediately. Amy used Dermalogica products for this facial. She applied each product in the same light, smooth and unhurried way. A cleanser was followed by a course exfoliant and then a finer exfoliant. Amy removed this with a heavenly, warm, lavender-infused towel. Somewhere along the line, there were extractions, and an antibacterial serum was gently brushed on with a small brush afterwards. Amy used a larger brush to apply a mask. While it was working, she massaged my hands. Another warm towel removed the mask. Finally, a toner and moisturizer were massaged in. I really enjoyed this facial. My skin looked and felt great afterwards. But what I liked best was the way Amy gave the facial.

Now, the not-so-nice...

I had such a nice time at Toppers Spa, the next day I decided to browse through the menu on their web site to see what service I might like to have next. That's when I saw a link to a page titled "Current Promotions." When I clicked on it, I saw the following:

Save 30% On any Massage
Save 30% on any Facial (excluding Express services)
Save 15% On any Manicure and/or Pedicure
Save 10% on any Waxing
Save 20% On any first time Haircut and/or Haircolor service (some stylists excluded) plus 25% off on Brazilian Keratin Treatment

Hmmmm. Why didn't the person I talked to on the phone when I made my reservation the day before offer this promotion to me? I would have loved to have paid $86 for my facial instead of $123. In fact, had I been offered this discount, I probably would have gotten a massage as well. I felt cheated. Surely she just forgot to mention it...I could feel my blood pressure rising. I called and asked. The young woman who answered asked me to hold for a few minutes - to check with her supervisor, no doubt. She came back and said I would have had to mention this to the person who took my reservation and specifically ask for this promotion. The reservationists don't (proactively) tell customers about it. Excuse me?? Is this a promotion or a secret?? I feel like I was penalized because I was not in front of my computer when I made my reservation. Is that any way to treat a new customer (or any customer for that matter)? Frankly, it made me angry. I asked if I could get the discount now. She said "no," but I could next time. I told her I was a new customer, and even though I loved my spa experience, I wasn't sure I would be coming back for a "next time" because of this.

As I've said before, spas should NEVER do ANYTHING that makes their customers feel bad. Having a "secret" promotion is bound to make customers feel bad when they find out they didn't know the secret when they needed to.

My annoyance may fade, and I may go back to this spa. After all, it wasn't the actual spa that ticked me off, it was the corporate reservations (that is part of the spa experience, however). And, of course, I'll know to check for promotions before I call and ask if there are any other promotions I should know about before making a reservation.