A few weeks ago, I won a voucher in a Just Beauty Magazine (a magazine for local beauty professionals) competition for a 30 minute treatment at The Fish Lounge in St.Julians or Bugibba and needless to say, I was over the moon as I have been intrigued by this whole fish spa idea ever since they started popping up on the island. Yesterday was the perfect opportunity for me and Johan to try this whole fish spa thing out as a little treat for his birthday so off we went to the Bugibba outlet so what all the fuss is about.
First, let me give you some general information about fish spas and then, I will 'review' the whole experience at the end. To start with, let me tell you that fish spas are not a new concept; in fact, the most famous of all, the Kangal Spa (Turkey), has opened its doors in the early 1900's. Furthermore, historians suggest that similar spas have been in use for much, much longer!
Basically, two types of fish are bred for this purpose, namely, Garra rufa and Cyprinion macrostomus. These fish can be termed 'comb fishes' in the sense that they only feed on dead skin and leave the healthy skin to grow. Such softness on the feet is very difficult to achieve with conventional foot exfoliation methods. However, courtesy of les fishes, clients at the spa leave with baby-soft footies :) The fish, or as they refer to them at The Fish Lounge, little 'skin specialists', give you a natural pedicure as they gently suck away unwanted superfluous skin off your feet whilst cleaning your pores. While doing so, they softly massage your feet, increase blood circulation and stimulate acupuncture points. In turn, this helps regulate the nervous system, enhances natural immunity, relaxes the body and releases fatigue.
Moreover, such a treatment is highly recommended for those who suffer from Psoriasis and Eczema type skin disorders as the fish used in these spas apparently secrete an enzyme which upon studying, was found to be of great benefit to treat such skin disorders. In fact, laboratories worldwide are even looking into the possibility of producing a topical application out of this enzyme!
Now onto our personal experience! First of all, you do not need an appointment! Yes that's right! You just pop into the spa and they fit you for in for 15 or 30 minutes of relaxation while the inch-long fish do all the work for you! The staff at the spa are mostly foreigners and are all very cheerful and friendly :)
As soon as you go into the salon, your feet are gently cleansed and examined for any cuts or contra-indications prior to treatment. For example, Johan had a small cut on the upper part of one foot and the lady that washed our feet put on a band-aid to ensure that the fish do not nibble on the scab and cause blood to ooze out. Afterwards, you are given a pair of plastic foot caps (similar to shower caps for the hair but your wear them on your feet) to wear while waiting for a spa unit to be vacant.
As soon as you go into the salon, your feet are gently cleansed and examined for any cuts or contra-indications prior to treatment. For example, Johan had a small cut on the upper part of one foot and the lady that washed our feet put on a band-aid to ensure that the fish do not nibble on the scab and cause blood to ooze out. Afterwards, you are given a pair of plastic foot caps (similar to shower caps for the hair but your wear them on your feet) to wear while waiting for a spa unit to be vacant.
We removed the foot caps before we immersed our feet into the tank and as soon as we put our feet in, this fish were instantly nibbling away and tickling our feet in the process. In fact, my first thought was if I would be able to go through all the 30 minutes with all the tickling I was experiencing but after a little while, it all turned out to be a fun experience! It didn't hurt at all as they fish have no teeth. It felt more like my feet were suspended in a jacuzzi pool with bursting bubbles. You can also bring in your smart or tablet pc as the place is equipped with a free WiFi system. The only thing I am not sure of is that they claim that there are over a 100 fish per aquarium when Johan's aquarium had much less fish than mine. Once the treatment was over, they handed us a disposable cloth to wipe our feet in and that was pretty much it!
Other than that, I was pleased to know that the water is sterilized every 6 minutes through a UVC filtration system and the fish cannot transmit any disease to humans. Lastly, the final results are totally what I had expected! We both left with baby-soft feet free from dry skin! The fish did a very good job at removing the superfluous skin, uncovering the hard skin underneath and made it easier for me to reach it and removing with a conventional foot scrub when I got home.
Overall, I rate the experience 4.5 stars out of 5 (0.5 less because of the number of fish) and I recommend this treatment to everyone wanting a fun and unusual way to care for their feet!
Treatments cost €9 for 15 minutes (€7 for kids) or €15 for 30 minutes (€12 for kids). The Fish Lounge can be found both at 46, St.George's Road, St. Julians or at 210, St. Simon Street, Bugibba (the outlet we went to).
For more information and contact numbers, you can visit their website or facebook page.
I had heard bad things about these things, AIDS, HIV and other blood borne diseases.
ReplyDeleteI'd be way to tickled to do that, good hearing you were able to enjoy it in the end :) Shame that he didn't have as many fish in the tank as you, I imagine he has bigger feet too.