Tucked away in a corner of Resorts World Sentosa is ESPA, a 10,000sqm tropical haven that offers Singapore’s first authentic Turkish hammam.
Turkish Delight
Tucked away in a corner of Resorts World Sentosa is ESPA, a 10,000sqm tropical haven that offers Singapore’s first authentic Turkish hammam.
The Deal: Imagine taking a long thoroughly cleansing bath after a tiring day at work. Now, imagine lying down for the entire bath – for a whole blissful hour – while someone soaps, scrubs, shampoos, conditions and kneads you from head to toe. This is what I experienced last week during my Indulgence Hammam Ritual, or Turkish bath, at ESPA in Resorts World Sentosa. To call ESPA a spa would be a huge disservice.
For starters, the property is housed on 10,000sqm of lush grounds – about the size of eight Olympic-sized pools – complete with a sleeping room, a range of hot and cold pools, crystal steam rooms, rock saunas, a gym, a restaurant and a picturesque relaxation lounge where you can socialise with friends.
The Lowdown: After a consultation and a refreshing welcome drink of lemongrass and aloe vera, I swap my work clothes for a lush robe and head to the hammam treatment room where I am greeted by my therapist Fennie. She is clad in a bathing suit and towel, which gives a hint of what’s to come. I change into a towel wrap and Fennie guides me into a heated room where she rinses me with warm water, making sure to check if I’m comfortable with the temperature.
She then guides me to a heated marble slab and proceeds to literally throw bowls of warm water on me, using varying force for different parts of my body. The splashing is quite forceful on the legs and can be a little uncomfortable. But it is meant to be that way, she says, to invigorate tired muscles and boost circulation.
On the top half, she is gentle, and the water caresses my body, washing away the day’s fatigue. A body scrub follows, with Fennie using a pair of kese Turkish exfoliating mitts to remove dead skin and scrub me clean. She splashes water over me again, checking again that I’m comfortable before the next step: a foam massage. Using a pillowcase, she does a performance (not unlike a noodle-pulling dance at Chinese hotpot restaurants), twisting and turning the cloth in the air to create a thick foam of bubbles with which she covers my body.
She gives me a light massage with the foam, which feels like silk. She washes my face, shampoos and conditions my hair and gives me a muchneeded scalp massage. Another splashing session follows, after which Fennie wraps my whole body in a detoxifying algae gel. I am brought to a steam room where I sit for 10 minutes, perspiring what I hope are toxins from my body. All too soon though, my treatment comes to end, with Fennie giving me a final rinse and towelling me dry.
The Benefits: Immediately after the hammam ritual I felt reinvigorated, even though it was nearly 10pm. Considering that my day started at 7am, I was surprised at the amount of energy I had after the treatment. My usually dry skin was also soft and smooth for once, thanks to the scrub and algae wrap.
The Verdict: Super luxurious. ESPA is a great location for an indulgent escape. I can see myself going back with my friends, enjoying a massage or manicure and hanging out in the relaxation lounge for the rest of the day. Utter bliss. www.rwsentosa.com.
