Touch Spa

What: Sea Salt Scrub (30 min), Flower Milk Bath (30 min), Balinese Massage (90 min)

Where: 555 Xizang Zhong Lu near Fengyang Lu in the Shanghai Marriott Hotel City Centre. Tel: 2312 9203

Why: You want to feel pampered like a baby.

How much: RMB 480, RMB 380, RMB 980 respectively + 15% service charge

At the Marriott’s Touch Spa, there is an emphasis on personalised treatments that redefine the idea of exceptional service. The masseuse works with your body, your kinks and your knots to make you feel more pampered than a newborn baby. For me, the entire treatment itself revitalised my mind and kindled a youthful appreciation for baths that I haven’t revisited since my days in primary school.

My feet were first washed in a warm milk bath as I sipped on honey sweetened herbal tea. My masseuse, Judy, then led me to the spacious shower area, where I was given time to undress and shower in preparation for my treatment.

As I stepped out of the bathroom in my silky-smooth robe, I was led to the massage table, where Judy invited me to lie down as she worked a sea salt scrub into my skin. The grainy texture coupled with my masseuse’s expert massage techniques were pure bliss for my muscles and it wasn’t long before I was drifting away. The scrub polished every inch of my dry winter epidermis, making it supple enough to quench the flower milk bath that succeeded.

The flower milk bath, my most anticipated part of the treatment, I giddily slipped into the creamy milk bath that was sprinkled in rose petals. I sat playfully in the tub, wiggling my toes under the opaque sea of white, feeling fully invigorated.

The final instalment of my blissful three-hour refuge was the Balinese massage. Using a combination of lavender, rosemary and ginger root oils, Judy massaged my body from my legs to my neck, working tentatively to meet my needs.