Spa Day: Morocco Style!
I love spa days. I basically never do them, because they cost a small fortune that I just cannot afford or justify in my daily life. I can count the number of spa days on one hand. The last time I had a spa day was almost eight years ago on Mother’s Day when my twins were 8.5 months old and my husband decided I really needed a day to de-stress!
But here we are, in beautiful Morocco, where hammams are an important part of their life and culture. And we are all about experiencing culture! It doesn’t hurt that the hammam experience is very reasonable here, costing us only $270 total for all four of us. Definitely an indulgence, but something so well worth the money to experience that it would be silly to pass up this possibly once-in-a-lifetime experience! I truly hope it will not be only once in a lifetime I get the opportunity to do this!
Traditionally, people would go to public hammams weekly, typically on a Thursday in preparation for the Muslim holy day on Friday. It’s not just a place to go to bathe and clean yourself, but a place to gather, socialize, gossip, and so much more. There are traditions surrounding marriages for the bride and groom, new mothers after they deliver their babies, and more.
There are still public hammams here. But there are also a lot of private hammams, as well. We chose Le Bain de Kasbah which was family-friendly, and all four of us went. Jon and I just did the basic package, which felt extremely luxurious! I can’t imagine the upgraded packages getting any better than our basic package. They also had specific kids’ packages, where the girls got a chocolate scrub and a caramel body wrap instead of the traditional kessa glove exfoliation and I’m not sure what material the adult wrap was. They also got a more gentle and shorter massage at the end.
We arrived at the hammam and went into our changing rooms to strip down and put on our disposable underwear, fluffy bathrobes, and flip-flops. Men and women are separated in hammams. The girls and I went into the women’s hammam room, while Jon went into the men’s. The girls were beyond thrilled that our room was lit with glowing blue-purple lights rather than the white lights Daddy got.
Once we got into our room, we were taken care of by two very efficient attendants. They did not speak much English at all, but were lovely, kind, and full of smiles, especially for the girls. Everyone in Morocco seems to utterly adore kids! They get gifts from people everywhere they go. Flowers, keychains, personalized tiles with the first letter of their name carved into them by a local craftsman, extra treats, etc. With no expectation of anything in return from us. But I digress.
The hammam room is a warm steam room. You start by ditching the robe and sitting for a few minutes to acclimate to the temperature. Then you have a shower and lie down on your table. Our room had three tables, though Jon said the men’s hammam room only had one table. Your treatment begins by being scrubbed down with a black soap, then into the shower to rinse off.
Next up is the exfoliation with the kessa glove. Holy hell! I can see why they had a more gentle exfoliation for the girls. At first, I thought, this was way too painful. I think they’re going to scrub me raw! But, I wanted to try the full experience, so I held my tongue. And honestly, it didn’t take me long to get used to and even appreciate how intense the exfoliation process was. I think I lost about five layers of skin, but I think it was great for my super dry skin.
After rinsing off all my dead skin, you get soaped down with another special bath gel, which gets rinsed off. At the same time, they shampoo your hair twice and condition it with a product that smelled yummy and I believe was some type of Argan oil product. But I’m not sure. I knew I would be soaped, scrubbed, oiled, and massaged, but I did not know they would do my hair, too! And it meant one less time I needed to wash my girls’ long hair in the shower for them. Bonus!
Next up was the body and face wrap. It was a clay wrap with seven plants and rose honey, though I had no idea what these plants were. Throughout this process, it is very leisurely, with plenty of time to lie there, rest, relax, and just take it slow and easy. After another bought of laying on the table, relaxing, it was time for the next rinse off. Then you’re helped back into your fluffy robe and flip flops and escorted out to the cozy waiting room.
The lounging room is sumptuous and intimate. A small-ish room, maybe 8’x15’ that is lined on three sides with couches. After a few minutes to let your body acclimate back to room temperature, you’re escorted into your massage room. The girls got to go into one room and be together, which I liked. Jon and I had our own rooms. It was a full body massage, including hands, feet, scalp, and face. My scalp being massaged is always my favourite thing in the world. They used a honey-infused argan oil, which made my skin feel so moisturized and smelled slightly sweet. It is an amazing scent!
After an hour of being massaged, you were escorted back into the lounging room to relax on the couch, drink a mint tea, and get pampered with a variety of additional oils and creams. There was an oil for your hair, a thick cream for your legs and hands, and a thick and luxurious serum for your face and neck. Again, all of this was done at a slow, leisurely pace.
Finally, it’s time to head back to the changing room and leave this small slice of heaven. Our entire experience was 2.5 hours long, and I felt so relaxed, clean, moisturized, and content. As did Jon and the girls. It was the girls’ first spa experience, and based on their reaction to this one and the instant question when we left, “Can we go back and do this again before we leave?” It definitely will not be their last spa experience in their lifetime!
I wish that hammams were a part of our culture in Canada. I would be thrilled to experience this weekly! I know the public vs private hammam experience is very different. You do your own cleaning and scrubbing at the public hammams. Which would take away a lot of the relaxing aspects of it for sure. But I think it would still be a tradition I could get used to!