Best Kept Secret: Joya Spa’s Hammam Ritual

Everything you need to know about the health benefits of Joya Spa’s signature Hammam Experience plus a special discount for Arizona Spa Girls fans!

Deep within the heart of Omni Scottsdale Resort & Spa at Montelucia lies a secret lair where ancient healing traditions intersect with modern spa therapies. Arizona’s only hammam-inspired luxury retreat, Joya Spa at Montelucia offers an experience steeped in ritual and brimming with healthy benefits. Part spa treatment, part self-guided journey, Joya’s signature Hammam Experience is a treatment not to be missed. The wellness benefits aside, the hammam ritual also sets you off on a course to completely immerse yourself in your Joya Spa journey.

But, first…

A ha-what? The Hammam Demystified

Stemming from the Arabic word for “bath,” a hammam is a communal bathhouse with roots tracing back to the public baths of the Roman Empire. Not so common here in the United States, hammams are sprinkled throughout Western Europe as a place where people go to relax, socialize and get an invigorating cleansing and water therapy that many consider part of a healthy lifestyle.  The hammam ritual itself varies in different parts of the world but generally involves an invigorating scrub and circulation-boosting hot and cold water therapies. The Turkish bath, for example, starts in a warm room heated by a continuous flow of hot, dry air. Bathers then move to an even hotter room followed by a dousing of cold water. This is followed by a full-body cleansing and often a massage after which, bathers finally retire to a cooling room for deep relaxation.

A Hamman Here in Arizona? Oh yes!

Joya Spa at Montelucia offers Arizona’s only hammam experience. And many who visit the spa may not even know that the women’s and men’s lounges are designed to mimic the traditional hammam bathing ritual. The Joya Spa Hammam Experience is similar to the Turkish bath in that it starts in the aromatherapy warming room, where iridescent tiled heated seats are contoured to address the body’s pressure points. Next comes the brisk scrub where the therapist uses a traditional herbal black soap applied with a kassa cloth. After the cleansing comes trips to the steam room, the cold waterfall deluge, whirlpool and the sauna. The crowning glory is a nap on a plush bed in the spa’s whisper lounge, a lowly lit room blanketed in complete silence.

Of course, as a spa guest, you have access to all the lounge amenities on the day of your visit—it’s the addition of the 20-minute Hammam Experience that completes the tradition.

Benefits of Hammam

The alternating hot and cold elements of the hamman benefit the body in numerous ways. The body is mostly made up of water and just like with a stream, for water to stay clean, it needs to move. The less you move, the more your internal “streams” end up like a murky swamp. The hot/cold combination boosts the circulation of all the fluids in your body, bringing nutrient-dense blood to all of your cells and giving you the following benefits:

• Increases energy
• Improves circulation
• Strengthens immune system
• Detoxifies
• Reduces inflammation
• Reduces pain
• Relaxes tight muscles
• Improves flexibility and range of motion

Your Insider Hammam Special: Revealed!

Now that you’re armed with this insider secret, it’s your chance to experience Joya Spa’s Hammam Experience for yourself! And here’s the best part…

***Simply mention “Arizona Spa Girls” when you book your next Joya Spa service and add the Hammam Experience for only $45 (regularly $59).***

Enjoy and drop us a line after your Hammam service and let us know your thoughts!

Joya Spa at Omni Scottsdale Resort & Spa at Montelucia is located at 4949 East Lincoln Drive in the heart of picturesque Paradise Valley, Arizona. Visit omnihotelsjoyaspa.com to learn more about this lush retreat or call  480.627.3202. 

Want more? Read our Joya Spa review.