REVIEW: The Spa, Address Boulevard

I'm always confused about the entry turns into the three Address hotels in Downtown - all within shouting distances of each other. Actually, the confusion is engendered by the cabbies who mistake Address Downtown with Address Dubai and vice versa; now, there's also Address Boulevard. My cabbie was happily trying to aim for Address Dubai Mall when I suspected he was getting it wrong. Luckily, we found the correct passage quite easily. It was my first time at Address Boulevard; it's a beautiful property, lots of whites and lights, and smiling faces.
The Spa is an extension of the hotel's grandeur: it's HUGE, and very thoughtfully done up (every dressing table even has a deodorant!). My happy-faced Thai therapist Napha (Napha means sky, apparently) was chatty without being talkative. She gave me the lowdown on the treatment: a Lulur scrub, a wrap, and an "energising" massage.
For a change, I wasn't running late, so after sipping a delicate cooler made of lemon and lavender, and before being ushered into therapy time, I managed some time-out in the sauna and steam room. A few minutes inside these hot-boxes puts the spring right back into your stride. The treatment? Took the heat out of my life! Chiller party.
Therapy time
Summer Renew is a 90-minute treatment: scrub, wrap, knead. Lulur scrub is made from coconut extracts, and smells divine. The scrubbing was followed by a shea butter-and-honey body wrap. I was neatly folded into an aluminium foil sheet, and the bed temperature was turned up. You can feel the warmth course into your system - and it feels great! A shower. And then a 50-minute massage using frangipani and lotus oil. Napha used the flats of her palms mostly, and combined long strokes with shorter ones. Some light stretching, and voila, I was as good as new...
What we loved...
The spa per se is beautiful - sprawling and luxurious. Friendly staff, great therapist... Loved the fact that the treatment bed was temperature-controlled. The special touch of a heated neck pillow in the relaxation area (post massage) was the icing on the cake - quite a wrap to the treatment.
What we didn't...
Nothing, really... So, time for hair-splitting. Here goes! Even as I maintain that the spa is a sprawling wonder, I got a bit lost trying to find the exit from the changing area. The tempting-looking merchandise at the reception were also too pricey, I thought. A scented candle for Dh150?
sushmita@khaleejtimes.com