Santa Fe Day Spa

When I moved back to the Birmingham area about 7 months ago, it took me a while to find a good place to get my hair done. After some mishaps, I decided to go to Santa Fe Day Spa, which is over an hour from where I live. I used to go there several years ago when I lived in Birmingham and always had a great experience… and I was not disappointed! I have been to Nicole 3 times now, and the experience is well worth the drive and the money. She always does a great job and genuinely cares about both my satisfaction and the health of my hair. It’s so nice to have found a stylist I can trust!

Don’t ever try to book any services based off their specials listed on their website! This is the second time I am trying to arrange an appointment, and when I called to get a deal listed on their site, they said those deals no longer existed and tried to sell me a current one, which of course was more expensive. When I went before, the actual service was fine, but trying to get any sort of deal seems to always be a nightmare. Seems they could be more administratively savvy.

My friend and I had the couple’s package that included a massage, facial and pedicure. The changing room was very nice and clean. The water was a perfect temp in the hot tub. After a glass of wine and a mimosa we had an excellent massage and facial. We then ate lunch. I had a chicken salad sandwich and fruit. Way better than I expected… it was delicious! The ladies that did our pedicure were great, but it wasn’t the best pedicure I’ve had. All and all it was a wonderful day relaxing. I would definitely go back for a massage and facial! I recommend it!

Best pedicure I’ve ever had. So sad India has left, but they are all wonderful and meticulous in their craft. Complete with two mimosas, I was a happy camper! It gets busy, so make a reservation in advance. They also have an expert beautician who gives one heck of a wax! The massages are great and I love dipping into to hot tub after a treatment. Overall, 5 stars!

Hmmm… chocolate covered strawberries at the mimosa bar. They were wonderful! My pedicure was great and the experience was very relaxing. One star off due to employees trash talking co workers loudly in the salon. Not very mature.

On Christmas Eve my Fiancé and I decided to go and get a couples massage. We looked at Ross bridge and Santa Fe, we decided to go to Santa Fe to save an extra 30 $. Turned out to be the wrong place to save money. Our therapists were amateurs, when I asked for more pressure, the therapist pitched a upgrade. As if she needed to be charge me for a little more pressure. The facility is mediocre at best, the staff was friendly but not accommodating. The locker rooms were trash, the steam room does not work and the hot tub blew out cold water. The price was entirely too expensive, but I would be glad to pay it for an actual spa. The moral of the story is don’t waste money on this place, spend an extra 30 $ and head over to Ross bridge.

Overall it was way more of a headache than a relaxing afternoon at the spa for my 36 weeks pregnant wife. She got there 15 minutes before her appointment (as requested) and got checked in. They told her to wait over in the seating area until someone came to get her. The appointment was at 1 pm for a 50 minute maternity massage but the massage therapist didn’t come and get her until 1:15. When they got back to the room, she asked if my wife needed to use the restroom before they got started. Since no one had suggested this earlier or pointed out the locker room tucked away at the end of a hallway, she said yes and quickly used the restroom before changing in the massage room. By the time the massage finally started it was after 1:20 pm. The massage was over and the therapist was out of the room in time for my wife to check her phone and see the time was 1:49 pm. My wife was shocked, thinking there had to be some mix up and her appointment somehow must have been changed to a 30 minute massage. The therapist never once asked if there were any specific areas my wife wanted her to focus on or how the pressure was – it was basically a 25 minute moisturizing session. Unsure of whether this was possibly precaution and the norm for maternity massages, she asked a few other coworkers who were there the same day and heard similar complaints.
Upon questioning the front desk about the brevity of the massage, they said they would talk to the manager and therapist. They came back saying the therapist claimed the late start was due to my wife having to use the restroom. While it was true, she did use the restroom, that didn’t account for the late start. After talking to the manager again, a $ 10 credit was «awarded» to my wife. That’s pretty laughable considering the $ 95 price tag for a 50 minute massage that only lasted 25 minutes.
My wife called the spa so she could speak to the manager herself (not sure why this couldn’t happen in person at the spa). The manager (Diane) was very sympathetic and said she wanted to make things right so she would check the security footage to confirm the late start and early finish. Once confirmed, Diane put a credit on my wife’s account for another 25 minute massage to complete the time she was shorted. While that’s a nice gesture, I think anyone who has had a massage before would agree that two, separate 25 minute sessions may equal 50 minutes TIME but do not add up to equal the experience and relaxation of one, solid 50 minute session. Driving to the spa for a 25 minute massage session is honestly not worth the hassle, especially at this point in the pregnancy and maybe even more so once the baby is here with having to coordinate baby sitter, etc.
This experience solidifies that it really is worth the $ 20 – 30 extra for Ross Bridge, where they allow you to use all amenities (locker room, steam room, pool) regardless of the number of services or amount you’re spending with them that given day. (Santa Fe said they reserve the extra amenities for clients who are doing larger/​more expensive package deals)

Had a nice massage was looking forward to the steam room but it didn’t work. So call ahead and be sure everything is working first. Service was ok