Hand & Stone Massage and Facial Spa

I went in to H&S today for the introductory massage. It’s sad to say, but this is my first real massage and I’m now trying to figure out what I was waiting for! Mike, the Therapist, made the experience great. I started out letting him know I had never had a massage and had no idea what I needed… Swedish, sports, deep tissue… but he put me at ease and we got started. The experience was great! I felt the knots when he hit them but by the end, they were all worked out and I was good and relaxed. Plan to join the membership program and get back there at least once a month. Definitely recommend H&S!

My therapist Mike was amazing. Gave a very firm massage, just what I needed for my sore muscles. He was excellent and I will use him again.
The receptionist needs more training. She was friendly but busy with another customer and unable to check me in properly for my appointment. My therapist was waiting around for her to tell him I as there and that took 3 minutes. That’s when a manager should step to the front desk area to help out. Management needs to be more responsible for what happens in the front of the house and help out, not just sit in the back office.

The only reason I am giving this establishment one star is because half of a star is not an available option. Back in September I went with my significant other to get facials. He was scheduled for a gentleman’s facial and I a regular facial. Upon arrival this was solidified. After the facials were completed, we discovered that his hour had been spent receiving a regular facial. While the facials were decent, as another reviewer stated; they talked the entire time. Both my significant other and I experienced this. Questions about our personal and professional lives, not about our skin care. We agreed that while this seemed odd and even annoying we would make it a point to let them know next time we preferred silence. We both thought our people were friendly hence why we chose to be patient and see this as possibly an isolated experience. We decided to become members that same day.
October proved to be a very busy month for us and we were unable to have a session. I contacted them with dates and even scheduled something twice only to receive a call back that there was a schedule conflict and though they were «terribly sorry», they could not honor the scheduled appointments. Because our times were limited, we did not get seen at all this month.
I contacted them in November to schedule a couples massage and facials to run concurrently. I was told I would have to pay an additional $ 20 per person to be in the same room but that if I was okay with that, then it should not be an issue; I was given an appointment. I was contacted shortly after only to be told that I would have to do the couples massage from noon-​1pm and the facial 3 – 4. This was not convenient so I cancelled the facials and kept the noon couples massage time.
We arrived 10 minutes before our scheduled massage time only to be told that they had made a mistake in scheduling and the room for our massages was no longer available. The appointment was confirmed the day before. They told us they could take us in separate rooms and not charge us the additional $ 40 but they could not take us together as was scheduled. When I expressed to them that this was unacceptable, they suggested we make another appointment and come back another day. I explained to them that due to our schedules (we travel frequently), this was the only free day we had available this month. They offered a hot towel as an incentive.
We opted to cancel our membership. We will be charged one more month (December) despite the month of November not being over. We now have 90 days to get in 6 services (3 a piece).
This place is not as professional and competent in rendering services as the front lobby may allude to. One incident qualifies as a mistake, multiple mistakes in the same areas qualifies as incompetent. I do not recommend you spend your time nor money at this establishment.

I signed a contract with them on Oct. 13, 2014, whereby they charged my designated credit card monthly. Although I was unable to attend monthly treatments, they allowed me to accumulate these for use @ a later date. In February 2015, I informed the receptionish that I wanted to cancel. She agreed, but never gave me any type of confirmation. For the following 3 months, I was not charges. However, I neglected to realize that they began charging my credit card after 3 months had elapsed. I inquired about this & was informed that I had not cancelled, but had frozen my membership, If this indeed, were the case (which it wasn’t), I NEVER «unfroze» my membership. I was informed that they would not refund the $ 239.80 charges, but would provide me with 4 spa sessions. I refused since I had cancelled & wanted a refund. They refused. This company has UNFAIR BUSINESS PRACTICES. They are money-​hungry & will stop @ nothing to rip you off. Who’s ever heard of a «freeze» in lieu of cancellation! As a result of their scrupulous business practices, I would never recommend them. Further, I had NEVER encountered being asked for a tip before as this was a routine & insulting inquiry!

I cannot stress this enough– do not go to this place. I went 2 – 3 times just trying to give them more chances. I have gotten a massage and a wax from here. The last time I went, I had a gift card I wanted to use. At the end of my massage, I had some money left over that I wanted to just use up before I left so I asked what I could get for $ 15, product wise. The manager was at the front desk and she recommended an after wax product for about $ 15, so I thought sure, why not. I went to purchase it and she asked for my credit card, and I thought she was just going to put the remaining balance on it. Instead she charges my card for the full price of the product. I told her I only wanted it if I was using my gift card, which I thought I made clear. Then she tells me there are no refunds. I was furious. I asked to speak to the manager, and she rudely responds that she is the manager. After arguing, I finally get my refund that I asked for. I called HR and emailed them about the incident because the manager was so incredibly rude to me. They did not do anything about it, not even apologize on her behalf. I will never go back to this place again, even if its free. The massage was SUB PAR at best. Not worth your time if you are trying to go to a spa to relax…

I am giving 3 stars because Hand & Stone made my situation right.
I came to Hand & Stone to try their introductory massage. I used to be a loyal customer of Loni at Natural Body Spa in Rockville, which went out of business. Since then I have been trying to find another masseuse near me in Olney.
I first went to Hand & Stone with a coupon for a discounted introductory first massage. The massage was not good. I had scheduled a Deep Tissue massage over the phone, and when I got in, had checked off Firm for the amount of pressure desired. The masseuse asked me where my problem areas were, when I had had my last massage, and if I had any medical issues/​surgeries. When she started massaging my calf, the pressure was extremely light, and I requested that she press firmer. She did not, and the entire massage was just weird. I have never even had a Swedish Massage that was that light. At the end, she recommended a Deep Tissue massage and said I needed a lot of work. I just stared at her in disbelief. I was thinking, yeah, it’s what I requested, but I just left. I tipped for the massage, but when the receptionist asked if I would like to come back, I said that the pressure was too light.
The next morning, I called Hand & Spa back because the situation made no sense. It was clear that they did not know what was happening. They offered a complimentary massage with someone they assured me was very good. It was an excellent massage. I am not sure if I will go back… I have to think about it.
I can understand why the other comments are so negative. I think they have addressed some of the issues because I was not given a hard sell on the membership. It was mentioned at the end, but in a reasonable way. As for the spa not being high end or having a shower, this is the case, but I just want a good massage, which I did receive the 2^nd time. The facility is clean, and I think the price reflects the basic nature of the place.

I’ve been seeing Hand & Stone Spas pop up in the area so I thought I’d purchase a Living Social deal to check one out. Big mistake. The deal I had was for a 60-​minute massage and a 60-​minute facial, so naturally, I scheduled them back-​to-​back for an afternoon of relaxation.
The morning of my appointment, I was called and told that my masseuse was not going to be in so they wanted to reschedule my appointment. Since I had the two services scheduled together, I told them that I would have to reschedule both appointments for a later date. Even though THEY called ME, I was on the phone for 15 minutes because the receptionist was new and did not know how to reschedule the appointment. Then after I hung up, someone else called me back and left a voicemail saying that I didn’t need to cancel my appointments and I could keep both if I still wanted to go in. At that point, I had already made other plans and I was already annoyed at the entire situation. Why would they call to cancel, spend time to figure out how to cancel, and then call back to renege on the cancel? Things were so disorganized!
A month later: Upon arriving, the receptionist smiled at me and greeted me, so I smiled back and said hi. Then she smiled back and said hi again. But then she just stared at me awkwardly and silently. So finally I just introduced myself and told her why I was there. The first few minutes of awkward interaction already made me feel uncomfortable like she didn’t know what she was doing.
My massage was supposed to be a 60-​minute massage, but it only lasted 40 minutes. The massage was so awful that I think I’m happy it was 20 minutes shorter than it was supposed to be. I asked for firm pressure, but the masseuse’s hands were shaky and weak. There were fleeting moments of excessive pressure that were painful, then the rest of the time, it was not firm enough. It basically felt like someone was petting my skin for a long time. She also asked me if I had specific areas that I wanted worked on (WHICH I HAD ALREADY LISTED ON THE INTAKE FORM – so what was the point of completing the intake form??), and she didn’t even work on those areas! [I still tipped her cuz everyone needs to get paid, but it was a real internal struggle to give her money for such a dissatisfactory service…]
Then, in between my massage and facial, I had to get dressed again, go back out into the brightly lit waiting area, and wait to get called back into another room for a facial. At which point, I then undressed again, and got into another bed. The entire situation was awkward and not relaxing.
The saving grace for this place is the esthetician. My facial experience was LOVELY. DJ knew exactly what she was doing. She chatted with me about my skin type, reviewed my intake form, and presented me with options for different types of facials that she thought would work best. I ended up selecting the detox facial, and I was so relaxed that I floated in and out of sleep for the entire time. As promised, this facial actually lasted 60 minutes (if not more!). It also included a great arm massage (which was significantly better than the earlier full body massage!). Finally, DJ sent me home with samples to follow up treatment at home for 2 days. I felt great when I was leaving, and I even got a compliment on how great my face looked from another client in the waiting area!
If I had only gone here and only met DJ from start to finish, I’d probably give this place 5 stars. But the poor receptionist service (over the phone and in person), and the even worse massage experience, really make this place more stressful than relaxing. I’d love to see DJ regularly but I’m not sure if I will go back… If you’re looking for a facial, I’d still recommend going to see DJ. I think it’s just because I already have discomfort that I can’t return.

If you are looking for a place to relax, don’t go to this place. There was a guy who was really good massage therefore I decided to get membership and get a massage every month but after few months for some reason he wasn’t there and the rest were terrible. I had paid for a few months ahead at the time until I noticed that guy had left the place. Here I am with few sessions that was paid before and had to get therapy from therapists who don’t know what they are doing.
Terrible therapists except Mike.
There is a rubbery place. If you are looking for a place to relax, don’t go to this place. They recharged me for my last prepaid session and told me that you had to use it within 30 days of your membership cancelation. I could not believe it but I repaid and won’t go there anymore.

The waiting area for this place presents a good ambiance, with free tea, coffee and snacks, but the actual massage is not worth it.
I’m paying for a massage to RELAX, and my message therapist would not stop talking to me throughout the entire session. Not just asking if things felt good or not, but asking me detailed questions about my life — where I work, why I was struggling to find work, you know… all the things I’m trying to relax from. I’ve never had someone discuss the stressful elements of life with my while trying to give me a massage. The massage therapy itself was satisfactory at best, I couldn’t really enjoy it because of all the added stress of the pressing questions and conversations. I left more stressed out than when I walked in!

The ambience is pleasant. The staff are friendly, however they were not very professional. It seemed to me that everyone was very new to their jobs. This was hands down the WORST massage I have ever had. I came for a swedish massage of medium pressure to relieve muscle tension in my neck and back from an injury. However, what I received was not massage like at all. It was comparable to pressure points and muscle stripping… no massage. Sharp, abrupt movements. Not relaxing AT ALL. It also didn’t seem like he paid any attention to what I had written on my paper about having a fused ankle… because he tried to manipulate it in ways it can no longer move.