In London visiting my daughter in college. From the states, and it's turning out that when we…read moretravel; or are together, the two of us like adventure-spa types of activities: true-to-culture, authentic, and when possible, available at a moments notice, and affordable. BINGO. Hamam was easy to get to, the woman on the phone was delightful and got us booked for two perfect services for each of us, sparing no detail, and we were in.
We arrived, and don't be put off if you have to ring the bell - door's locked, and it might take a moment, but we had baths booked and scrub/massage, so we knew we were getting in, but we had no idea how cool and memorable this would be. You could tell there were regulars, happy looking women just in pants, sitting in twos in the steam, or around the common table, rinsing or awaiting scrub or foam; pre-massage.
The women who work there are all speaking Turkish, economizing on the pleasantries, because, baby, they are really delivering the goods. Women are getting polished with Turkish coffee, lathered with foam delivered from some kind of oversized cheesecloth tube. It's dynamite. If you've opted for a massage, then a massage you shall get, in a private room in most cases, and very thoughtful, personalized, and leaving you with a very dreamy relaxed yet energized feeling. I had a burn on my hand that my therapist was so concerned about she made that the focus of her care, making lots of recommendations about how to treat it, and lots of extra effort.
Anyway, it was a 5 star experience in an affordable, authentic, really sweet caring package. They care about what they do, and they do it I think every day of the week - broken into Mens days and Womens days -- I'd do it weekly if I lived in London, not gonna lie.
