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Wi Spa offers unique relaxation experience
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Having never been to a spa before in my life, I was skeptical of the claim that spas are relaxing for the mind and the body. However, a certain spa in Koreatown, Los Angeles reaffirmed that claim that for me. Wi Spa is a 24-hour Korean spa not only includes body treatments, and acupuncture sessions in the whole spa experience, but also has a cafeteria and a variety of sauna rooms.
The moment I entered the spa with my family, I noticed the calm and chill demeanor of the workers. They were all very welcoming and had smiles on their faces, leaving me with a good first impression of the spa. The admission price is $25 for each person, with an additional $10 fee if you are planning to stay overnight which is a reasonable price in my eyes, considering it is a 24-hour spa. Once you pay, you are given a shirt, a pair of shorts, a towel, and a watch that corresponds with your locker number.
Traditionally, the first thing to do when entering a Korean spa is to take a shower and cleanse your body before going to the sauna rooms. I was extremely impressed with the women’s main sauna room because it included shower heads, a hot pool, and a cold pool. Going into the hot pool was my personal favorite part of the main sauna room because it relieved a lot of my stress.
After this, I went to the “jimjilbang” which refers to the co-ed, common traditional area in Korean spas. It is a place where you can just take a mat and a pillow, and just lay on the floor and relax. The floor in the “jimjilbang” is also heated, adding to the relaxation factor. The cafeteria was also located in this area. I was surprised with the variety of foods and drinks that the cafeteria offered, ranging from soups to snacks to cafe lattes to shaved ice. My family and I ordered the spicy rice cakes, spicy miso soup, and “patbingsoo” or in other words, Korean shaved ice. These three dishes were delicious, and in my opinion were even better than food in actual restaurants.
The last thing that we did was lay down on the floor and put on a Korean face mask that I bought at the store inside the spa. It was liberating to lay down in a public place and put on a face mask without anyone judging you.
Overall, my first spa experience was an extremely fun and good one. Spending time at this spa gave me a sneak peek of what Korean culture is like, and how it differs from the culture here. Wi Spa’s signature sauna rooms and the cafeteria food will definitely drive me to come back. I give Wi Spa 4.5 out of 5 stars.
