GW massage and spa — Attraction in Highland Park

After reading the reviews I gave this place a chance as I was in desperate need of a massage. The reviews looked good and a friend of mine tried their services as was very pleased.

I called and made an appointment to come in on a Saturday. When I got to the place a little before my appointment the door was locked. I called the place and there was someone inside she just kept the door locked. I thought OK probably for safety; that's fine.

Then when I came in she advised that she thought I said a different date on the phone, but was able to accommodate me for a massage anyway. However, before you go for the massage you have to pay up front first for it. Then I was guided to the room to undress and get prepared for the massage. When she was about to start the massage she asked if I wanted to use essential oils and/or hot stones for the massage. If so then it's an extra $20 for the usage. I declined nicely and she got to it with the massage. She was doing a deep tissue massage without asking as to what type of massage I was looking for, but it was fine as I had a lot of knots.

During my service the masseuse was answering phone calls of others calling to make an appointment for massage and/or facials. After she hung up she used the phone 2 more times. A massage should be relaxing, but that portion was not. When we were getting close to the end I was asked if I wanted to extend my visit for another 30 minutes and I politely declined.

When I was done for the 60 minutes, I changed and then came out to give the tip and saw she was on the phone again talking to someone.

Fast forward a week and noticed that I had bruising on my arms from the deep tissue massage. They have since resolved for the most part.

So I'm giving this place 4/5 stars -- the reason is talking on the phone while doing the massage it was very distracting and not relaxing at that point. A massage is to be relaxing. Also, I think the communication could improve between the patient and masseuse. In the past when I have gone for massages they have asked what type of pressure or what I'm looking for in the massage. There was none of that for my massage. Next time I will speak up more but I think maybe having a form to fill out beforehand would be helpful so that everyone is on the same page as to what...

The massage was strictly ok. I believe my therapist’s name was Amy. I had to repeatedly mention to control the pressure around sensitive or smaller muscle groups. For example a calf muscle does not need the same amount of pressure as the back muscle. She tried selling the hot stone for an additional $20 which I declined. I found that a bit dodgy, as there are other massage parlors on Rt 27 that include the hot stone at the same price point.

When it came to paying the bill, I still offered a 20% tip but Amy started haggling me for 30%, saying it’s customary. I did not care to argue but was steadfast on what I was going to offer. She proceeded to then do the math on the calculator and added the sales tax on top of the massage price + tip. When I corrected her to exclude the tip amount before adding the tax, she begrudgingly redid the math and then sarcastically responded that I saved $.80.

This is what sets apart a good business from a bad one. Instead of acknowledging the error, which happens to be illegal in the state of NJ, she found a way to make it worse by her smart retort. Wish them well, but I will keep my $.80 and take my...

Please do not go here. This place was extremely unprofessional and disappointing.

Not only did the masseuse talk on the phone the majority of the massage, she also consistently opened and closed the door to talk to someone outside. Then the massage person for some reason changed halfway through.

Also be mindful that they do not speak an ounce of English. They did not understand that I did not want my legs massaged. They did not understand I wanted my head massaged.

Then at the end they demanded I tip more than 30% and said they have a $20 tip minimum despite their awful service. This is truly a mindblowing experience.

Furthermore, mid massage, they insisted over and over and over again the hot stone massage. After repeatedly declining, they offered to do everything for the day for $50 instead of $60. The only thing is, I had already paid upfront, so it made no sense for them to say that. I’m confused what their intentions were.

I understand this is a small massage place but there is still a level of professionalism to be expected that was completely unmet.

Please do...