Vessel Floats — Local services in New York

feeling very refreshed let me start by saying that going into this I was fully terrified. I didn't know what to expect, I thought being in my head for that long was going to be so scary and of course thought I would feel claustrophobic. Leading up to the moment I stepped into the float tank I was anxious. Leaving this experienced was pretty life changing and I can say that I would like to be able to do this once a month.

When you arrive you are greeted by a friendly face and a very relaxed atmosphere. Your tea order is taken and you are given the COZIEST socks (to keep). Before your sessions starts you can get a quick little walkthrough about some options for your float experience (music, lights, sounds/no sounds). Given that I was a little nervous about being in complete silence they suggested I do sounds or music. I chose to do no sound because I wanted the full experience but I believe you have the option to turn them off or on during the float.

Once you have picked your options, you are taken to your room where there is a place to sit, fresh towels and high end toiletries (shampoo, conditioners, body wash, lotions, earplugs, and a charcoal pre-float body wash). You are asked to shower beforehand obviously and they give you petroleum jelly for any cuts or scrapes.

In the tank you go!!! The floating tanks are massive - I'm 6'2 and I could move around comfortably. The lights are on and there is an audio playing to further prepare you for the experience. Once the audio is over the lights will slowly start to dim and once they are off it's completely dark, there are no sounds and you are fully floating - like zero gravity floating. It took me a minute to get into the silence but once you break through that it is a truly magical experience. Every thought that came to me was easily acknowledged and/or discarded if it was negative. I have never been able to get refocused during a regular meditation once my mind wonders. Something about this experience opens a door to that ability. It is an hour long which felt too short because by the end of the float I felt like I wanted to stay in for a few hours lol. The lights slowly turn back on to get you re-acclimated and an audio turns back on to walk you through the next steps.

I'm skipping ahead because because it's hard to put the experience in words but I left feeling like I had just taken the longest vacation. So relaxed, so unbothered and so recharged.

10/10 would recommend.

Pro-tip, do not touch yours eyes during the float and when you sit up lean you head back so water doesn't drip...

This was my first time doing any kind of sensory deprivation float and it was definitely interesting! The person who checked me in was extremely helpful, knowledge, and professional.

The entire space is airy and well-appointed with beautiful, inviting couches and chairs.

I was given a menu to choose from for a pre-float tonic (ranging from CBD tincture-infused elixirs to something exciting and aphrodisiac). I was also given a pair of socks to walk around the facility in.

The room where the float experience takes place is a massive dimly lit nice-smelling shower room fully stocked with Le Labor products. I was instructed to take a shower with black charcoal scrub first and then I was off to the races!

For the float itself, I was given the option of having a full sensory deprivation experience or having music or a guided experiment. I went with the former.

The float takes place in a little chamber (but still with a high enough ceiling to not feel claustrophobic) with woo-woo fuschia lighting and twinkly blue star lights at the top. You can choose between lights on, stars on, or both on or off.

The floating itself was very difficult to adjust to. I made this a 4-star review because the water was a little too cool and I got cold and uncomfortable very fast, so I had to get out, take a hot shower to warm up and then reenter the bath a couple times. The cold definitely detracted from the sensory deprivation experience, I felt, since I was very acutely aware of how cold I was.

The other thing that was difficult to adjust to was my head positioning. Because of the way my head naturally lay on the water it created pressure and strain on my neck, largely because I wasn't used to holding my neck in that position.

Floating in water without assistance is VERY cool though.

Also if you get even the tiniest drop of salt near your eye or mouth, it becomes so unpleasant you have to jump out and rinse it off. This likely happened because I'm a n00b at this.

Eventually I did have the experience of being out of body and away from space + time for the last 10 minutes or so but it definitely took some time and adjustment to get there. That was intense and interesting.

The shower in the place was INSANELY nice. I would go back just for their shower and bath products.

The post-float drink service was beautiful but my chai was way too sweet and I...

My friend and I made appointments for first time guest sessions to try something new but also specifically for the meditative benefits the sensory deprivation tanks advertise. We went into this experience completely blind not knowing what to expect and had a wonderful time and absolutely cannot recommend this enough.

To begin, they do offer quite a bit of pricing options. Their website does offer some flexibility and even discounts for those struggling to afford their sessions as they explain their mission to make the wellness benefits of floating accessible to more people. The staff was absolutely accommodating and non judgmental about having to use some of the options to afford both of our sessions that day.

The day of, check in is smooth. We are greeted by Sun who is so kind, patient, and polite with the paperwork formalities but also explaining the tea menu and each benefits to us and having a conversation with my friend and I about our intentions for coming there and what we're trying to get out of our sessions and guided us to make our choices with all of our preferences and wants.

The facilities themselves are clean and beautifully designed. Your tank is in a private, black minimalist room with a shower and dressing vanity to rinse off before and after and it's stocked with Le Labo products and fluffy clean towels that don't have that smell a lot of gym and spa towels often do which is a lovely touch. Floating itself was a very unique experience. I was surprised what it did to me and will recommend it just for the physical sensation alone, but the guided meditation I chose and the white nose sound my friend picked were also cool and I'm interested in trying the Liminal sound experience they offer for next time. The tank has options to do dim lighting or total darkness and you can turn the sound off at anytime. At the end of your session, you get another tea and the opportunity to unwind and reflect about your experience.

Definitely come here for a floating experience or for a unique gift idea for somebody. It's a beautiful spa environment with such nice pleasant...