The Grand Spa — Local services in Salt Lake City

I've been to this spa three times (have never stayed the night at the hotel) and it is truly an incredibly special place. They think of all the tiny details. Here are a few of my favorite and less favorite things.

-Incredible Massage. I've had a different massage therapist each time and they were all amazing but I'd have to say Sofia is my favorite. Before coming here I had only ever gone to small massage places and I'm not sure why but the difference in quality was pretty astounding. I think it's to do with how relaxing of an environment it is and how well-trained they are. I got the two-hour massage last time and it was unreal and worth every penny. -Sauna. I really like the sauna before a massage to get the muscles heated up and start relaxing. Get there 30 minutes early to unwind and try out the sauna. It's awesome. -Steam Room. This one is great for some post-massage chilling and the "weird" smell people talk about in other reviews is eucalyptus and I really like it! -Mens-only relaxation area. They have this place with comfortable lounge chairs that I like to sit on after a massage and have a snack. I don't know if they always have the same snacks, but I hope they don't change them. They have granny smith apples, granola bars, dried fruit, and hot tea that you can make yourself. It's all super yummy and I just love it. They do have an area where you can hang out with ladies if you're with one but I really appreciate having a dudes-only space. They have two tvs that are usually on ESPN. The TVs are always muted and easy to ignore. -Amazing showers. I always bring a clean change of clothes to get into after I shower so that way I feel fresh. The showers are great and one has like 50 heads and it's a cool experience. I always end my shower by turning them all on cold so it's like an ice bath and that feels awesome. -Spacious lockers. The lockers are great and the locker room never feels crowded. The most I've ever seen is like four dudes in there at once. -Awesome Staff. Customer service is always great and there's always someone to walk you to your locker after you check in. It just feels like they really care about your experience and that you get situated. -Amenities everywhere. They have ice water in the locker room and room temp water in the relaxation area. Lotions, mouthwash, hand soap, actual towels to dry your hands, hair dryers, and they give you a personal razor, shave cream, and a comb. The robes feel amazing even if they are huge on me. Luxurious towels everywhere. I'm sure I'm missing things but that's a pretty good list.

Here are a couple of things that I think they could improve/I didn't love.

--The Pool/Hot Tub. It is shared with the rest of the hotel. This isn't a huge deal for me but the first time I went, the pool was packed with people and was noisy which threw off the whole zen thing for me. Not complaining but I never go to the pool or hot tub anymore because I think of the spa as my escape time. I'm sure it's not always like that though. --Tight Slippers. I think they recently changed their slippers and I liked the old ones more. These new ones were tight on my feet so I didn't like walking around in them. Next time I'll ask if they still have the old ones or a larger size or something. --Massage Upsells. I don't love that two of the three massages have started with a pitch to upsell for CBD oil or something. I don't like having to say no and would rather not have to make another decision. I think a pretty good solution to this would be to put a brochure in my locker with the CBD oil info on it and the price to upgrade. I don't know or care what CBD oil does and don't want to waste my precious massage minutes going over the pros and cons of different oils. However, I am in marketing and totally understand that upselling is key. So, I think a postcard or something would have convinced me to upgrade while being surprised with it put me on the defense and I instinctively said no.

On the whole though, still 10/10. Already made an appointment to go back...

Just 3 stars because my most recent experience (express facial) was very poor. The esthetician did 3 or 4 extractions on me 2 of which were on my nose. There's always some redness following extractions but it's been a week now and my nose feels bruised and I have red swell on the tip of my nose. I spoke to a friend who works at Kura door and she told me the tech was likely to strong with her hands and ruptured or 'popped' it under the skin causing a small infection under the skin.

I called The Grand Spa four days after my facial and the first attendant I spoke with told me that she knew who did my facial and she is known to have strong hands but just laughed it off - she told me she would call the tech and see what her recommendation is to help ease the pain, swelling, and redness. I never got a call back. I called again, and a different attendant called me back ~4 hours later letting me know that I can go buy a certain oil to help and next time to go elsewhere and get a laser treatment on my nose to help. This was disappointing client care to say the least.

With that said, I find the Grand Spa to have well kept facilities, great massages, top of the line amenities and for the most part, great client service. Client care is lacking. This is a great place to pamper yourself especially if you're local - I think it's a hidden gem most don't think about when scheduling some pampering. I will definitely be returning but never again for a facial. I hope my nose starts to clear up but it's still in pain and continues to remain discolored.

In the future, I think there could be much more done for a concerned client with what looks like and feels like a welt in the center of their face. If you have a facialist that is KNOWN by the staff to be rough/strong with their hands this should be disclosed to the client. If a client patiently and politley calls concerned - you should be bending over backwards to help your client out. Especially at a Forbes rated spa - provide the treatment and/or product to help them, offer a credit/refund, or express concern at...

We had a three year over due mother/daughters spa day with massages, facials and manipedies. For the most part we felt pampered and enjoyed all services. There was a pretty ugly glitch that happened though. I had booked the services three weeks in advance, and specifically asked for all female practitioners. The daughter, whose birthday we were celebrating, was the last to get picked up by her masseuse.. and it was a male. She nervously followed him to the men's floor, into the mens lockerroom and finally the treatment room. When the masseuse came in she apologized and said she was uncomfortable with having a Male masseuse. A confusing scramble happened...the front gal insisted that I didnt specify all felmales... I absolutely did as I always do, then told my daughter it would still cost 50% without any service, when she asked if she could swap out services, the gal said no, then finally arranged a 25 minute massage, I think for full price. I was furious at the way she handled it with my daughter and went to the main desk. There were 2 gentlemen there who listened to my plight and asked if they could book her a different day but we had flown from Texas and couldn't. First they said they would comp her massage, which was kind (but expected) and asked if they could make it right and I said I didn't know how since we were flying out. Then they offered to comp all of our massages. COMPLETELY UNEXPECTED and very generous. They couldn't do more to fix the problem, so I was grateful and we left happy. We will do it again someday. Thank you to the two gentlemen and the female needs some lessons on...