Revive Massage DC — Local services in Washington

Three stars for Revive, four stars for Sylvia. [Note: the website does not list any information about their COVID practices -- my wife was asked to wear a mask for the duration of her massage, and we both had to put our faces into paper towels laid over the face rest. The masseuses also wore gloves the entire time.] We had a couples massage and arrived to be taken right to the massage room after confirming we had an 11AM appointment. After getting onto the table, it became apparent that the room smelled old, like stale water – which makes sense because there was obvious water damage on one of the walls. I understand that we didn’t request aromatherapy, but there were no candles or any fragrances of any kind, just an old, unpleasant smell. My massage table also creaked every time any pressure was put onto my back, loud enough that my wife heard from across the room – not very relaxing for either of us. After comparing our massages, my wife realized that her table didn’t have the heating element plugged in and was cold pretty much the whole time. Once we went out to pay, we were asked what massage we booked (did we really even get the massage we paid for?) and asked to fill out some client forms, asking if we had any existing pain, etc. – things that should have obviously been asked prior to the massage. Overall, my massage was decent for the price (Sylvia did a good job on my shoulders) but it’s on the cheaper end of massages for a reason and our experience was pretty unprofessional....

I unfortunately had a very unpleasant experience with Revive. I am a very busy single mom and hardly ever do anything nice for myself, so for my birthday I thought I would splurge and get a massage. Unfortunately on my way out the door to the appointment I had a serious issue with the car seat and couldn't leave on time. I called Revive several times explaining my situation and apologizing I was running behind, I wanted to be sure I wasn't just a no show. By the time I arrived there was only 15 minutes left in my session, and I asked if I could reschedule. I was told I could not, and that not only was I not able to reschedule, I was going to be charged the full amount for a full hour massage. I thought this was very insensitive given the hard time I was having, that i was very communicative and the fact it was my birthday - come on?!! I was basically forced to get a ten minute massage for $50, or lose all my money for nothing. It was basically the least relaxing encounter I have ever had with a massage parlor. I give 2 stars because the woman that gave me the ten minute massage was clearly good at what she does and at least she was apologetic, and I dont think it was her fault about the charge, I think it was business administration that clearly does not make a single exception to their stringent policies. Given life happens and I expect for some human understanding from businesses I frequent, I would not go back...

Very unprofessional desk attendant named Sandy. I recently began frequenting this place last month and have gone every week for a 90 minute massage to resolve deep stress that i build during the week with work. Today, Sanday not only gave away my 90 minute massage appointment to a patron that walked up for a 30 minute massage but she left me sitting in the waiting room for 10 minutes until I was the last person to need assistance although I was one of the first to enter for my appointment. I'm disappointed by the service and the rude attitude given by the staff given to frequent customers. I'm going to begin using the Mandarin Hotel or Body Therapy in NE because they are professional, courteous and accountable. Also, this discount massage group comes off like they are very familiar with anatomy but it is clear that the massages are inconsistent and the staff turnover is high so it's difficult to establish consistent therapy. So it's basically what you get for a discount massage. I just can't handle two negatives for a discount: very poor service and...