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Thai Privilege Spa’s first branch outside Asia brings formal Thai service and sumptuous Siamese decor to Soho’s cast-iron district. Arrivals are graciously ushered into an airy, tin-ceilinged space, regally renovated with gauzy curtains and gold-leaf walls. There are no locker rooms or steam/sauna/showers; instead, clients are presented with slippers, herbal tea, a camphor face towel, and a soothing footbath. In due time—this is not a spa for clock-watchers—you are led to a treatment room as perfect as a photo set, with moss-green walls, hand-crafted teak furniture, orchid blossoms, and draping overhead canopies. Emphasizing depth over breadth, the spa offers only facials and massages of the hands-on variety; no machines or high-tech doodads. Glow-producing facials concentrate on circulation rather than squeezing, and massages are Thai-style, with a lot of pushing and pulling along with deep acupressure. Clients can choose either a treatment-room table massage with essential oils or a more traditional dry Thai massage performed on a floor mattress, with the client in nubby silk pajamas. (Treatment rooms are quieter than the alluring, semi-enclosed massage pavilion, which abuts the reception area and is privy to every utterance.) Massages can go longer than the usual 60 or 75 minutes, but like most good sensual experiences, they’re over all too soon. — Karen Tina Harrison

Almost everything at Thai Privilege Spa is offered for sale in its accompanying shop, from aromatherapy potions to gilt-trimmed ceramic cups to golden-beige Thai silk robes. Through the program OTOP (One Town, One Product), sales of these crafts and garments benefit the Thai villages that produce them.

Bridal Package
Most brides arriving at this exotic destination opt for the Scent of Siam treatment. The two-hour, highly relaxing therapy includes foot reflexology, a full-body massage, and a deep-cleansing facial. The spa also has a VIP room with three massage tables so that the bride and her family or friends can prep together.

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