I love going to the Spa. There is nothing better than having that feeling of being pampered for a couple of hours while you drift away into oblivion as you enjoy whatever service you have requested. Every new destination that I travel to, I always try to book a massage or a wrap to experience something new as every country/culture seems have a slightly different way of performing similar services.
In the last few months, I have been hearing and reading about Turkish Baths. I had no idea what this was and as I knew I was planning to visit Turkey to attend my nephew’s wedding, I thought it was something that I should look up.
So, I googled “Turkish Baths” and after learning a bit about it (including the proper name of Hamam), I turned on good old You Tube to see what it was all about. While watching the videos, all you could hear out of me was…. Oohhh, does that hurt? How hard is she scrubbing? Is that skin coming off? Does that towel stay on the whole time? Look at all those suds! Still I was very curious. It looked like something I wanted to experience…..even if it was slightly painful.
Well it’s a few months later and here I am in Turkey. My friend and I are walking down the road one night and I see a sign for a Traditional Turkish Bath. Enthusiastically, I went up to the Hamam (Turkish Bath) and started asking about service and prices. My friend was quite hesitant because it looked small and down a dark alley. Was it reputable?
After obtaining all the information , and agreeing on the full package service as the price was good, I excitedly booked my Hamam for ½ hour from then. (Ice cream was calling first) My friend also did but not quite as enthusiastic.
So about ½ hour later, we stroll in and are each given a private small change room to change into nothing but a towel and some sandals. The next hour and a half was nothing like I ever experienced before. It was pure pleasure and I didn’t want it to end. I think it is something that you will either feel really comfortable with and LOVE, or you will find the experience to outside your comfort zone and just glad it was over with.
The process was as such:
Change into my towel and sandals then while we were waiting, enjoy a nice cup of delicious hot apple tea.
Next, together, we are led into a sauna like room and lie for about 20 minutes on the warm marble slab as you relax and feel the sweat coming out of you.
My friend and I are now separated and I am taken into a “woman’s only area” where my towel is removed and I am asked to lay on another warm slab. Here I am rigorously scrubbed by a short smiling lady wearing a glove like sponge that appears to be taking all the skins off of my body. (But doesn’t hurt so far!) in between she is pouring/throwing buckets of warm water all of my body. Who ever knew it could feel so good?
Next step… somehow she magically takes a towel and transforms it into millions of soap suds that land all over my body probably 2 feet high while she is washing me and throwing more buckets of water on me. I honestly felt like I was a car in a car wash. That’s all I can describe this whole experience as. If cars could talk, they would tell us to take them to the car wash more often.
Next she asks me to stand up and takes my towel and places it on the ledge near the fountain and now pours soap all over my head and dumps more water. Giggling and loving this, she then brings me a robe, blows me a kiss, and ushers me out of the room.
Time for more tea as it isn’t quite over yet! I have ordered the full experience so I still get a 25 minute body oil massage.
While I was experiencing my Hamam, my mind was on my more conservative friend in the other room, wondering how he was doing with this experience. When he entered the waiting area, he was smiling. Good sign I thought. Then he said very quietly and seriously, “ Wendy, we need to do this again “, it was magic to my ears. He loved it!
So after another delicious cup of apple tea, the next 25 minutes we both went into another heavenly state as we got our massages once again in separate rooms. One and a half hours later, our skin was smooth, we were the cleanest we had been in months, and we were sure that we were going to sleep like babies!
The cost of our experience including tip was around $45 CAD. I thought that was a steal as in Canada, an equivalent service would have been at least $200 CAD. Our receptionist at our hostel said we paid to much and he could have gotten it for 90 lira (we paid 140) But we still didn’t mind. It was a worth every penny. We were told the Hotel Chains charged upwards of $200 and didn’t preform the services as good. We were recommended to go to a traditional Bath, if we wanted the full experience and I would agree.
Looking at prices throughout Turkey (and yes, we will try another one in another city) the same services ranged from $15 CAD right up to $200 CAD. Also to take into consideration, we were in a small Hamam, and it was 9:30 pm. (most are open till 11) We only saw one other person there the whole time. We liked the privacy and specialized service of being the only ones in our areas. Some Hamams are very large and you are receiving these services with other woman and men; also sometimes completely nude, and other times partially covered or in a bathing suit. Also a big part of the experience is who is giving you your massage. I had a tiny Turkish lady that couldn’t speak any English which just added to my experience. She was about 4’ 8” and looked like someone you would visit that would never stop feeding you. So please when you have your experience, ensure that you know what you are getting and you are comfortable with that level of service. I give this experience a 5/5!
Hamams are not only for relaxation. My driver explained to me that it is also performed for religious reasons. Many Turkish people are expected to go once a week, or twice a month or a few times a year; whatever is expected of them. We as tourists go for the experience while many local people go for the cleansing.
Turkish baths are not only found in Turkey. You can experience them in many cities around Europe such as Budapest and other popular cities.
If you are visiting Turkey and are in the popular area around the Blue Mosque in Istanbul, please look for this Hamam as I don’t think you will be disappointed!
ADDRESS:
Tarihi Sifa Hamami, Turkish Bath
Sifa Hamami, SK No: 24 Sultanahmet, Istanbul
