The Umstead Spa

Distasteful to add an automatic 20% tip. I would rather pay 20% higher pricing and have tipping remain discretionary. Not classy.

The massage was a bit odd. I had a male masseuse and specifically asked him just to concentrate on my back and shoulders. He had me turn over and started rubbing the front part of my chest. When he was about to touch my nipples I said «stop, just the shoulders.» Afterward, he told me I needed to relax more. I went to get a pedicure. Another nail technician (who was giving a pedicure to the person next to me) rudely and loudly said that they could no longer use the spray bottle with alcohol because I had opened it up and poured some out to clean the cuticle clipper. I said that didn’t make any sense and nothing had gone inside the actual bottle. She loudly began admonishing me in front of all the other customers. It wasn’t even HER alcohol bottle (it belonged to the nail technician who was doing my pedicure). It was embarassing. Also, unlike Red Door spa where the warm neck brace pillow is kept inside of a sanitary cover, the Umpstead spa re-​uses the same neck pillow for every person. Unsanitary! Lastly, I was shocked they tacked on a mandatory 20% tip. $ 100 for a 25 minute massage? It was not worth it.

I loved this spa!
I am a spa junkie so I have very high standards and the Umstead is one of the best.
I recently stayed at this hotel for three nights, I visited for a wedding.
The hotel is spectacular as is their spa which is free for hotel guests.
We were met by the attendant who offered us a hibiscus drink before our tour. We were given slippers for use in the facility.
Great steam room, very hot and nice scent. There’s a sauna as well which I did not visit during my stay.
Good size locker room.
Only two showers but very clean with nice products.
The best is the hot tub areas = one indoors and one outside (co-​ed). In the indoors area they had tea, flavored water, almonds, dried blueberries, and yogurt covered fruit.
The outdoor hot tub is beautiful, with a small waterfall and so quiet.
There’s also a co-​ed lounge area on the second floor which is spacious and gorgeous.
The décor is southwest with lot of light everywhere.
It was not crowded at all even though the attendant said all treatment appointments were booked.
This is a special place. I will not forget it. WOW :)

I have been to many spas and have had many massages. Two of the massage therapists that I had at the Umstead Spa seemed to have had no training whatsoever. They just touched me with some pressure but without any ability. In a five star hotel and at a high price, I expect an experienced knowledgeable therapist. i spoke to a supervisor and she said that my therapist was only good for relaxation massages and not deep tissue ones. I found this explanation unsatisfactory. In fact, the spa only has 4 stars unlike The Hotel which has 5.

The best spa experience ever! Great facility, location, professional staff, outstanding services and prices are competitive. I feel like a princess at the Umstead and cannot wait until my next visit!

The Umstead Spa is beautiful. Great amenities and layout – reminds me a lot of Four Seasons in San Francisco. Other than a customer service snafu (which was rectified) our experience was fabulous!
Snafu: My husband and I booked a couples massage 7pm on a Saturday night (date night). Our treatments were wonderful. Great work by both of our massage therapists. We both felt incredibly rushed to get out of the massage room (which was a bit stressful), so we did and headed to use the spa amenities. There was no water (mmm you kind of need that post massage) and nothing (sauna) was turned on. It turns out that the spa closed at 8pm (right at the time our massage ended) yet no one told us! Not at the time of reservation, not at the time of checkin and not at the time of treatment, In fact, the massage therapists even suggested we go into the steam room post massage. Weird. Suffice it t say we feel like we missed on a big part of the spa experience.
We were given two spa passes to use the amenities at a later date. 4 months later and we still haven’t used them – hard to justify paying for a baby sitter! Ha!

I am shocked to see other people had bad experiences because my experience here last week was SUPERB! My mother was in from out of town so my bf suggested we go here for a ladies day. We both had facials which were amazing. Our technicians advised us to stay out of the steam room and pools for at least 30 mins prior having the facials done so the products applied wouldn’t run off. (I would have assumed longer, not sure why the lady below is complaining about her products running off… seems like common knowledge.)
I like the fact that they auto-​tip their technicians 20%. The website is very clear about this policy, so anyone who is complaining about this just didn’t take the time to read the website.
The facility is beautiful and clean. There are lots and lots of people working there, all eager to serve and help! (that is probably my only complaint, I felt overly attended too. made me a little self conscious.) But this business is aiming to please, so I get it.
I would defiantly recommend this spa to anyone new. it’s unfortunate that the ladies below had such bad experiences.
The spa is extremely serene, comfortable, relaxing and simply perfect. The staff is knowledgable, kind and attentive. Don’t know what else you could ask for! Def a 5 star spa!

I have been here a total of 3 times for massages. It is clearly stated in their policies that the 20% surcharge is included so not sure why anyone should be surprised. I love the ambiance of the entire spa; the staff is exceptional there as in the hotel. Two times I have had a hot stone massage and I wanted to kidnap my masseuse and take him home. Last month I had a regular massage; again a lot of questions asked before I even got on table to ensure what my trouble spots were and during the massage to ensure that I was comfortable with the pressure that was being applied Another great experience
At least reserve a half a day for yourself to enjoy the whirlpool, the grounds and the bar restaurant. Both the coed lounge and the women’s lounge are extra comfy. The coed heated pool was not working the time I visited so I will have to check that out next time. thinking June also to use the outdoor pool!

I am an avid spa/​massage consumer. I took my mother and myself for treatments as a Christmas gift. Honestly, I was rather disappointed. The spa has a reputation to be similar to the Grove Park Inn but it is no where in scale or comparison, except in price. Actually, this spa may be more expensive. I had a massage and my mother had a massage and pedicure, for a total of $ 400+. My disappointments are as follows: 1. My mother had also ordered a French manicure. Once she was done, she waited for drying as appropriate yet by the time we left, the French tips were chipping horribly. There was no time to fix her nails so the manager took it off our bill (still over $ 400). 2. I was unaware of the 20% service fee added to each service. Of course I would have tipped on my own. I prefer to be notified in advance of these types of additional expenses. 3. My mother had Krystal as a massage therapist and had a similar experience as the woman below… no pressure, not attentive to clients request. Simply rubbing the back and avoiding the neck. 4. Overall, the spa is pretty but it was NOT worth the price. I expected a Grove Park experience for the price with a meal. I wish I had just gone to Massage Envy and a corner nail salon.

I visited the Spa 3 days in a row.
11÷09÷12
Today, I had the gemstone facial in the spa today administered by Meiko. It was arelaxing experience with an adjustable heated bed and soothing music. The facial was okay. It was pretty much an application and removal of several products, waters & misting sprays. It aslo included a facial massage with two stone wands (black in color). This was nothing exciting though. By the time I entered the steam room all the products of the facial had run from my face. Meiko was friendly and courteous & advised me of every product she was applying to my face at any given moment. I had difficulty understanding anything she was saying to me, because her primary language is that of Asian descent. I was relieved when my husbands facial ended at the same time and we met in the hall where I could listen to his tech tell us where to go. All in all, this facial was okay, but I would definitel choose a European facial over the gemstone.
My husband had the gentlemans facial and he enjoyed the steam, cleanse, extraction and product application. He said the mens lounge attendant was very polite.
The steam room is great! I believe it releases eucalyptus and iced facial cloths are available too. There are several relaxation rooms and lounges available and the scenery, especially in the Fall is beautiful. There are light snacks, tea, and fruit infused water to enjoy. The showers are very «zen» with floor to ceiling windows partially frosted to allow natural sunlight in while enjoying the occasional bird chirping in the trees just outside, all in luxurious privacy.
Tomorrow, I have the Mommy To Be massage. Sunday, I have a classic manicure, classic pedicure & the Cherry Blossom massage. I will post on those later.
11÷10÷12: I had the «Mommy-​to-​be» massage today with Krystal. I arrived early to enjoy the womans lounge and relax prior. Krystal was friendly and welcoming at first. When I entered the room she told me to lay on the table and let her know how the temperature and music were. The maternity pillows took up the entire bed and I had no clue how to lay on or around them. I told her I’ve never seen them before and I don’t know how to use them. She said this as her first time using them and the «maternity lady» brings them. She proceeded to lay on my massage table and demonstrate how she thinks I am to lay with the pillows saying «I think your arm goes here and your shoulder goes here», etc… I informed her that I was still very confused and I was. I couldn’t see how this huge pillow in the middle of the table would allow any room for my tummy with a baby inside without compacting him to the size of a can of tuna. So, she left the room, I tried laying on the table on my side with this huge pillow and I nearly fell off the table.
When she entered, she asked if I was comfortable. Heck no! I requested a standard pillow while she removed the awkward one. She grabbed the standard from a closet and gave it to me without a pillow case. Yuk! I waited for the pillow case, it never came. I ended up discarding the pillow halfway through the massage. I was even considering discarding the massage entirely.
Everything went downhill from there. She knew my legs were hurting from the extra weight I carry due to the pregnancy as I had informed her at the beginnning of the massage. She also knew the pressure I wanted — medium to deep tissue. She merely proceeded to apply oil and hardly gave a decent enough rub to get the blood flowing. She never even touched my shoulders or neck and she started at my right calf and foot which is a big No No for sanitary purposes in the massage world. She had no technique I left frustrated and offended that the Spa gave me someone so inexperienced, uncaring and thoughtless. I have a pedicure and the Cherry Blossom massage today. I hope this person knows what they are doing!
P. S. We tried to let the spa manager know about the experience, but he didn’t care to return our call until after we spoke with another manager in a different department. This was also the case beforer we even arrived at the hotel. i called the spa a couple days in advance to book some services, they never returned my call and still haven’t.
The Fitness Center:
My husband loved the wuality of the machines. He enjoyed working out in the spacious area and enjoyed an apple partially through his routine. The cardio Machines have individual t.v. monitors with dvd players