Hanijoa Washington

Hanijoa Spa is not a place for those phased by nudity, like the other reviews said. However, if you are unsure about how you would feel in a full nudity spa (I was), you get used to it by the end. There is a language barrier but it is easy to overcome.
First, you walk in and you are asked to remove your shoes. You are then led back to a small area with lockers (that have keys), given a robe, and asked to take off all your clothes. You then go into to a very large room. This room has the showers (no curtains or anything), the massage tables, a bathtub, and the door the the sauna. There are 3 – 4 ladies either cleaning up or massaging/​exfoliating/​etc. They are wearing their bras and underpants. You hang up your robe and are asked to take a shower. Again, these showers are in the open. You are then sent to the sauna. You stay in the sauna until they come and get you.
After the sauna, you are brought to a massage table (I had the massage and exfoliation package). They give you a towel to put underneath your head and put one beneath your back. They splash water all over you. The lady then takes exfoliating gloves and gets some bar some (I think Irish spring) and start scrubing and exfoliating you down. They exfoliate EVERYWHERE and repeat a few areas one or two times. The exfoliation is so good that there is a TON of dead skin on the table and all over your body. After they have completed exfoliation, they take a loofa and soap you down. They then send you back to the shower.
You come back to the table, which has been splashed with water to remove the dead skin and you lay down on the table and they put hot towels on you and massage you. After completing the whole body, they put cucumber strips on your face. This feels AMAZING. You are given the choice of oil or honey for your massage, I chose honey. This was $ 19 extra. They then begin to cover your body in honey. They again massage. Then they pour baby oil all over your body. And they massage again. The massage feels great! They bend your arms and legs in amazing ways and massage the entire body. After completing the massage, they put more hot towels on your body so your skin can absorb everything. They then remove the cucumbers from your face and begin to wash your hair. They give you a serious scalp massage. They then remove the towels from your body and splash you with a milk like white substance. You are also given some of this and asked to rinse your face.
You then are sent to the showers to clean everything off. You are given towels to dry your body and are sent to re-​clothe. Overall, my skin feels AWESOME. It was a great experience.
Here are a few tips to make your experience better:
–wear you hair up
–be prepared for nudity
–wear an outfit that is easy to change to/​from
–there is a café called «Breeze» nearby with is great to enjoy after your appt.
Overall, I would recommend Hanijoa for their good prices and amazing results!

I wanted to like this place more. I’ve been to Korean spas in Los Angeles, so that’s what I’m comparing this to. Ok, the spa is tiny and I’m not sure how I feel about how clean it actually was, but I was trying to be open minded. As others mentioned, they give you a bar of soap and old bath sponge (yuck) and then off to the steam room for a while.
I don’t care about being naked, seeing naked people, nor the fact that the women are wearing a bra and panties and talking over you the whole time. Whatevs. The actual scrub is great, they really scrub the hell out of you and leave your skin super soft. The massage was rough, but not in a «deep tissue» way, more like getting spanked with a hot towel over and over. The lady did «upsell» me the honey add-​on, which is just what it sounds like, they smear honey all over your body. Ehh.
Then she washed my face and hair with Lord-​knows-​what, and brushed my wet hair with something and I really wanted to stop her but it happened so fast and I don’t think she would’ve understood me anyway. I didn’t care for that part at all. I’m very particular about my face and hair.
Finally, when it’s time to pay, I’m told I can only tip with cash, even though there’s a line to add the tip on the credit card receipt. I felt this should have been mentioned either on the website or at the front desk prior because it made for a very awkward moment when they thought I was going to leave without tipping. I had to repeat several times that I needed to find an ATM and one lady even said «hello, you no tip?» Awkward. I never carry cash, so I had to drive down the street to an ATM and then come back and it really ruined my Zen at that point.
So I’m not sure if I’ll return, it wasn’t the worst or the best, but I’m open to giving it another shot one day, maybe.

Amazing service and price for what you get. This was the best scrub I’ve ever received in my life — the whole service (exfoliation + massage) was over 1.5 hours. I definitely recommend this place if you’re looking to feel very clean and relaxed. There is a language barrier but it’s not very difficult to get around that. It may not be as luxurious as other spas in terms of décor but the service is awesome and I’ve never felt cleaner!

I’ve gone to Hanijoa twice, and have had mixed experiences. The first time was as in the other reviews — I loved it, though it’s not for the faint of heart when it comes to nudity, serious scrubbing and a tough massage. A great value — I spent ~$ 100 for 2 hours of steam room, exfoliation, and massage.
I was a little disappointed when I went back though, because the massage seemed pretty minimal, and I felt like I was being hit with a ‘hard sell’ while lying on the massage table after the exfoliation but before the massage. The masseuse asked if I wanted to upgrade to «aroma» or «honey» massage, and I just wanted a regular one. Also she tied my hair back with a regular rubber band, which is damaging to the hair. Those are my only complaints though — the exfoliation and the massage that I did get felt great. Next time I want to treat myself, I’m going to try out another Korean spa in the area to see how it compares.
One more thing: the masseuses speak almost no English (which kind of adds to the authenticity imho), so don’t plan to communicate anything complicated unless you speak Korean.

I love this place. I feel very dirty when I see all the dead skin come off during scrubbing. My whole body is as soft as a baby’s bottom and I feel like ten pounds are lifted off my body on the massage table.
I wish they played some relaxing music and the massage therapist understood English well enough to communicate. Otherwise, I would have given this place 5 stars.

Amazing Day Spa Experience!
I received a gift certificate for this spa about a year ago and decided to treat myself.
It did look at bit altered and the owner (new owner) said it was VERY OLD, from previous owner. She honored it anyway. .. good first sign.
I was there mid-​week around 3pm with only one other client.
The initial shower, steamroom was fantastic — and I was given bottled water at every point. then, the scrub was truly unbelievable — a first for me.
I definitely left a few layers of skin there. The vinyl tables were warm and really nice and the buckets of warm water that were used to constantly rinse me off were great. The place was SUPER clean and Sylvia cleaned the entire room between each different treatment. After the scrub, I relaxed in the steam room for about 15 minutes which was wonderful. Then the massage — wow! intense but great. I have a new range of movement in my body. The treatment ended with fresh cucumber slices on my face and a hair wash. It is obvious that Sylvia cares a lot about her customers and tries really hard to make their stay at her spa extra special.
It was so nice that I am sending my husband this week as well. We will both be making this a regular splurge/​treat.
And — the treatment was so great that I just ignored the gift certificate (which she definitely wanted to honor) and paid what I thought was a very inexpensive and reasonable price for such a fabulous experience.

Well… I had every intention on visiting this place before the lady got extremely rude over the phone. I think she couldn’t understand what I was saying but instead of trying to help me she gave me another number to call? I’m still confused. No one picked up at the other number so I’m assuming she didn’t want my business. I asked her questions as I was reading information on the website and she couldn’t verify anything! She kept saying I had the wrong number and I’m like dudeeeee no I don’t! I read the number to her as I was looking on the website and she responded «yes that’s our number.» So at this point I’m still confused as to why she still insists that I have the wrong number. lol. I’m done. Annoyed. Just lost a potential customer.

Hanijoa is my favorite Korean day spa in northern Virginia for body scrub and massage. I’ve been to Spa world and Sun day spa, both of which are good, but Hanijoa was superb and does not charge an entrance/​amenity fee. A little elderly lady performed my body scrub/​massage and it was one of he most thorough scrubs and best knot kneading session I’ve experienced. There was a language barrier but I didn’t mind as I didn’t talk much and just followed instructions (turn over, shower, etc.).
The spa is very small, and does not offer the multiple sauna rooms, restaurants, lounge area like Spa world. However, my main objective is to get in and get cleaned. And cleaned, exfoliated, massaged, and relaxed I achieved.
The only reason I am not giving a five star is because as I was changing to leave in the locker area, I saw two men come in to the same sauna room that I had just occupied minutes ago. Thankfully they did not see me. Also, there is no wall partition between the changing locker room area and the entrance. I think the owners should build some sort of door or put in bamboo sliders to offer clients privacy from people at the front entrance.

I found this place through a friend and it was my first time going through anything like this. I decided to write a review because I went with my husband and I didn’t see a lot of reviews about what they offer to couples. A couples massage is a bit more expensive, $ 240 without tip. Trust me, they definitely earn their tip so it’s going to be a bit more. The difference from what I can tell is that couples get their sessions in the basement. You walk down the stairs and into a room with a few old couches, a large mirror and a curtained section. The curtained section is basically the locker room because behind the curtain is a bench and a few lockers. I went with my husband and men aren’t allowed in the other section of the spa. We undressed and I got a cute pink robe and he got a pair of clean underwear and a towel. The lockers have keys and you take those with you to every place you go. Then we were taken into a little (and I mean little) room with a sink and a shower. Only, the shower doubles as a steam room. We were allowed to rinse off then given a towel to place on the bench so we could sit nude together in the steam room. It got up to 105 degrees in there. But they did give us 2 cold bottles of water and encouraged us to drink them while we were in there. After about 10 minutes I went in search of someone to tell us what to do next. I couldn’t find anyone but a woman came to us about 30 seconds after I returned to the small steam room. We were then led to another room with only 2 vinyl tables. I was worried about that 3^rd person because I saw and read in other reviews that up to 3 people could have a session together. The couples is significantly more expensive because you get your own room and more privacy.
Ok now on to the treatment.
I stripped down and my husband kept on his underwear. They laid hot towels on the bench and we laid face up. They poured warm water over us. THIS WAS HEAVEN! Then they started the exfoliation with their special gloves. I was about to drift off into sleep when she asked me to turn on my side. As with all the other reviews they go just about EVERYWHERE. I will say that my lady kept a warm towel over my private parts and made sure it stayed there when I was on my back and side. Also, our ladies were wearing spandex shorts and tshirts. However, I later went into the women’s side of the building to pay and there was a lady in just her underwear. Anyways, back to the treatment. After two full body rotations (back on table, side, stomach on table, side) of exfoliation and multiple containers of warm water being poured on me she used soap (smelled like irish spring) to exfoliate me and get rid of the bits of skin laying around. Then more containers of lovely water. My husband was asked to get up and shower himself. My lady wiped me down with warm towels. Then cool strips of paper/​cloth? that smelled like cucumbers were placed on my face. It was so refreshing. Everything was covered (even my eyes) except my nostrils and mouth. While that mixture sat on my face baby oil was poured over me and the massage began. As with all the other reviews there were times when the massage felt so nice and other times where it was just brutal. They really do give you a deep tissue massage. But I love a good amount of pressure and that was really why I was able to talk my husband into it. He has a hard time finding massage therapists that give enough pressure and he said that this one was really good and at times even too hard. But those moments of great massage time definitely outweighed the more uncomfortable parts. Even with the barrier language they were still good about reading our bodies. After the baby oil massage hot towels were placed on me and then I was massaged through the hot towels with pressure points. At this time the lady was on the table with me using her whole body weight to loosen my muscles. This was my favorite part!!! It felt so nice! After that was over she poured milk all over me (I asked her what it was) and massaged that into my skin. After the milk she washed my hair with some great smelling shampoo and conditioner (my husband got his hair washed too). Then she asked me to sit up and put a hot towel over my back and massaged me more. Then I stood up and showered off all the oil. My husband was doing the same only he had to use a shower head that wasn’t on a hose so his lady threw buckets of warm water on his back to help. Quite humorous actually. After that he left but my lady dried me off. Like literally dried me off and wouldn’t let me hold the towel.
I have never felt so pampered in my life! The entire process took about 2 hours. It was definitely different from any experience I’ve ever had. My skin is incredibly smooth.
I was initially worried about walking around nude with other clients but if you pay the extra money you get the privacy.

Hanijoa is good for its kind, given that it’s not in Little Saigon in the LA area or in Japan Town, CA.
The layout is a bit confusing for a first timer, but the service is excellent.
Good:
1. The scrub
2. The massage
Ok:
1. The Price
2. The Supplies they give you — soap, shampoo in the shower area etc.
Need to work on/​Improve:
1. The Faucets, shower stalls, water flow (hot-​cold)
2. The Steam Room
3. «Forcing» a 20% tip onto the bill.
Of course, there are walk-​ins, but an appointment would help greatly. The scrub is kinda dry, not too much soap is used, they don’t have any sanitary pads to spare (just in case). Needless to say, I’m comparing Hanijoa to the many Spas in the Bay Area. but stand alone, it’s ok… one can go and come out feeling squeaky clean happy.

This place is AMAZING. Best spa treatment of my life — compared to the Homestead Spa and Elizabeth Arden Red Door and others.
I went to Bill Page to get my car serviced when they informed me it would take two hours. I’m stuck along route 50 looking for a place to relax (thinking maybe a coffe shop?) and I sure found it. In the corner of a weird little strip mall I wandered in to Hanijoa having no idea what to expect. Luckily I’m cool with being naked.
I was the only one there the whole time. I walked in put on a robe and was greeted by a woman in her bra and underwear who would be doing my service (deluxe package with an exfoliation and massage). The woman spoke little english but she was very nice. The lingerie look threw me off… did I wander into some weird happy endings place???
Anyways I went with it and walked into a large communal massage room with three vinyl beds on it. The room is tiled and warm and steamy. I grabbed a quick shower in the room and then was escorted into a nice steam room. The lady could tell it was my first time because I was confused about half the stuff they wanted me to do but she was really nice and smiley and I felt relaxed.
She brought me out of the steam room and had me lay on one of the vinyl beds. Then she poured hot water all over me from a big old vat (this was one of my favorite things! she kept pouring hot water over me). I was exfoliated from head to toe and then soaped up. She washed my face and put strips of cucumber all over it. She used steaming towels on my face and neck. It was awesome.
Then I had the best massage ever. Seriously. I was in heaven. it was focused on pressure points mostly but still felt great. There were a few moments when it was too hard but I think it worked out some tension I needed to have worked out.
i don’t know if it was because i was the only one there but the treatment lasted forever. Definitely longer than the allotted hour and a half that I paid for i started to worry about my car being done before me… but then I realized I didn’t care!
I am ready to go back.
If you don’t enjoy being butt naked for two hours don’t bother with this place.
bottom line: cheap, awesome, I’m obsessed.

I don’t normally write reviews, but this was the most amazing pampering experience I have ever had. No frills, but it’s truly thrilling! Scrubbed, washed, rinsed, washed, oiled, massaged, rubbed, rinsed – repeat – head to toe. I’m a 6’4″ 215lb man and the tech used every part of her body (i.e. knuckles, knees, elbows, forearms, etc.) to take care of me. Don’t expect extravagance, expect a phenomenal experience. This place is great! Ladies be warned: it’s not for the faint of heart!

Elizabeth Arden it is not! Hanijoa is an experience unlike any I have ever had. Just got back from trying this place out and had to write a review ASAP before I forgot anything.
The other reviews of this place are quite accurate. You can have no modesty at all if you decide to go, because you are going to be buck naked and rubbed every which way by an extremely strong Asian woman old enough to be your grandmother.
I went at noon on a Tuesday and was the only person in the place, so it was no problem, but on a busy weekend day I could see how this might be a little uncomfortable. Need to allow 2+ hours for the $ 90 exfoliation and massage process.
My services were rendered in the following order:
1. Strip
2. Shower
3. Steam Room
4. Exfoliation (very deep with heavy pressure)
5. Cucumber Facial
6. Massage (again, deep tissue style with lots of pressure)
My technician was very thorough and my body feels as if its been worked over from a grueling workout, but my skin looks and feels better than it ever has. My only complaint is that she spoke NO ENGLISH whatsoever, so I couldn’t ask her to focus more on my heels during the exfoliation or use less pressure during the massage. Definitely someplace to check out if you’re up for something different… I plan to go back every other month or so going forward.

This place is fantastic. I have to say that it’s intimidating if you don’t know exactly what to do. So I’m here to give you some details so that you can walk in here and pretend to know what you’re doing.
Although women can walk in, call ahead. If you just say «I’d like to come at noon» then you’re going to get a scrub and a massage. If you want only a scrub, then you should say so when you call. Men are allowed, but only by appointment. They are also a bit more expensive.
When you arrive, take off your shoes at the door, and you’ll be shown to a locker and given a robe. Take off all your clothes, including your jewelry, and put it in the locker. Put the key in the pocket of your robe.
You’ll then be ushered into the «bathhouse» where you’ll rinse in the shower, and then go into the steam room. You can stay in there as long as you want, and when you come out, women in their underwear will be waiting for you. You’ll lie down on a massage table and they’ll start scrubbing you everywhere. When I say «everywhere,» I mean EVERYWHERE. So if you’re shy in any way, don’t even attempt to go here.
Throughout your scrub, they’ll dump buckets of warm water on you. This is to rinse off the layers of skin they’re taking off you. If you want, open your eyes and take a peek. It’s actually amazing to see the black balls of skin everywhere.
After your scrub, they’ll tell you to shower, and then you come back for your massage. Now, here, I have to warn you. I love massages. I get them a lot, and I love hard massages. But this… omg. This was brutal. I was bruised all over, and not in a good way. Yes, my muscles were relaxed, but the pain was pretty intense. They use their elbows and knuckles to massage you, running their arms and hands over your muscles and your bones. At one point, the woman’s elbow was on my spine, and at another, she was on top of me with all fours.
After your massage, you are done. They will wash your hair for you, and then you go to the shower to wash the rest of yourself. One of the women hilariously mimed washing her private area, telling us to make sure we do so ourselves. Again, not a place to go if you’re shy.
This place is addictive. Your skin is so incredibly soft and smooth after the scrub — it’s a wonderful feeling. When I go again, I won’t get the massage as it was a bit too painful (I get how some might like it, but it’s just too much for me), but the scrub was just absolutely amazing.
The scrub and massage are $ 90 for women and $ 120 for men. Just the scrub is $ 50. You can also do a couples scrub and massage, which I believe is around the $ 200 mark.

Had been reading about Korean spas in the Post. so Unilocaled to help choose and ended up going to Hanijoa. My only concern was that the scrub or massage might be too hard for my skin and mini-​muscles. It was great! I am as smooth as the proverbial baby’s.
Process in write-​ups was on target: shoes off at door, clothes off and into locker, shower, steam bath, scrub, slosh-​down with water, oil, massage, hot towels, and then another shower (return to steam bath was offered at the end but I was done!)
I did go with a friend, did make an appointment, and did go early in the afternoon (3:30). Place was nicely laid out and clean. We and the two spa ladies were the only ones there until a couple of people arrived just as we were finishing. The ladies were friendly and communicated well enough to walk us through each of the steps and understand that I did not want my face massaged.
2 hours for $ 90 of intense attention was quite a bargain!

NO SHAME…
That is what you need to have to truly enjoy Hanijoa spa. If you can let any embarrassment go, then you will have a great time and come out with amazingly soft skin that will last a long time. If you can’t, then let’s just say you might need a little therapy after to stop the nightmares.
So upon entering, you are immediately handed a robe and asked to remove all your clothes in the waiting area. ALL YOUR CLOTHES. There is a reason for this and you will be so much happier in the end. You are then escorted to a communal shower/​massage table/​prep area (as the other reviewers mentioned). Then to the steam room, which is kind of awesome, then on to a table where they scrub you down with mitts and Irish Spring. I will admit that I was first horrified by the idea of my delicate Khiels pampered skin being abused by Irish Spring but I quickly got over it and reminded myself it is just soap not Anthrax. (PS They Irish Spring’ed my face too but its all good).
After that you get massaged, rubbed, oiled and washed to a hilt. It lasts 2 hours but I swear your skin will thank you. The techs don’t speak a lot of English and it is not the most modern place but you get your moneys worth and you are soft and sparkling for days. Your beautiful new skin is waiting for you…
XOXO Gossip Girl
PS. The techs are doing all this in their bra and panties and anybody walking by the service can see your naked butt. okthankyoubyebyenow

If you want to feel like a new person — like seriously new layers of baby soft skin, muscles rejoicing, and feeling totally manhandled — then GO NOW (and be careful driving home)! If you like the shi-​shi spend a lot of money to have someone spread lotion on you with nice music playing thing, then it’s not for you.

I just walked-​in on a friday mid-​afternoon and was the only one there until an hour or so later. I recommend doing that because my treatment was clearly WAY longer than the others’ who arrived later. The only drawback of going when they hadn’t had many customers yet was that I had to wait 10 minutes or so until the Steam Room heated up. So I’ll just add to what some of the others said about the «routine». You steam first to get your skin and muscles ready, then lay on a table in the communal room for exfoliation which is serious business. I get spray tans and she scrubbed my entire tan off with loofah mittens going hard core at least 4 times over my whole body. I wouldn’t recommend doing that too often because it probably is too much, but my sensitive skin handled it surprisingly well!
I showered off and went in the steam again while she cleaned the table, then went back to the table for massage. It was not a massage for sissies. I am usually never satisfied with how deep a massage is (and I’m a trained massage therapist myself), but this had me crying mercy a couple times. She knew exactly where my spots were and even climbed up on the table to massage my back. I am usually fussy about face massage but this was totally different from any I’ve had before, and she used Pond’s cream for the face massage which gave me flashbacks. I also usually dislike the scalp massage because they just grease up your hair and tangle it, but here they shampoo and condition your hair while you’re on the massage table!!!
I was there for about 2 hours, but I think it was more — neither she nor I were paying attention.
This will be my go-​to place from now on, and I would actually see real value in going once a month.

First trip to a «K-​spa» and I must say I was very happy to have went with a friend who prepped me on what to expect on my first trip.
The place was quiet, clean and the staff were quiet but friendly women who did speak English.
My friend and I were the only ladies during our time there. We were quickly stripped down, ushered to a shower, then sauna and then we received our exfoliation treatment and message. The whole process lasted a little over 2 hours. After words I felt very clean and relaxed. The whole trip was only $ 90.
My first impressions are in line with some other reviews. Def. a no-​frills non-​fancy place but clean and comfortable enough. I would say I wasn’t a fan of being asked to use a communal bar of soap and was surprised at the lack of name brand products. The sauna was def. too hot, but you know some ppl can stand different levels of heat and I prob. spent 10 mins in it.
If my message had been done on a traditional message table, you know with the face rest, then my kinks would have been worked out better. But in the end it was ok.
The best thing about the spa trip was the full body exfoliation, afterwards my skin was so soft and really retained moisture.
Next time, and I will go again, I’ll just stick with exfoliation and maybe waxing… the prices were reasonable.

Korean Spa Nazis.
And I was afraid, so very afraid.
Compared to Spa World, and even Riverside, Hanijoa is small, but more importantly, I didn’t feel comfortable to move around as I pleased.
The workers watched me shower and insisted that I use their bacteria-​laden communal bar soap, even though I brought my own toiletries. That’s like taking a bath with like, all the residents of Falls Church at once. Gross.
They also insisted that I go into the steam room before my massage, which I tried to convey that I don’t enjoy because of the extreme heat, yet they made me. They made me!
To appease them, I hopped in for a minute, emerging with bright red cheeks and a slightly bloated appearance.
They were finally satisfied and left me alone.
The massage was the typical Korean spa massage – rough, vigorous, slightly painful, and in the end, you don’t know what hit you. Like having sex with Marv Alpert. I imagine.

I was naked. I was submissive. I felt like a contortionist. It was rough. I loved it!
Came in for the exfoliation (whole body, every inch), and a massage. Spent over two hours getting steamed, exfoliated until I felt like jelly, and had warm oil poured all over me and massaged/​kneaded to bits! And multiple showers/​rinses in between.
Veeeery different than any other experience I’ve had before and it was uncomparable, in the best way possible. Don’t even give being naked the whole time a second thought. Nobody cares. You will be worked on with others in the room. It’s a communal massage room. Again, nobody cares. The ladies working in their bathing suits or bra and panties. Last time to say it, don’t care!
I am now glowing, soft, all kinks worked out, and smiling!!! Honestly, I have NEVER been this soft.
Tip — don’t wear any makeup. It’ll just melt off. No jewelry, even earrings. It’ll get in the way. Don’t bother doing your hair. It gets steamed to death and washed at the end.
End the experience by unwinding in a heated tatami room. Ahhhhhh.