The Sanctuary Spa is one of Shanghai’s longest-running expat-owned spas. It has been on our must-try list for a while now. We passed by many times but never noticed this rooftop sanctuary nestled away just beyond the hustle and bustle of the popular alleyways and shops in the heart of Tianzifang. Near the back entrance on Jianguo Lu up four flights of stairs, sits one of Shanghai’s hidden spa gems!
Greeted with smiling faces through the floor-to-ceiling glass doors, we entered the tranquil environment of Sanctuary Spa. Feeling like we just walked into a resort spa in Thailand, we were led down the hall of flowing white curtains to a cozy room with plush couches, vases of lilies and daisies, and offered a glass of refreshing lemon water. The music, earthy colors, and light spa smells provided the perfect touch to enter a blissful state before our facials had even started!
Su, from Singapore, is one of the superwomen owners of Sanctuary Spa (co-founder, Lisa, from America). Su sat down with us to give us the lowdown on The Sanctuary Spa. She did a thorough assessment of our skin regimen, our skin’s history, and what we really hoped to accomplish through our facial today and in the future. She is kind, patient, and tactful in discussing the sensitive topic of skin.
“I already know my skin is dry from my air conditioner, recent travels, air pollution, and so forth. I also have combination skin so an oily T-zone but dry elsewhere. I’m not prone to breakouts, so I have tried lots and lots of different Western & Asian brands to see what products I like best…I have yet to find it as living in Shanghai makes it either extremely expensive or inaccessible to find products. A friend has been making me a customized skin regimen with serums, scrubs, toners, and moisturizers depending on the weather and my diet.” –Michelle Ibarra
“Since moving to Shanghai, my skin has been awful due to the pollution and weather. I’ve recently developed terrible acne. Visiting dermatologists and receiving different types of treatments (extractions, chemical peels, and red/blue light therapy) has helped my acne. However, it has made my skin extremely dry to the point of flaking and peeling. Finding a product in Shanghai that will moisturize my skin without further inducing acne has been impossible. In the past, I’ve found that often times facials can disrupt the treatment of acne by only concentrating on surface level issues. I still want to treat the acne but don’t want my skin to feel like the Sahara desert.” —Jennie Johnson
After our consultation, we were guided to a room where our facials would be. The Sanctuary Spa offers (2) shared rooms and (3) single rooms. We opted for a shared room for a “couple’s facial” which is a great choice for a girl’s spa day! We’ve both been to our fair share of spas around Shanghai and have to say, it was the nicest spa room ever. Complete with an open closet providing robes and slippers, a sink area with contact lens solution, hair accessories, and other necessities, and a petite shower with beautiful tiling. It was fabulous!
The facial starts with a relaxing massage and 3-step cleansing. Then Su came in to assess our skin under a facial white light to see what’s really going on. Explaining the issues to us individually and giving her recommendations for our customized treatment tailored to the skin’s needs. Once she discusses our treatment with the estheticians, she begins preparing the necessary ingredients for our customized facials leaving the estheticians to their magic. Each esthetician goes through a training of 600 hours; they really know their stuff! Never too rough or too quick to finish, they take their time. Working on blackheads, extracting what they can, and even removing facial hair! It was 90 minutes of pure heaven.
Afterward, we met with Su again so she could show us the Sanctuary Spa facial book. This book is like the holy grail as far as facials go. All facials are full of natural ingredients used to fight oil, dryness, inflammation, acne, sun exposure, pollution…the list seriously goes on!
Michelle was given the Air Con Alarm Facial for dry skin with a papaya peel for brightening and balancing. While Jennie was given a mix of the Take a Break facial to refine pores and fight blemishes and the Calm Down, Honey facial for inflammation.
We ended our spa day, relaxing (more) with some tea and chatting about a proper skincare regime and facial plan for each of our individual cases. We left The Sanctuary Spa in a daze of bliss and happiness.
If you’re in Shanghai, check out The Sanctuary Spa
Tian Zi Fang Location
Room 402, 171 Jianguo Zhong Lu
near Ruijin Er Lu,
建国中路171号402室, 近瑞金二路
Zhongshan Park Location
B1/F, 890 Changning Lu
near Huichuan Lu
长宁路890号, 近汇川路
Co-Author: Michelle Ibarra
This blog post was written as part of a partnership with Sanctuary Spa Shanghai. All opinions expressed are those of The JJ Adventures.
Read more about my skincare journey here or click the images below.
