Professional Aromatherapy Massage Evaluation at Harrods London England

How does your massage appointments compare to one of the most well known, upscale brands in the world?  See our Harrods experience below to compare for yourself:

Scheduling a massage appointment at Harrods was quite easy. I physically went to the spa to schedule and to see their facilities. They did not have a printed price list available. Instead, they had a QR Code that I could look up on my cell phone or they could show me the services and prices on their computer. I chose to book a 50-minute Aromatherapy Massage because it was only 10 pounds more than the regular massage price at one hundred twenty pounds in the year 2025. The attendant who scheduled my massage was very kind and patient. She additionally scheduled a salon appointment directly after my massage. She also wrote out an appointment card so that I could remember the appointment date and time. She underlined their phone number to contact in case I had to reschedule or cancel, and she took a 50% deposit on my credit card to hold the appointment.

I showed up two days later for my scheduled appointment and arrived thirty minutes prior to my appointment start time. Check-in for the appointment was standard and easy. I was directed to a small sitting area to wait for my therapist. The therapist pleasantly greeted me early with a smile and brought me to a treatment room with an electric massage table, chairs and waxing equipment. It was a little disappointing to see that the massage table had a hole in it for the face instead of a separate face crest to support the head and neck in pronated position. The therapist had me fill out a health intake form in the treatment room and asked if I wanted water. I accepted the water, and she brought me a bottle and cup while I was filling out my intake form. I wrote that I was seeking a relaxation massage, and the therapist stated she was going to choose the aromatherapy for me, although it was a little difficult to understand what she was saying because of her thick accent.  I asked her which aromatherapy oil she was going to choose from amongst her 4 preblended choices, and she said it would be rose oil for relaxation, which I accepted.

She then asked me to undress to my knickers and get onto the massage table face down. I undressed to my bottom underwear and covered myself with the extra-large bath sheet towel.  Surprisingly, I found the hole in the table where my head was acceptably comfortable when compared to other tables with holes for face rests. The therapist then re-entered the room and turned on the faucet and ran the water for a maximum of three seconds before it stopped.  She started her service shortly after that with hot towels on my pronated feet.  She then proceeded to provide gentle compressions from my feet to my upper back which included the back of legs, hips and full back.  She then performed a little bit of scalp work and some acupressure as well on my posterior cervical area. She proceeded to undrape my back for massage while I laid flat on the table, so I then asked her if she would please bolster my ankles for lower back support.  She quickly agreed and then physically left the treatment room, closing the door behind her to obtain a bolster.  Unfortunately, she was not prepared to properly provide essential bolstering throughout my massage appointment when she had to leave the room to obtain this vital massage accessory.

She re-entered the room within a short period of time, bolstered my ankles, asked if it felt okay, and then proceeded to my back massage.  The back massage initially felt like she was following or clearing meridian lines instead of Swedish massage.  After working both sides of my vertebral spine, she then proceeded into gentle and general massage work, including the traditional effleurage and petrissage Swedish massage therapy.  She checked in about the pressure of her massage almost 15 minutes into the session, and it was good.  The therapist performed very nice posterior cervical massage while I was pronated to finish the back massage.

The treatment room was extremely warm (at least 80 degrees Fahrenheit if not warmer), so during my back massage I asked her to expose my feet and lower legs to make it a little cooler, and she willingly and quickly obliged.

She then proceeded to undrape one posterior leg, then the other as she massaged each leg individually.  All of the work was good with light to moderate pressure as requested.  She draped the large bath sheet by tucking it into the side of my underwear to securely expose each posterior leg.  She then removed my ankle bolster as she prepared herself for supinated massage.

The therapist then lifted the bath sheet into the air, completely exposing me while asking me to roll over into a supinated position.  I rolled over and she placed the towel over my anterior body and a pillow under my head which was comfortable.  She then exposed one anterior leg and started her massage without bolstering my lower extremities again.  I asked her to place a knee bolster under my knees, and she again obliged, appropriately using the same bolster that had already been removed from under my ankles while I was in pronated position.

After each individual leg massage which was appropriately undraped then draped again, she massaged each arm, hand and fingers appropriately. Some of her "strongest" or "best" massage was then executed through the decollete and cervical area while pronated.  She finished the appointment strongly with a nice scalp massage.  Facial massage was not offered nor provided during this 50-minute aromatherapy massage appointment.  When she finished the appointment, she told me I could keep the bottle of water that she left on the sink counter and proceeded to leave the room.  She ended the massage pleasantly but before she closed the door behind her, I stopped her and asked if she could please wipe the oil off the soles of my feet given, I was wearing sandals without socks, and did not want to slip and slide in them post-massage. The therapist again complied and used a hot towel to remove the oil.

Overall, I would rate this 50-minutes aromatherapy massage appointment at Harrods 3.8 stars out of 5 stars.  It was a good massage but there is a significant rating reduction from 5 stars due to the lack of automatic bolstering, which could leave a client feeling less comfortable after their massage appointment than when they started.  The human spine is curved and physically stressed on a flat surface without appropriate knee and ankle bolstering while lying flat in both prone and supine position. The multi-purpose treatment room was not properly stocked when the therapist had to leave it during the service to obtain an essential massage bolster. The deduction from 5 stars continues for leaving heated wax pots uncovered during an aromatherapy massage because the wax odor overpowered the aromatherapy and cognitive olfactory senses. Significant deduction was created further when the provider applied oil to the soles of the feet and did not automatically remove it which creates a safety hazard for a massage establishment and client. The front desk staff, massage therapist and physical contact of the massage provider itself was very good and could easily receive five stars.

MASSAGE FACILITIES

The facilities upon arrival were clean, professional, almost sterile but very modern and beautiful.  I received the massage in an interior room with no window.  The bathroom was extremely clean upon my arrival and fairly filthy when I was leaving the facilities several hours later, after my massage and salon appointment when my services were concluded.  When I was leaving, one of the toilet stalls had a cone in the middle of it to prevent the overflowing water situation from being used or perhaps worsening.  There was trash on the floors in the bathroom which looked like it was not being properly maintained.  The handicap toilet stall appeared to have a hand soap dispenser on both sides of the sink which provides brilliant access to individuals with mobility issues. It also had a high toilet and low sink which is most appropriate and accommodating for handicapped individuals.  I did not see a shower, bath or extra facilities that are usually standard in an upscale spa or massage establishment. I did not change into a robe, and both dressed and undressed in the multi-purpose treatment room.

The front desk to schedule, check-in and check-out for the massage session was clean and fully staffed with pleasant and knowledgeable employees. The sitting area prior to the massage was void of complimentary magazines or reading material, snacks or beverages. There was a small food menu in the waiting area that was left out in the open without instructions. The menu required additional payment for their various offerings, and it was unclear how to exercise it.  It seems fairly awkward that a client would order a sandwich or salad from their massage therapist, which is the only person I saw or spoke to once I was seated in the waiting area.

Recommended changes for the facilities would be:

1. Have massage or bodywork recipients fill out their health intake form in the waiting area instead of inside of an overheated treatment room while sitting next to open wax pots with an unpleasant aroma. 
2. Cover the wax pots in the multi-purpose treatment room. This could reduce the temperature of the overheated room, keep the wax itself more sanitary and diminish some of the unpleasant aroma that the wax creates in that small treatment room.
3. Keep appropriate equipment and accessories in any room where they could be required.
4. Add complimentary snacks, beverages and reading material to the waiting area to create an upscale experience which is expected of Harrods' reputation. The extremely well staffed front desk could certainly attend to the sitting area with these added amenities to keep it upscale, tidy and organized.
5. Provide an appropriate tipping chart for service providers given English standards are different from American and perhaps other countries as well. In London's tourist district where Harrods is located, most of the surrounding businesses include a service charge but apparently Harrods did not.  Without a chart or recommendation, it's awkward and difficult to ascertain what would be appropriate or offensive.
6. Add separate face rests to massage tables for increased cervical or head support and comfort, instead of using tables with a hole cut out for breathing space and pronated position.  While it did not appear there was physical space in the multi-purpose treatment room to add length to the massage table with an added face rest, it would have been best to provide my aromatherapy service in one of the many empty treatment rooms that appeared to be available, especially if they were larger, had face rests and appropriate massage equipment or accessories to provide the session uninterrupted.
7. We do not recommend adding robe service or shower facilities to the appointment which would likely increase the cost of providing or paying for it.

HARRODS MASSAGE APPOINTMENT PROS:

• Caring compassionate contact by the service provider.
• Friendly and accommodating practitioner.
• Provided slightly greater time than the 50-minute advertised appointment.
• Hot towels were available and used with the massage service.
• The massage appointment was very reasonably priced when compared to other local massage establishments, and with the Harrods' name or brand behind the service.

HARRODS MASSAGE APPOINTMENT CONS

• Unpleasant aroma of uncovered wax pots overpowered the smell of the aromatherapy oil and appointment, and likely contributed to the overheating of the room.
• Large bath towel/sheel (instead of "regular"/larger sheet) draping created overexposure while turning from pronated to supinated position.
• Appropriate bolstering was not automatically performed nor readily available/prepared within the treatment room.
• Used oil to perform hand and foot massage.  Massage lotion or cream would be preferred for massage application in these areas.
• Did not automatically remove oil from soles of feet prior to table dismount which creates liability risk if/when client slips and falls.
• Facial massage was not included nor addressed by the service provider.
• Hand washing should be more thorough if the massage therapist's only hand wash prior to the appointment was the 3 second rinse that I physically heard.