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The Aspara, a high-end spa in Singapore, enjoy an enviable reputation as one of the most famous and established spa in Singapore. The spa offers a full range of spa, beauty and wrap programs and had won a number of tourism and spa industry awards a few years ago. They also have a number of branches, mostly in various high-end hotels in Singapore and other parts of Asia.

I recently had a chance to try out it’s main spa, which is located at The Goodwood Park hotel, one of the oldest, grandest and most established hotel in Singapore.

I went with high hopes, not because of it’s grand reputation, but because the spa treatment was a birthday gift. I was getting a Jet Lag Riviver Spa package - which includes a hydro-massage dead-sea mineral salt bath, a marine and plant extract body exfoliation treatment and a Swedish body massage.

The Aspara is located on the ground floor of a double-storey side building away from the main Goodwood Park hotel building. Above it is a popular Thai Sharkfin restaurant.

My immediate impression of the spa was that it’s interior design was a wee bit passe - a cramp reception and rest area, lot’s of wooden furniture and furnishing (which you can’t identify immediately if it was Thai, Indonesian or local), the odd incense burner and candle here and there and plenty of shelve space for beauty and spa products.

It may have been grand and impressive design for a spa a few years ago but in the face of newer, sophisticated, well-designed and elegant spas that seems to be springing up all over Singapore and Asia, it does feel a bit dated.

The Malay receptionist was nice, eager and enthusiastic but obviously lack experience. She was quite nervous when she realised I was early by 5 minutes for my appointment as the room was not ready. She went bustling back and forth to get the room, hydro-bath and masseurs ready - but she forgot to tell us what was happening and left me and my companion standing and waiting like an idiot at the reception.

The massage suite is big - one of the biggest I’ve ever seen anywhere. Unfortunately, the large size also enhance the lack of sophistication in it’s design and ambience.

A large part of the room is artificial laminated wood flooring - the sort that goes clunk, clunk - no matter how softly you step and which reminds one of the office environment immediately. The floor and hydro-bath is lined with square white artificial tiles - not natural stones or wood that would have softened the room and add some coziness. The ceiling lights were on dimmer control - but it dim up or down together. There were no pockets of mood inducing light and shadow that many modern spa will play on to add to a spa’s warmness and fuzziness.

The hydro-massage mineral bath was pretty normal and nothing to shout about. Luckily, the following exfoliation scrub and Swedish massage save the rest of the session. Both the Singaporean Chinese masseurs were good and their confident strokes for the scrub and massage lull one into total massage bliss and relaxation very quickly.

The tingling tangy smell of the Orange scrub and the relaxing Lavender oil used for the massage did it’s part in adding to the relaxation for the body and this session at The Aspara rank as one of the most enjoyable massage I had in Singapore for quite some time.

If you are looking for a good quality massage in Orchard Road, the heart of the shopping belt in Singapore, this is a spa that you can certainly try. If you are looking for a mood inducing spa, a cozy place to relax and quality of massage - then there are certainly better ones along Orchard or Scotts Road and elsewhere.

The Aspara is currently running spa promotion packages with American Express (Amex) and OCBC credit cards. Both individual and couples spa, massage and facial promotion packages are available.

Location of The Aspara, Orchard
Goodwood Park Hotel, 22 Scotts Road (near Orchard Road), Singapore 228221
Size: Mid size spa with mostly private couple’s suite. Hydro-massage bath and jacuzzi available in most rooms.
Facilities: Large massage rooms. Small reception and rest area.
Friendliness: Polite staff and good massage therapists.
Pricing: Starts from US$60 for a facial, wrap, bath or body massage. Various spa and beauty packages available and starts from US$140.