I have personally been to SoJo Spa Club twice, once in the summer and once in the winter. I will say overall, I did have a good experience both times. For my first experience, we did the daily admission then for the second experience we did the couples massage. The spa opens at 9 AM and closes at 9 PM. When you pick the time for your daily admission you have to enter within the hour and can stay as long as you would like. The pools are open year round but they have an amazing infinity pool with a Manhattan skyline view, a hydrotherapy pool, as well as specialty soaking areas including a Hinoki, Silk, and carbon-rich baths. In addition, they have numerous saunas. To me, this is a one and done experience just to try it out.
Overall Opinions and Tips:
- To me it is not really a “spa” but a bathhouse. It only becomes a “spa” when you book the treatments. It’s not super tranquil because it is very crowded.
- I would highly recommend NOT going on the weekends. If you can switch around your work schedule I would go during the week if possible. The baths and pools get very crowded with numerous people taking photos. When I am at a spa relaxing the last thing I want are people taking photos with me in the background.
- They do offer valet parking but I would recommend just self parking at the lot down the street. It’s about a one block walk and the line gets extremely long to get your car for valet.
- The spa itself is extremely clean! I was originally very worried given how busy it was but the staff in the spa is constantly cleaning the floors.
- The staff do strictly enforce no phones in the ladies dressing room which is wonderful! I really wish the actual spa itself had a no phone policy to be honest as some people were trying to listen to their individual music.
- SoJo spa does have a cafeteria with a variety of food options. I love the tangerine and vanilla swirl softserve! It tastes like a creamsicle and is very refreshing after being in the water all day.
- I personally found the couples massage to be extremely expensive. The couples massage was $430 and has 2 hours of admission included to use the pools after. If you want longer you still have to pay 50% of the daily admission fee. We also included a 20% tip on top of the massage so around $510 for a couples massage with no additions or food provided.
WARNING: I did read a lot of the reviews and I couldn’t help but notice this statement made on behalf of SoJo Spa. We actually did arrive early as well and didn’t realize waiting around the spa area for our appointment counted. We didn’t really want to dive into the pool before a massage so I would actually say arrive ~20 minutes before your appointment.
We do ask for guests that are receiving spa treatments to arrive 60-minutes prior to your appointment time to check in, change, and prepare for the massage appointment on time. If you were looking to spend the full 2 hours after your service, our team would have suggested waiting to check in as the complimentary time does begin at check in. Most of our guests who are receiving spa treatments elect to stay long after the appointment time to take advantage of the discounted admission fee with their qualifying service.
On a review on Trip Advisor
Daily Admission
You can purchase a daily admission for variable prices depending on the season, day, and time. The daily admission includes access to all of the following:
- Access to all pools, baths, saunas and bath houses
- Private, secure, full size locker to store your belongings
- Complimentary towels & robes to use during your stay
When you go for the day you need to bring a Government issues photo ID, bathing suit, and sandals/flip flops for the outdoors, locker rooms, and bath houses only.
Treatment Options
- Massages, starting at $215
- Couples massage, starting at $430
- Acupressure, fees vary
- Korean body scrub, $75-150
Overall, I personally enjoyed AIRE Ancient Baths in Chicago more than SoJo Spa. I haven’t been to the location in NYC but I did love that experience. It isn’t a luxury experience by any means but it is fun to take a dip in all the different pools they offer. It is a hefty price point once you start adding on different treatments, food, and additional add ons. I would recommend just going once for the experience.
