Speaking of favorites, my Spa of the Moment is the Lasema Jjim Jil Bang Spa and Sauna in Makati City. I absolutely indulged in my first time there and found it most unique of all the spas I went to.
Jjim jil bang is the Korean word for “bath house.” In the Land of the Morning Calm, it is commonly used to refer to a sauna facility with different types of room temperatures to give varied health benefits to the body. Thanks to the invasion of Korean culture here, kids and adults alike can now enjoy an authentic jjim jil bang experience in Manila . Take out all the toxins in your body at the 75 degree Celsius Dome Clay Sauna or get the feeling of being enveloped by snow at the two degrees Ice Room.
A visit to Lasema can cost as little as P250 if you only use the “wormwood” sauna plus the three types of jacuzzi , namely cold, “ginger hot” and “green tea.” Male and female areas are segregated from each other – naturally.Taking a light shower is a must before dipping in the pools in your birthday suit ( because this is not a beach, you cannot go in your swimsuit 😛 ). I reckon it takes quite a while for shy Pinays to go with the idea, and even with an Indian lady I talked to. But you get used to it!! On our visit, I saw a couple of Korean children frolicking with their mothers and yaya in the warm tubs without a care in the world.
Oh well, thank God for the jet bubbles!!! 😛 The jacuzzis are quite high-tech with the temperatures written in digital meter. I could stay here for hours and I don’t have to drive all the way to Pansol. Green tea and ginseng in water is said to reduce stress and give one youthful vitality…
After relaxing in the pools, guests can then change into their robes and go to the jjim jil bang proper (P450 on weekdays, with the jacuzzis). This consists of different saunas shaped like caves – the 75-degree Dome Clay Sauna, 50-degree Salt and Charcoal Sauna, the 60-degree oak and clay sauna and the two-degree ice room. Here’s me in the Ice Room…. now I know how it feels like to be in the refrigerator!
Am not really a sauna person but there’s some literature posted on Lasema’s walls about the advantages of this type of treatment. Apparently, the natural properties of salt, charcoal, oak and clay are good for the skin, the body’s metabolism and treating ailments like asthma. Most importantly, a session relaxes and rejuvenates as well as takes out deadly toxins in the body.
The ceilings of the sauna in Lasema are also fitted with gemstones like jade, amethyst, sapphire and topaz which are known for their “healing and therapeutic effects.”
After enclosing yourself at the jjim jil bang –
you can go for a formal massage …
have refreshments at the bar …
eat at the Jewel in the Palace Korean Restaurant…
surf in the internet cafe…
get fit in the gym….
play with the kids at the Kiddie Room….
rest to your heart’s content in the sleeping caves.
(stay as much as 12 hours)
Lasema Jjim Jil Bang Spa
at the MGC Lasema Plaza
7232 Malugay St.,
Bel-Air, Makati City
Telephone No. 830-2222
After spending 15 minutes in the dark and cold this morning at 7am scraping ice off the windscreen of my car I can’t believe anyone could possibly want to pay to spend time in an ice room………
But ice is such a novelty here Lawrence. Remember that I am in a tropical country 😀
ajay:
soon to be a bold star!
hahaha!
Now starring in Jjim Jim Bold Productions… 😀
I’ll spank you Mr. Enriquez…. grabeng mang-asar! 😛
my wife just loves going to the spa. but you were so right when you said that pinays are shy. even with super persuasion, my wife declined because she just couldn’t go naked in a public place. i guess it’s in our culture. even in my gym, only the foreigners let it all hang out when in the sauna. the pinoy men, including myself, insist on wearing underwear. mahiyain talaga tayo.
Arpee, I have to admit it feels quite uncomfortable. Kasi hindi lang tayo mahiyain, tsismoso pa 😀 It’s really a cultural thing. Pinays are uneasy being nude in an all-girls’ spa but in Europe, they sunbathe publicly in the nude di ba?
ang tarush ng pose mo ateng sa pool talbog si marima at dyesebel hahahahahaha. dapat labas ang bobey para bongga hahahaha
this was endorsed to me by a korean lady. :3
she said it’s really good so yay~! 🙂
i am super going here when i go down manila. 😀
Thank you for posting this, now I know where to go when I go home to the Philippines. I love Korean spas! Nakakahiya at the beggining but you’ll get used to it. Subukan nyo ang body scrub & massage. You’ll feel good & very clean after.
Hi,
Do we need appointment to the Korean Bath House? What do we need to bring?
Thank you for this site…I love to go to a bath house for scrub and relaxation.
when i was there i feel so free and the ambiance is good,you can enjoy ur staying there and also for relaxing 🙂
Hi girl how much are the rates now? During weekend ka ba nagpunta?
Btw, to the author: thanks much for this. I’ve been wanting to go to lasema. Now I’m even more enticed to do so! 😉
hi thanx for the info.. may i ask where is this exactly located.. i am really looking for a jimjilbang here in the PI taong sauna kasi ako back when i was in korea.. masarap kasi saka nakakarelax add to that.. nakakapayat pa yan~ hehehe totoo dati 4x a week ako mag sauna.. nababawasan ang mga measurements ko LOL anyways thanx talaga! mapuntahan na talaga