Hammam is my New Thing

Immediately after I knew I would be visiting Morocco, I was dedicated to experiencing the culture as fully as possible. One of the things I recall seeing over and over as the experience you have to have was the traditional hammam. I decided I would do one at the Heritage Spa so that I would have an attendant and it was the best decision ever. In fact, hammam is my new thing. But to get there I had to gather some confidence so that I could actually strip down when the time came.

For me, this experience was part indulgence and part challenge. This was the only thing I had planned for my first day in Marrakech and I was so nervous. With the hammam ritual the attendant scrubs your entire body from head-to-toe. I was not entirely comfortable with some random stranger seeing me naked. My mantra leading up to the appointment was “be body positive” and it worked for the most part since I did make it through the door.

First of all, this place was so easy to find. It’s off of a few small windy streets but the two main streets are clearly labeled and then there are signs for the spa with arrows from there. Luckily, since I speak only rudimentary French, it was also very close to my hotel.

From the moment I arrived, I felt so taken care of. I was greeted with mint tea and was able to choose all of the scents for my treatments. And once I made my choices, we got started. I was taken to a small room to change into paper undies and a robe. The nerves were back. But as we started with the hammam, I quickly relaxed.

They took me to a steamy room with a hot stone to lay on that was like my own personal sauna. The first step was a layer of black soap all over my body and then after resting for about 5 to 10 minutes, the attendant rinsed me off. Then she scraped all of the dead skin from my body with a special glove. Next she put a mask on my skin and let me rest for another 10 minutes. After rinsing me down for that, she washed me one final time, including shampooing my hair. I felt like a baby. Honestly, I have never felt more taken care of. And by that point I had zero insecurities left. The attendant was caring and professional and was very conscious of my privacy.

So that was the end of the traditional hammam, but it was only the beginning of my spa day. I went into my next appointment, which was a full body massage, and another experience I had never had before. All I can say is that it was phenomenal. The perfect first activity after being cramped on a plane for hours. And the facial that followed was even better. I was so relaxed that I fell asleep. The last session was a much needed pedicure. I was wearing sandals for the first time in months!

If you’re headed to Marrakech, I cannot recommend the Heritage Spa enough. And if you ever have the opportunity to experience hammam anywhere, do it.