The Spa at THAI

This review is about the student massage therapist experience. I get a massage here about every six months by a student therapist. The cost is very reasonable, and many times the experience is good. However, I had a massage recently, and it was not very good. I think that I was the first paying client that this particular massage student had. The massage student generally used a fast and short choppy movement and seemed to massage mostly with fingertips instead of the whole hand. I could feel fingernails digging into me. Not pleasant. Other than getting a personal rec on a student therapist, I would advise planning one’s massage appointment toward the end of the class schedule rather than the beginning to up one’s chances of getting a more practiced massage.

Full disclosure: I am a graduate of THAI, and I happily go back to their spa for my own wellness treatments. The atmosphere is homey and serene, and a smiling, helpful receptionist is always ready to greet you and offer some tea. I usually see Amber for skin-​care, and she is amazing! She answers my questions thoughtfully and with the backing of continued research in skin-​care and product ingredients. I’ve been very happy with the Suki brand products she’s recommended. Suki is a little pricey (as most well-​made skin-​care products are), but a little goes a long way, and the results are worth it! Definitely cheaper than Accutane, that’s for sure!

Update 11÷6÷13 — I’ve been seeing Bevin regularly since last year!
The gentle relaxation massages I’ve been scheduling religiously have helped eliminate almost ALL of my migraines! I was pretty dependent on Advil to get me through work-​days before starting massage therapy and now I don’t have to use it nearly as often (I’ve even forgotten it at home quite a bit, which I never used to do). I do still get headaches/​migraines at work occasionally– but it’s not every day or even every week like it was before. She has also helped tremendously with my neck and back pain.
I was very sad to have my last appointment yesterday as I am moving to Seattle near the end of this month. Bevin and the THAI staff have always been extremely welcoming and their little house became a very comforting place for me. I definitely plan on booking an appointment with her the first chance I have to visit Austin.
Even after a year of seeing her every few weeks– I can’t recommend Bevin enough!

I just had a pain massage and Kinesio taping with Wendy. It was wonderful! Before we got started, she assessed my posture, then asked a lot of questions to address my specific needs. I experienced instant pain relief after the massage. She gave me detailed instructions for exercises to do at home, as well. She seemed to genuinely care about my well being! I highly recommend her and the rest of the team at THAI!

I just had the best facial of my life from Teri Llyn Browning at THAI. She was really gentle but managed to do some bad extractions. And the Suki organic products she used felt wonderful. If I lived in Austin, I would certainly go back every week. Then I had a beautiful relaxing massage from Judy. The perfect pampering day!
The spa itself is very peaceful and comfortable, feels more like a home than a glitzy busy center for processing clients. They were very professional, yet relaxed.

I’ve been here three times now and I’ve had a lovely experience each time. The first time I came was for a massage & facial with one of the pros and it was great. That was about three years ago and it’s taken me this long to make it back. In the past couple of weeks I’ve been back twice for an intern massage — which is a fantastic value at $ 50 for an hour and a half of work. Everyone has always been friendly and I walk out each time feeling refreshed and happy. A++, would relax again.

Every girl loves a massage. If you/​re a girl (guys can do it too: i’ve been trying to get the mr. to go but he says it aint manly) you simply have to try this place out. I’ve been there just once, i admit, for the «mommy to be half day at the spa «massage. I feel bad saying this but it was the best part of my entire pregnancy. I also feel stupid cos i’ve forgotten the therapists name. She made sure to find out my preferences before she set out to begin the massage, and i have to mention this– i was riddled with upper back/​shoulder pain for 6 months straight, and one session set it right. Do i really have to say any more?
I also happened to send my parents for the intern massage, these are supposedly great too. My mom ended up with whiplash on the neck a year back, she said she felt loads better after the massage intern worked on it, even though it was not a deep tissue massage. If you’re on a budget or if you want to go here on a fairly regular basis, i would definitely recommend the intern massage.
Overall, really nice place to go to. I’m looking forward to going there again. Soon i hope.

I love this place, I can always get an excellent massage and the recent addition of Amber M. as skin care specialist is a real plus — Amber gave me a micro dermabrasion treatment and it was terrific! She explained everything carefully before the treatment and let me know how it was going as things progressed — I was afraid it might be painful but it was actually pretty relaxing and my skin felt and looked wonderful!
I definitely will be adding skin care at Thai into my regular body care routine

This was the first review I ever wrote for Unilocal.Now 370 reviews later, I still think they are stellar.
A friend of mine told me about a special they were having through the end of the year. Evidently, you get 35% off a relaxation massage or deep tissue massage through 2011 (book now, you still have time!). I called up and told them that I knew about the special but didn’t know if I would qualify because I am pregnant and need a pregnancy massage. The super nice receptionist applied the discount anyway. She didn’t have to do that because technically I was excluded. I guess she felt sorry for me that I have just a few more days until I’m due. I really appreciated it. I even got an appointment the next day.
After checking in, I was lead to a very relaxing waiting room where the amazing Susan Prin came to meet me. She really listened to what was going on with me and tailored my massage to exactly what I asked.
After I left, I tried to count how many massages I may have had in my lifetime. I estimate that I’ve had nearly 100. I can easily say that this particular massage with Susan was in the top three. She is that good.
Final Tip: During your birthday month they will give you 25% off your massage. Just print out the coupon from their site.

This place is Heaven on Earth! The Thai foot massage gave me goosebumps, brought tears to my eyes, made me laugh out loud, and instantly erased months of built up stress and tension from my entire body. The staff are genuinely friendly and treat you like an instant friend. l’ve always left with a tingling, invigorated body and an energized, renewed belief that I can get through another month or two. Since this is also a school, intern massages arevery affordable and monitored by real pros. My favorite place on Earth.

I would like to say, by far this is my favorite place to go get massages. Just because on days that i really need it and don’t need to pay a price that will break the bank, the intern massages will do just great. i’m not a very picky person, so yes this is a intern massage so you won’t be getting a personal room instead you’ll be in a big room separeted by curtains. i can hear things outside of the room but its never like that disturbing.
my very first intern was done by Elisa Gonzalez. I gotta say, shes tiny and petite but knows how to give a very well DAM GREAT massage. you need more pressure she’ll do it, you need less she’ll do it. either or, she knows what shes doing. Sadly, she finished her hours as a intern, and i kept going back still but didn’t have the great satisfaction. and then VIOLA! she freaking landed a job there and now give professional massages!!! ITS A MATCH MADE IN HEAVEN :) of course prices are higher but, i think she very wells deserve it she earned it in my eyes.
NOW, i finally went and got a bikini wax done by AMBER MINTON! shes the newest estatician and lemme tell you, the girl knows what she is doing! i’m a very nervous girl when it comes to these things, cause sure as hell i don’t allow everyone to see my thang thang. lol. but anyways, she was kind gentle to the touch and does exactly what you want.
So now i have my set of girls there, i’m def. going back!

I’ve got a chronic neck pain thing that’s been plaguing me for a few months now. I finally added up all the time it’s been since my last massage. Over a year. Wowzer.
I made an appointment online, which, while it sounds nice, isn’t really as effective as it could. You have to chose the masseuse/​employee you want to see before you can see available times. I really think it’d be better if you chose the time you wanted to come in and then see who was available. Or better yet, being able to search in *both* ways.
The building itself isn’t much to look at. It’s one old home transformed into a treatment space, and then other buildings where classes go on.
There are signs to get you where you need to go, and you immediately know you’re in a teaching environment. The receptionist rotates between staff and students, so you’re not being welcomed to a your luxurious spa experience, you’re simply checking in.
There are low comfortable couches and a dispenser with hot water for tea (Green tea, only). I drank my tea, filled out my new customer form and waited.
My appointment was to start at 5:30; my masseuse, Jasmine, came out to claim me around 5:40ish. Ehhh.
We started by sitting down and talking about my needs and why I’m in pain. Jasmine immediately made a connection, and showed me her concern for my well-​being. It was refreshing, calming, and really set the tone for my massage. It allowed a clear break between the outside world and my treatment. Sometimes just immediately getting naked and on a table is jarring, you know?
My massage was wonderful. She did a focused treatment on my neck along with a full-​body massage. She was incredibly talented. I can say without reserve that it’s the best massage I’ve had in Austin and I will absolutely be back.

I’ve been to Wendy several times, and she is always courteous, professional, friendly, and does amazing massage work for me. She really listens to me when I request extra attention on my shoulders, and I am in love with the white flower oil she puts in the eye mask! (Found it at the MT Supermarket for cheap! Yay aromatherapy!) The prices for one of their regular masseurs/​masseuses seems a little high, but for me it’s worth it. I’ve never tried one of the student interns, but I probably will someday.
While I love that they have online appointment booking, that system has been weird for me before, not saving my appointment properly, so if you book online I would still recommend calling ahead to confirm your appointment time.

I love getting massages, but don’t like to pay high spa prices. Once in a while, I will splurge on a spa day, but I can’t be doing that all of the time so in the meanwhile, I was looking for a new place to check out – especially since I had already hit up the massage chains and their cheap intro prices.
I found this place on Unilocal (thanks!!) and saw that they had 1 ½ hr massages done by an intern for only $ 45. I go to Avenue Five for student facials (which are excellent by the way) so I was all for student massages.
I scheduled an appointment with the first student I saw that was available at night and headed over after work yesterday. After filling out the usual forms, I met with the intern who led me to a no frills massaging room which is basically one big room partitioned with black curtains. It was still private, but still not the same as having your own room since I could hear the people next to us (for some reason the music stopped about ½ way into the massage).
The massage was great! It was tailored to my need since I often have knots around my shoulders and I had some lower back pain. Very professional and I liked the massaging cream they used – it must be water based because it wasn’t oily and greasy like some other places I’ve been to.
After the massage and getting dressed, I was greeted with a cup of water and they just ask that you fill out a form in which you can leave feedback about your massage experience. Overall, everything was great – except for cold hands at the beginning, but then again, it was a cold and rainy that day so I can’t really blame her for that.
I’ve definitely found my go-​to massage spot!

Alrighty then — nothing like a review that goes back and forth.
I just had the best student intern massage ever, even better than some professional massages I have had. So much so that I have the month of July booked with said intern!
(And it doesn’t hurt that the intern told me I look 12 years younger than my age and kept tripping out on the fact that I didn’t look my age. They can’t accept tips, so I am still trying to figure this one out … but I’ll take it!)

My second visit to THAI was to take advantage of a 20% coupon for a deep tissue massage. Not really knowing who to pick (I was assuming Wendy was Thai massage only), I just chose the first name on the drop down menu online and got Marshall. Lucky me!
While I’ve said before that this place isn’t Mecca, it’s still really great, and I think I’m starting to prefer it. My tissues have been massaged within an inch of their life, and this is only the beginning. I felt things start to give way that I didn’t even know were there (some muscle along my lower back) and now that I’ve started, I just can’t stop!
Even without the coupons that THAI so generously sends out in emails, their services are super affordable and don’t skimp on quality or environment.

I’m one of those silly people that only allows herself to go to a spa for something REALLY special, like I’ve been working 14 hours a day for months and I have a strange twinge in my back or something. That’s when I’ll be all, «You know what? Fuck it. I deserve this».
This place is for when you don’t exactly feel like a wreck and just want a massage, dammit.
I went here on Saturday for a massage with an intern, which is priced at a discounted rate, $ 35. This is for an hour massage. For $ 45, you can get an hour and a half. The interns are not allowed to accept tips, so it’s just $ 35. The intern was terrific! Very attentive and made sure to ask me what I wanted out of the massage. I definitely felt like I got my $ 35’s worth and then some.
Another bonus is the online scheduling. I like being able to scroll through their schedule, click and book myself. Pretty handy.
Of course, it’s not the same as my fancy downtown spa, with thick robes and glasses of cucumber water, but seriously. I love the fact that I can potentially have a massage every other week because of this place.

The review has been long due.
I booked an appointment here after all the ravings from
, boy was it a good experience. I booked the appointment online and Marshall was my masseur. He is professional and definitely good at what he does! I was so relaxed after the session.
This is an school/​spa, so you get to choose if you want someone who is a student or certified one to service you. There are also many types of massage to choose from. It may not look like «ZEN» place for massage, but it has what you need to have a comfortable and affordable massage. I am planning to try the other massage service later.