Amidst all the hustle and bustle of Shanghai, you can’t help but want to seek refuge somewhere. I don’t know a better place than Skin City 5.5.
Skin City 5.5 is the kind of place you want to spend everyday in. At least I do. This fantastic spa has an extensive treatment menu that run the gamut from oxygen facials to microdermabrasion to massages to body scrubs to nail and waxing services. You will be spoiled for choice.
I had a great chat with founder and director of Skin City 5.5, Connie Kim. The idea of Skin City 5.5 came about when Connie realized there was a big gap when it came to spa services in Shanghai. Before Skin City 5.5, you either had a choice of hotel treatments which are usually mediocre at best and very expensive or simple massage parlors that threw in facials just to cater to tourists. She set out to make her mark in between that gap by creating a place where treatments are consistently good but won’t hurt your wallet.
And indeed, the two facials I had were two of the best facials I ever had. As soon as I landed in Shanghai, I headed straight for Skin City 5.5 and had an oxygen facial. My skin was deeply cleansed, exfoliated and massaged twice – one regular face massage and one with rose-quartz crystals from Brazil that had been pre-soaked in rose toning lotion that aid in soothing your skin after which a mask is applied. I was waiting for the oxygen-blast part of the facial and it never came. I later found out from Connie that Skin City 5.5 actually uses special oxygen moisturizers with oxygen carriers that release oxygen onto your skin upon contact. My skin was glowing the whole night after the treatment so these special oxygen moisturizers really do work.
I went back a few days later to try their signature treatment – Crystal Clear Microdermabrasion. Skin City 5.5 is the only place in Shanghai that offers this treatment. Their Crystal Clear Microdermabrasion machine has 3-pre set levels for different skin needs and where the crystal cartridge (containing Aluminium Oxide crystals) screws directly into the handset, eliminating the danger of crystal blockages & maintaining optimum crystal flow. I used to go for microdermabrasion every month but this was different than all my other experiences – this was really thorough and the face massage that followed was pretty darn great. A cream mask (either whitening or calming) is applied after the massage to soothe and hydrate. The end result was my refined pores, even-skin tone and soft, supple skin. This is great if you want to give/start your skin on a clean slate every month. If you suffer from hyper-pigmentation, a series of weekly treatments will help fix that.
They also offer microdermabrasion for the body. In this case, a therapist scrubs your entire body with a special micro-silicate scrub and some body oil. You get a set of trained hands to essential scrub dead skin cells and grime off of you. So very luxe. If you’re planning to get some color by means of sun-bathing or self-tanners, this is a fantastic pre-tanning treatment. An even and longer-lasting tan is what you’ll get after this scrub.
That’s not all. The most painful part of a facial is the extraction step. But at Skin City 5.5, they blew me away with their pain-free extraction technique. Unlike traditional facials, Skin City 5.5 uses a special tool that I’d like to call the ‘blackhead tweezers’. Two thin and sharp points allow your therapist to remove stubborn blackheads with barely a pinch and without the usual, horrifying redness. This is the mark of a great facial.
The products they use are from a German brand, Barbor. Barbor is made with natural ingredients and scientific research to back their claims up. So rest assured in knowing that the potions that go on your face are great. Great products aside, I appreciate how Skin City 5.5 offer facial add-ons like eye treatment, special ampoules for every skin need, longer facial massage and high-frequency blemish zapper so you can really customize your facial based on how your skin is feeling/looking the day of your facial.
They are open 7 days a week from 10am to 10pm (walk-ins are always welcomed) and the whole atmosphere is warm, relaxed with friendly, cheerful staff that have at least 3 years of experience (some 5 and 10!) under their belts. So can you see why Skin City 5.5 is my favorite place in Shanghai? Skin City 5.5 Spa.
