Marisol Vega
Lead massage therapist
Takes the signature massage and the warm stone service. Agrees pressure before a session starts and checks it again partway through, and will stop or change what is happening at any point a guest asks.
Asheville, North Carolina
Massage, facials and a cedar sauna in Asheville
Cedar Hollow Day Spa agrees what a session involves and what it costs before it starts, and the introductory visit is allowed to end with a recommendation to book nothing at all.
The six services
Every service carries one published price for a stated length of time. Nothing is added at the desk afterwards, there is no retail shelf on the way out, and no course of sessions is sold in advance.
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Introductory visit
Twenty minutes, without charge. A member of staff walks through what each service involves, how long it takes and what it costs, then names the one that suits the visit being planned — or says plainly that none of them does.
no charge
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Cedar Hollow signature massage
Sixty or ninety minutes of full-body massage with oil. Pressure is agreed before the table is used and checked again partway through, and it changes the moment a guest asks.
$110 / $155
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Warm stone back and shoulders
Forty-five minutes across the back and shoulders. Smooth basalt stones are warmed in water and worked over the skin by hand, and set aside whenever plain hands suit the work better.
$95
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Hydrating facial
Sixty minutes. A cleanse, a gentle exfoliation, a mask and a finishing cream, each one chosen for the skin on the day and named aloud before it is used.
$120
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Sea salt body polish
Forty-five minutes. A salt and oil scrub is applied by hand and rinsed off in the treatment room's own shower, which is why the service ends in the room it started in.
$98
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Sauna and quiet room
Ninety minutes of unbooked time in the cedar sauna and the quiet room beside it. Tea and water are already out, the quiet room seats six, and nothing is scheduled to interrupt it.
$65
How a visit works
A service is chosen before it begins. The therapist explains what it involves, asks what a guest would rather avoid, and agrees pressure or product at the start rather than partway through. A treatment can be stopped at any point without giving a reason, and only the time used is charged. Cedar Hollow Day Spa is not a medical practice and does not assess or treat health conditions.
The rooms
Photographs of the treatment rooms, the cedar sauna and the things set out in them. No guest appears in any of them.
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The cedar sauna, lined and benched in untreated wood. -
Roses and candles set out before a treatment room is used. -
The tiled bench in the bathing room, warm to sit on.
The people
Four people share the six services between them. The person named on a booking is the person who takes it, and the photographs on this page are of the tools and the rooms rather than of staff.
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Daniel Whitfield
Spa director
Runs the booking diary and the introductory visit. Explains what each service involves and what it costs before anything is reserved, and says plainly when a shorter or cheaper service would suit the visit better.
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Priya Raghunathan
Skincare lead
Takes the hydrating facial. Looks at the skin on the day rather than working to a fixed routine, names each product before it is used, and keeps a note of anything a guest asks to avoid.
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Elena Marchetti
Body treatment therapist
Takes the sea salt body polish and looks after the sauna and quiet room. Sets the room out before a guest arrives and keeps the quiet room free of conversation so it stays usable.
What guests have said
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The pressure was agreed before anything started and checked again halfway through, which is the first time that has happened to me. I asked for lighter on the shoulders and that is what the rest of the hour was.
Guest review 01
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The price on the website is the price that was charged. Nothing was added at the desk and nothing was suggested as an upgrade once the massage had finished.
Guest review 02
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The quiet room is genuinely quiet. Nobody spoke to me, there was no music with words in it, and the tea was already there.
Guest review 03
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The introductory visit was twenty minutes and free, and at the end of it the facial was suggested instead of the longer package I had asked about, because it fitted what I came in for.
Guest review 04
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Every product was named before it went anywhere near my face and the one I said I did not want was written down. The room was set out before I walked in.
Guest review 05
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The salt scrub was exactly what the page said it was: a scrub, a rinse, and out in forty-five minutes. No upsell and no lecture.
Guest review 06
Asked often
How should a visitor choose a service?
Read the service descriptions and the durations. Book the introductory visit when two services look equally suitable; it carries no charge and it ends with a recommendation.
Are the displayed prices final?
Yes, for the stated duration. The signature massage is the only service with two lengths, and both prices are shown.
What should a first-time visitor bring?
Nothing. Lockers, robes, slippers and towels are provided. Arriving about ten minutes early leaves time to change.
Can a visitor request a particular member of staff?
Yes. Name the person in the booking message and Cedar Hollow Day Spa will confirm whether that diary has room.
Can a guest stop a treatment partway through?
Yes, at any point and without giving a reason. The session ends there and only the time used is charged.
Is the spa suitable for someone with a health condition?
Cedar Hollow Day Spa is not a medical practice and does not assess or treat health conditions. Anyone unsure whether a service is suitable should ask their own doctor first.
Start with the introductory visit
Twenty minutes, no charge, and it ends with a recommendation — including the recommendation that nothing on the list suits what a visitor came in for.