Swimming or massage? Go for both at Ace Water Spa!

I'm a crammer. I mean, I always crammed when I was a student, willing to stay up all night or wake up early in the morning to study before an exam.

Thanks to BDJ for my coupon!

And so it is when I'm using up my Belle de Jour coupons. I have been using a BDJ Power Planner for (if I'm not mistaken) 5 years now, and it's quite unfortunate that I have been unable to use a lot of their coupons because I always forgot to use them even if I almost always carry them in my bag. I mostly use the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf discounts, or those for the White Hat yogurt (they don't have them for 2014, though). (For those interested, you can check out the planner and other BDJ products here.)

Well, this year, the planner includes two coupons for Ace Water Spa. One coupon is for January to June, the other is for July to December. It's a "buy 1, take 1" promo, which is good as it allows you to bring someone along, for free!

I used the first coupon, which was good until June 30, as a Father's Day treat to hubby. We decided to bring our niece-cum-daughter Kaye along because she loves the pool. I'd read from their website (you can check it out here) and reviews that entrance fee for adults is at P550, while those for kids (up to 4 feet) is at P250. Unfortunately, Kaye measured a thumb-width taller than their 4' board and no amount of cajoling and begging could make the lady at the counter allow us to pay just P250 for her. (She even said that we could be seen on the CCTV. Sigh.) The rates, by the way, are good for four hours.

Anyway, we were pretty excited. Ace Water Spa has heated and scented pools for hydrotherapy massage. The pools are equipped with jets targeting different parts of the body at different strengths. Quite an experience to look forward to! We opted to go to their (original) branch along San Francisco Del Monte in Quezon City, but they have another branch along Pioneer St. in Pasig City (which has a hotel).

So I read about their do's and dont's to know what we were up for, and I was able to prove that these were true:

• DO wear a one-piece bathing suit (for ladies) or one of tight-fitting spandex material. (Board shorts are not allowed.) Aside from allowing your body to benefit fully from the massage, some of the jets are so strong they could literally expand your suit or make it ride up your body -- watch out, wardrobe malfunction!
• DO bring your own towel. You may, however, rent towels or swimsuits/trunks. Goggles are only for sale. Life vests for kids are available for free at the pool area.
• DO eat some before you swim, if you plan to stay for the full four hours. Food is prohibited in the pool area, but they have a restaurant where you can buy food. They come at a price, though.
• DON'T expect to be able to take selfies at the pool. Cameras and celfones are strictly prohibited in the pool area.

There are, of course, separate locker rooms for male and female. At the door, you are asked to leave your footwear, and are given a key to your locker. You can wear this key as a bracelet when you swim. You will also be given swimming caps to use.

The locker room has dressing rooms, shower stalls (which you use before heading to the pool, of course) and toilets. The shower stalls have shampoo and liquid soap in dispensers; the sinks have hair dryers.

Now on to the water spa. Take your pick from the different areas that have signages which indicate the body parts the jets target; the massage pressure (soft, medium or hard); the health benefits (good for those suffering diabetes, arthritis, constipation, muscle aches, etc.); and advice on how long you should spend in them. There are buttons that turn the jets on, and while they automatically shut off after about three minutes, you can still press them for reactivation. Common courtesy dictates that when there are a lot of people, you don't stay in one area too long, but you can go back later if it's vacant.

There are those that target the waist and butt area; the legs; the lower back; even the head. Most have sitting areas; some are best taken while lying down. My favorite must be the rainfall acupuncture, where you lie face down and water falls on your back, from head to toe, like a really strong shower. I particularly also liked the one (I think it was the bubble pool) where the jets are under your feet, and are strong enough to lift your body up while massaging your butt and the back of your thighs. Take heed, though, of areas where there are steps underwater, as they may not be visible under the bubbles or churning caused by the jets.

Top photo: Lazy River.
Bottom photo: Rainfall acupuncture.

The QC branch has 9 heated pools and one cold pool. And when I say cold, it's REALLY cold. It's right beside the herbal pools. Speaking of herbal pools first, there are two for each herb. You immerse yourself first into the lavender pool which is at 40 degrees Celsius. You then move over to the jasmine pool which is at 38 degrees, then relax a bit in the mint pool at 36 degrees. The lavender and jasmine pools have jets to massage your torso while you sit. You have to ease yourself carefully into these pools until your body gets used to the temperature, and signs advise you that you don't spend more than a total of 10 minutes in each pool. You can lean your neck onto the cold metal "pillows" or bars to somehow regulate your body temperature and blood pressure. There are also sauna and steam rooms near the hot pools.

Afterwards, you cool yourself off with the bucket splash (you stand under a bucket high over your head and pull the rope to get doused), or in the cold pool. Take note, though, that you only need about 5 seconds in the cold pool, which is literally ice cold. I tried sitting in it longer that that and I could practically feel the veins in my feet contracting, almost like a cramp, and my hubby complained of the same thing. I urged him and Kaye not to stay too long for risk of hypothermia, har har.

I also liked the "Lazy River" going around the larger pool area. You get one of those big paddle boards and cling to it (some kids sit on it) and the current pulls you along.

By the way, I saw a lot of senior citizens at the spa. I guess they wanted the hot pool and the massage sans the physical pounding from masseurs, which could be bad for their brittle or fragile bones. I really think my mom would enjoy herself here, and she suffers from diabetes and osteoarthritis. My hubby, who complains of symptoms of arthritis, liked the warmth of the water and the massage he gets onto his lower back.

Not all their pools are for hydrotherapy, though. There's a long pool that's for swimming. I understand that they offer swimming classes here, too, under Bert Lozada. There are three cordoned-off lanes for those who want to swim laps, so stay out of those if you just want to paddle around. The depth ranges from 4.3 feet at the ends, and 4.8 feet in the middle.

The restaurant (QC branch) looks out onto the lap pool
and gives a glimpse of the massage areas.

Clean restrooms and water dispensers are situated strategically around the pool area, so there will be no need for you to head back to the shower/locker room when you feel like going or if you're thirsty. There is also an area where you can just sit and rest if you're tired or just want to rest before going back to the pools.

Lifeguards around the pools keep an eye out for children. This eases parents' worries while they're being massaged. (This does not give you license, though, to be negligent since the lifeguards are NOT babysitters.) The lifeguards are highly visible with their yellow t-shirts.

View of the pool area in QC branch.
(I sneaked a celfone shot from outside the shower room.)

Before I forget, we got a desk calendar from Ace upon paying for our entrance fees. The calendar has a page filled with freebies for each month of the year. These differ from the spa to hotel room rates, even banquet and buffet:

Monthly freebies in their desk calendar

Hubby and Kaye

We stayed for almost four hours at Ace. (How do they know if you've exceeded, I wonder?) Some people have enough after about three hours. Based on reviews, it is best to go in the early morning or late afternoon to early evening (their hours are from 6:30AM to 10:45PM). After four hours, you really get hungry! But since we left at around 12 noon, we opted to wait until reaching home to eat our lunch.

Let me also say that after four hours, you just want to sleep! And then, ironically, hubby and I were complaining of sore muscles. I guess we must have overdone it. After all, body massages (with masseurs, that is) are enough for one to two hours max. Hmm. On the other hand, Kaye liked it so much she wanted to go back soon.

But still, hubby posted on Facebook that he enjoyed my treat, and that it was fun. I countered, "Does this mean I have to foot the entire bill?" Well, at least it was Father's Day. See how content he and Kaye looked -->

The good thing about Ace is that since it's indoors, it's all-weather (rain or shine) and you don't have to put on sunblock. So I do believe I will avail of that other BDJ coupon before the year ends. Last Father's and Mother's Days, they offered a buy 3-take 1 free promo for four adults!

You can also check out their FB page (Ace Water Spa (Official)) for promos, which I've seen them offer on discount sites.

(P.S. A couple of the pool shots are from the calendar.)