Bella Tosca Day Spa Adds Local Allure to Hotel Circle

San Diego's Hotel Circle in Mission Valley is a locally famed hospitality maze. The vast hotel corridors are packed with perusing guests year round. From Town and Country Hotel to Doubletree Club Hotel and Mission Valley Resort, Hotel Circle offers endless accommodations for holiday, with seemingly little room for local play.

Yet, if you look beyond the hospitality front, resort amenities abound. Within Town and Country Hotel grounds is Bella Tosca Day Spa & Salon, a soothing escape from the labyrinth of San Diego tourist attractions.

In honor of Spa Week, DiscoverSD.com visited Bella Tosca Day Spa & Salon in Mission Valley. Spa Week is the superlative resource to a healthy lifestyle, connecting health and beauty enthusiasts with the top spas in all major cities, nationwide.

Along the contours of Bella Tosca Day Spa & Salon in Mission Valley sits a botanical garden terrace. Guests pass a charming display of pastel flowers and rich greenery on the way to the glass entryway. Inside, a welcoming host offers coffee and tea while guests flip the pages of health and fitness lifestyle magazines, amid subtle hues and soft décor.

Bella Tosca is a tranquil retreat externally classic and reserved, yet internally advanced and cosmetically conscious. The unique dynamic of Bella Tosca attracts a mature crowd of local clientele, in addition to traveling guests of all ages. Built on the belief that day spas should, above all, relax and rejuvenate the senses, Bella Tosca remains serene in style, leaving hyper-modern accents to new-age San Diego clubs and restaurants about town.

Bella Tosca is an all-encompassing San Diego hair salon, health club, and day spa. The salon professionals excel in manicures and pedicures, makeup and waxing services, and cutting edge hair care, elevating the harmony of comfort and style. The Bella Tosca fitness center enables Bella Tosca guests to intertwine cosmetic beauty and physical fitness for total body health. The premier fitness center features both strength and cardio equipment, in addition to group yoga and exercise classes.

After a hard workout, nothing is more refreshing than a signature treatment at Bella Tosca day spa. The spa specializes in skin care, massage therapy, body treatments, and tanning alternatives. With emphasis on complete physical and mental health and wellbeing, Bella Tosca aestheticians work intimately with each guest, ensuring desired outcome. Top spa treatments include the hot stone massage, Brazilian rain forest body wrap, and the lavender fields facial.

Up Close and Personal: Lavender Fields Facial

The main lesson I learned from my first treatment at the Bella Tosca spa is: never underestimate the power of a facial. The lavender fields facial is a head-to-toe out-of-body-experience.

Bella Tosca head facialist, Melinda, guided me to the treatment suite where a warmed, massage table awaited. Humble ambient music dimmed the lights as soft steam hummed in the distance. Tucked in, warmed, and gently massaged from head to toe, I embraced fields of lavender with open arms, body, and mind.

After an in-depth consultation and scalp massage, Melinda applies a series of cleansing lotions in cyclical motions to analyze the skin and remove makeup and toxins.

Following the initial wash, sweet floral aromas take center stage. An OPC mask, made from lavender floral water and facial steam concentrate, moistens the skin. While the mask dries, Melinda massages my hands, arms, neck, and shoulders with lavender hand care cream.

Extractions follow mask removal, adding an element of work with play. During this process, Melinda informs me of my skin's promise and problem areas, and extracts impurities from the surface. Rosewater freshner and herbal extract recovery mist soften the skin tone.

Melinda performs facial massage and back and shoulders décolletage with lavender body oil, followed by a deep penetrating cream mask. The mask is elevated by lavender floral mist and jurlique eye rest pillows. While the mask dries, Melinda applies lavender exfoliating gel and lavender body lotion to my feet, topped off with lavender silk dust.

After the moisten mask is removed, Melinda applies eye gel around the entire eye area. Bella Tosca eye gel contains arnica, aloe, and eyebright which help eliminate dark circles, cool and soothe the eye area, and reduce puffiness.

Herbal extract recovery gel, containing chamomile, green tea, and tumeric, and protective neck serum are applied to my face and neck. And, day care moisturizer lotion, skin bronzer, lip care balm, and lavender silk dusk powder are the final touches to the lavender fields facial.

Following lavender fields, Melinda discusses my skin's progress and home care protocol, and introduces me to the vichy shower, steam room, and spacious Jacuzzi tub.

As a Bella Tosca guest, you have unlimited access to the spa, salon, and fitness center amenities until closing hour. As an all-inclusive day spa, Bella Tosca makes a difficult offer to resist. Relax, unwind, and stay all day--and night. Who says there's no allure for locals inside Hotel Circle? Indulge in classic rejuvenation at Bella Tosca Day Spa & Salon in Mission Valley.

And now for the body: Go behind the scenes with a Rosemary Herbal Body Wrap at The Spa at The Sporting Club in La Jolla, also a participating Spa Week San Diego spa.

Are you a health and beauty enthusiast? September 17-23, 2007 enjoy $50 discount spa treatments at the top spas in San Diego. Bella Tosca's lavender fields facial is a premier Spa Week treatment. Visit spaweek.org to learn more about Spa Week.