Soleil Tanning Salons

Boo! Called three times to inquire about their spray tan, including the final call indicating I would be stopping in that day after work for a spray tan (asked for an appointment and was told I didn’t need one). Got there to find that the machine is out of service — reading reviews apparently this happens regularly. Disappointed that info wasn’t shared with me during my call that same day — would have saved me a lot of time and aggravation. Also — their prices are kind of ridiculous for the spray tan. I had been a very loyal customer at Shimmer in SF (which sadly just closed shop due to the landlord spiking the rent) and spent roughly $ 25-​ish dollars for a spray tan (purchased in a points package) — this place is somewhere around $ 45-​$ 50 for a Level 3. Absurd. Will keep shopping for a new salon and am open to recommendations!

I’ll preface this review with: I didn’t actually get any services done here! This review is based on availability and customer service.
So I got a Groupon from Soleil Tanning for 3 spray tans (I love spray tans). The Berkeley location is close but I didn’t want to go early in the day nor try to park near Berkeley at night, so I ventured to the Albany location. When I got there, I was informed their spray tan machine was out of service and the only location with a working one was Oakland.
That’s a loss of a star — you have one machine per location and it’s not working? Lame.
BUT the service was stellar. I quickly filled out the forms so that while I was driving, they input my information so that when I arrived at the Oakland location, things would move faster. I really appreciated that.
I also liked that there was a small lot. I don’t love look for ages for parking or to parallel park, especially for a short tanning service.
Next time I want a spray tan using one of my 2 remaining ones, I may come here, but I just know to call ahead to make sure the machine is working.

Great place to chase away the winter blues. The ladies running the shop are always super sweet and informative. Rooms and beds are clean. It’s my mental trip to the beach, minus the sand.

Great beds! Great deals! And very friendly staff. I’ve only gone twice so far and I’m already happy with the color Ive received thus far. (:

I choose this salon to work on my tan for my wedding. The girls working the front desk are always kind and courteous. I also love that when it comes time to buy a new package, they don’t pressure you into it! Great prices compared to other salons I’ve been too!

Basically, I came here knowing this place had bad reviews and told myself let me give this place a shot (Everyone has different ways of how they are greeted or how their experience was). Alright, so I came here a few days before and wanted to know prices and options for spray tanning, the girl was very helpful and wrote down the prices. I came in on a Saturday since the girl said no appointments were needed. I came in and was greeted by another girl (she was friendly) and watched a video for how to position for the spray tan. I went inside and was very skeptical already from how the tan was going to come out. The spray tan finished and I noticed my body didn’t get sprayed evenly or barely! I had stripes! I was blotting the excess off and told the girl that it didn’t get certain areas that I wanted and told her If I can do it again, and she told me she would love to but that was something that I needed to dispute with the manager about which I asked her well, when is the manager there? and she said she never is, wth?! how is that managing?! have they never herd of customer first?! — I guess not at this place! I wasn’t mad at the girl (she was actually very nice and considerate) it wasn’t her fault. I told her I’ll give it a day. BOY WAS I WRONG! next morning my body looked like Toni the Tiger! i had stripes all over my arms and my legs looked like if I was dripping, it was embarrassing! I was pissed and e-​mailed the «manager» back in March and yet have not herd back at all! all I wanted was my money back! no credit since I didn’t want the same results. but If they were willing to reply at least and give me another shot or something, I would have been pleased that they actually wanted to work something out to keep a customer happy, but nope! not here!
So my rating here is not by the people who work here because they are friendly and nice but by the my results from my spray tan and! this anonymous manager who probably doesn’t exist and doesn’t care about their job of managing, I’m sorry but If I was the owner and found out that the manager here sucked I would really think twice about having them work here and hire someone who is willing to actually manage and make this place, a better place! — I swear I gave this place a shot with a positive mind but in the end the ratings are true and its sad. I will be trying «Rockstar Tanning» Salon in Pinole since they offer Spray Tanning there and hoping it goes better there then it did here.

I came to this salon to prepare a base tan for vacation. I purchased an unlimited 30 package but not a membership. I must say that Ashlee could not be nicer or more professional. She give great tanning tips and always asks how my tanning session was before I leave and checks with me again before I start my next session. The salon and beds are clean. However there is a bulb out in the room I use. :-(I’m told it will be fixed soon.

I have been a customer of Soliel Tanning for years now, and I have never had any problems. Their rooms are always super clean as are the beds. I prefer the stand up beds and those are perfect always reaching the tan that I want to achieve. I would and have recommended this tanning salon to anyone who inquires.

Sooo I would like to address a few of the negative reviews regarding this business: READ THE FINE PRINT. I was quite sketchy coming to this salon due to issues people experienced here. Most people describe having issues bc of contract issues…
So I came into this salon with my guard up, but open mind. The young lady who greeted me was very friendly and attentive. She showed my around the salon and was very through and clear about their policies. Yes there is a $ 99 enrollment fee (which they waive if you buy lotion) yes they make you pay 2 months up front to start a membership (fair enough) and yes, you have to commit to 6 months before you cancel (which ALL tanning salons enforce).
So after reading all the fine print I decided to opt for a membership. The girl was having a little issue waiving my reg fee. But instead of screwing my around she called another location to make sure I wasn’t getting ripped off! So after I got enrolled, I was off to tan! And bc she said I had to wait, she let me use a sample bottle of the lotion I bought so I didn’t have to open mine!
As a tanning veteran, I am INCREDIBLY impressed this girl was to inform me. She even located me a rubber band because I forgot one! I was in the very front bed and the door being open didn’t bother me at all.
TL:DR, read the fine print. Good salon.

Fraud Alert. This place is a scam.
After trying unsuccessfully to contact the store manager and/​or owners for four weeks via phone and email to cancel my service, I finally had to reach out to my bank to block further charges from being applied.
Do not give this business your credit card information. When you try to cancel your service, they will not respond and continue to charge your credit card.
Apparently, the owner is «moving up to corporate,» and there is no manager on duty in the stores on a regular basis.
Scary!

For the most part things were fine; I went in, I tanned, they billed me monthly. Then my mother had a stroke and I decided to cut out the unnecessary budget items.
I have been trying to CANCEL my membership with Soleil Tanning for nearly 6 months (Nov ’12). I called in to the salon and they gave me an email address which I was to write to in order to cancel my membership. I never heard back after sending the email, and sure enough on the first of the month I was billed again. I called the salon, there was nothing the girl could do except suggest I email again. I have been sending 2 emails per month AND calling the salon each week in an attempt to contact the manager. No one has called me. No one has responded to my emails.
I have had to pay $ 30 to have my bank stop payment on this account which Soleil certainly reimburse me for as well!
This has gone on long enough and I will be contacting the Better Business Bureau.
*** Update: Soleil Tanning Salons have an F rating already on the California BBB website. No wonder! ***

The negative reviews on here put me off and I went to Bella instead. When Bella closed I switched to Soleil. I have never had a bad experince here. The beds are clean, the staff is friendly, and I only had to wait one time for a few minutes. My only complaint is that the owner insists that the door stay open at all times and it gets way too cold in there. It’s tough to get naked when it’s super cold and the bed is cold. I have laid there freezing for several minutes when it was really cold out. If they would actually keep the place at a comfortable temperature it would be perfect.

My last review was deleted.
Anyways, this place sucks. Beds WILL burn you. Spray tan comes out orange and splotchy — it’s so embarrassing.
I will never come here again and I don’t think anyone should waste money here.

I am shocked to stumble across this page and see that it only has 7 reviews. I have written reviews in the past which have mysteriously disappeared, and have noticed other ones disappear over time as well. Can the owner pay Unilocal to remove negative reviews, because this is very fishy?!
I’ve had several negative experiences at this tanning salon. First I tried the spray tan, as I was trying to avoid bulbs. I came out orange and streaky, and it looked extremely fake. The «blocker cream» or whatever, did not work and my cuticles were extra orange and my knees and back of my ankles. I didn’t get a nose plug either and was breathing in whatever it is made of! I wouldn’t recommend a booth to anyone, and refuse to get any spray tans now unless they are personalize airbrush. That way the color can be mixed to match my skin tones, as everyone could use a different color/​different tones depending on the pigment in your skin. Whatever «one size fits all» color is in there does not work for me!
The salon is also dirty, and bulbs are out half the time. I preferred the hot bed and came to soleil regularly for that bed. For over 3 months, the bed had over 6 bulbs out. I complained several times and the owner never replaced those bulbs. This was common for all of the beds.
I am also extremely disappointed with the customer service. Of all tanning salons, soleil has the biggest employee turn over. Theres always a new employee when you go into one of their salons. I have had many friends get burnt here as the front desk girls have no idea how many minutes are appropriate! Tanning safety training should be required and employees should recommend safe sessions dependent on skin type, skin history, etc! Many times employees have been rude, as well as management. I have seen the owner bitch out employees IN FRONT OF ME, A CUSTOMER! The owner is extremely aggressive if you have any sort of issue, and that is if you can even get a hold of him! Do not expect a phone call, email, or any response, and if you do hear back it will be unpleasant.
I really wanted this place to work out as my regular go to salon, but have been disappointed time and time again and refuse to support a company with such unprofessional management. If you own a salon, please replace things, keep it clean, be kind to customers, and maintain a professional demeanor. It is a pretty simple formula (or at least one would think!).

Worst tanning experience ever.
I’ve been a faithful customer of another spot on San Pablo that closed a little while back. I was ready to become a faithful customer here but they screwed me at first opportunity!
First, I was made to wait while someone who showed up after me was given a bed first. Then I sit there waiting and the next available bed is broken with some strange alarm going off. Then the girl behind the counter explains that while she said before that I should use the low bed, what she really meant was the high bed. The room was cramped and dirty with some old boom box near my head. The eye protectors were broken and the bed was defective– got some lovely white stripes down my ass. This place is busted and dirty overall. And of course I was burned because the girl at the counter couldn’t have cared a thing about me as a customer– she just put me in whatever was open. Total waste of $ 15. I’m super glad I didn’t buy a package, which I was intending to do before I walked in there and was promptly crapped on by an inept tanning attendant.

BUYER BEWARE!
ive been a customer 4 a long time @ albany, berkeley, oakland locations.
i will NOT give this company another dime of my $$.
beds r broken (albany bed #5)
lamps r always out
the place is a mess/​hazard (electrical wiring exposed)
NO managment or ownership?
wat gives? tried to email, call regarding issues and or a refund… guess wat? NO answer… sounds really fishy to me.
i got NOTHING but the «run around» from the young girls working there (i know it’s not their fault)
there r other options in regards to tanning in the area that actually care about customer service
ADIOS MF’s

I don’t like to diss small businesses, especially in these times. Mostly I review something I feel positive about because I think small businesses need all the help they can get right now. However, they, by the same token should probably be treating the customers they do have very well, right? So, I’ve had a few really bad experiences over the last few months and I think it’s time to say something.
I used to go to Bella in El Sobrante for mystic tans in the summertime-​great results. Their machine is broken down right now so I went to Soleil. Terrible result! First I had to fill out what i considered to be a too extensive info form. Part of it included personal information I didn’t want to give. Well, if I didn’t give it, I couldn’t get the spray tan. Their machine, for some unknown reason, sprays from the bottom up. Long story short, I ended up with feet that were stained in such a way as to look filthy, plus, streaks everywhere. It was bad enough that I felt I had to cover up until it finally wore off. By the way, the «blocking cream» worked not at all for me. While I’m at it, today we went to brunch at the Broiler House in the Richmond Marina. Unfortunately, it’s (like so many other places), has gone downhill. Coffee came tepid temperature. The meals took forever to arrive. Mine, fish & chips was okay. The other meal, biscuits & gravy had «biscuits like hockey putts.» We sent that meal back and got a hamburger that was okay. When we first sat down, the table was very dirty, the waitress scooped it off w/​a menu. We started to move and another waitperson came over and semi-​cleaned it. Very disatisfactory experience. The Beauty Center on Solano had a punch card program. I went in there recently w/​$ 79. worth of punched cards which they would not allow me to use because they have dropped that program. Hey! In that case, honor the deal you made with your customers, and just don’t issue any more! I also had puzzzling trouble at Fisher’s Jewelers when I went for a simple ring sizing. Without going into the whole detailed story, they were inexplicably angry toward me during this process to the point of walking out on me once! I even finally asked, «Is something wrong? Is there a problem with what I’m doing?» At William’s health food store, I got lied to and snapped at when I semi-​called them on that. All of these businesses are places where I’ve been a long-​term customer except for Soleil. They have lost a good, loyal customer.

Great customer service and so far the three employees I’ve met have been very helpful because this has been my first time getting a fake tan, (yeah mine was natural but hey, it’s summer time!). The place is very clean and there is always a bed available.

I moved here from So. Cal and had been looking for a tanning salon that was close to my work/​home. I was referred here by a friend and now I tan here regularly. Staff is always friendly and helpful. Every time I come here it is an enjoyable experience and they keep the place very clean!

I have tried several different tanning salons since my first tan in 1996 and this is my favorite so far.
There is always a bed available, you can use their cd/​radio boombox to listen to music while you tan.
Staff is always different but so far they have always been helpful and friendly.
I have only used their stand up and laydown beds, I have yet to try the spray on.