Massage Envy – Bethesda

I decided to take my mother here last weekend for Mother’s Day. On the morning of the scheduled appointment I received a call that both of us couldn’t have our appointments because one of the therapists was no longer available. I did appreciate the heads up and the fact that they allowed my mother to switch appointments & go ahead with whoever was available. My mother’s massage therapist was Chowei and she LOVED him. When she walked out of the room she looked so relaxed and taken care of. She then told me, that was one of the best treatments she had ever gotten. Thank you to Brandelyn who was very helpful and also gave me an excellent discount for our troubles. I would recommend this location for both customer service and massage therapist! Thanks and I hope to see you all again.

I had a massage by Kate and a facial by Winnie.
The massage, which was my first ever, was pretty good. Kate identified my trouble areas and did work on them more or less to my satisfaction. I liked how she mixed deep tissue and Swedish massage styles. I wasn’t totally blown away, but it was enjoyable. She was very kind and made me feel comfortable.
Winnie’s facial was truly wonderful. She is a very skilled and knowledgeable esthetician. I know my skin looks a lot better now than when I first walked in there, and Winnie is the one who makes me want to go back.
Except the front desk staff are pretty obnoxious about trying to force you into buying the membership, and I also find it annoying that it’s almost impossible to find out how much things cost if you don’t commit to a $ 70/​month membership. It seems like a weird business strategy to discourage people from wanting to come back, even sporadically.
I didn’t think the massage was worth $ 70/​month, but the facial might be.

Was just in again last week (I’ve been a member for a few years), and I must say that it’s so nice to have a reliable place to come get a good massage! Ok, it doesn’t have all the frills of a spa at a resort… but you also (as a member), don’t pay super-​high prices! Easy in and out, a great part of my regular health maintenance routine.

I’ve been going here for the past 4 months and have enjoyed my experiences there. My therapists are James and Rita and both do a wonderful job for me.
James is very knowledgeable and does a good job of stretching my muscles and providing a deep tissue massage.
Rita does a good job of a regular massage also.
I’d recommend the spot even though I’ve had a few issues with their punctuality sometimes. In addition, be sure you’re getting the full time allotted for your massage.

Well, after reading all of the reviews on this location, I’m a bit leery on bringing my mother here tomorrow for her Hot Stone Massage by Chaowie (sp?) but I’m hoping he will do an outstanding job and that she gets her full 60 min massage since this is a surprise for her birthday. I normally schedule her for Elizabeth Arden’s Red Door spa but definitely didnt want to spend the $ this go around and opted for M.E. since my husband had gotten me a massage at the Potomac Yards, VA location (which was awesome btw) so I am hoping for the same great service at the Bethesda location. I will update once I take her tomorrow on how it went…
UPDATE: ⁰²⁄₀₉ so I brought my mom here for a treat for my mom’s 62^nd birthday and no complaints here. There were 3 young girls who were very welcoming and I loved their bright cheery attitude for first thing in the morning. I ended up throwing in a sugar foot scrub for $ 10 as well. My mom said she loved every minute of her hot stone massage and that she didn’t want to leave. I had to kill an hour and a half so I went to get my hair done at Dry Bar. So we both were winning! :-) Thanks for your great customer service. Oh, and we weren’t pressured into buying a membership like everyone else in the reviews kept saying. so thanks for that too! LOL!

I was pleasantly surprised that I was able to get a same day appointment. As an individual new to town, I was unable to find the parking garage the front desk attendant told me about when scheduling an appointment. I called to inform them I was running late because I couldn’t find the garage. The front desk attendant was extremely patient and helped me get to the garage.
I had several knots in my back, and I feel like the masseuse did a fair job. It wasn’t as relaxing as I anticipated as there was no candles, nice smelling lotion, etc.
I refuse to have automatic draft, so it looks like I’ll never become a member. I could pay for 6 months up front, but it would cost more than paying for 12 months at a time. (Understandably so, but that still doesn’t help my piggy bank.)
With so many masseuses around, I have no doubt I could find a better priced, equally as qualified masseuse without an automatic draft.

Ask for James M. My original therapist left and set up his own practice: Massage by Ahmed, and he is excellent. Still in Bethesda.
Bur here at ME, James M. is the best. See if you can get him! See you soon, James.

The masseuses I have had have been terrific but the employees who answer the phones out front are terrible. After signing my husband and I both up for a membership I tried to make an appointment for both of us for the weekend on Wednesday. Booked up! I was told that by joining it would be easier to get appointments. The staff is rude on the phone and when I called for help with the app (which is useless and doesn’t work) and they had no suggestions for me on how to get it to work. I have spoken with the manager and I hope to have a better experience next time. Based on the customer service she set forth I look forward to my next massage.

I went in for a massage due to severe back pain and spasms. I had an amazing therapist. His name is David. He took extra care and caution on my back. His calming spirit along with his relaxing touch was able to help with my pain.
I would suggest anyone go see David.
It was a great experience.
Thanks

Eh, it’s okay.
The «Tranqulity Room» is more of a nook that isn’t really tranquil. The door to get in the back opens here so you get temporarily blinded every time. There are only two seats so if they’re busy you’re SOL on that one.
The massages are fine. Nothing special. Avoid Daniel though. He does a weird deep breathing thing that just creeps me out. It’s also not a full 60 minute massage. It’s more like 45 by the time they’re late getting you in the room and adding in changing time. I got suckered into a membership so I’ll deal with the mediocre massage for a few more months until I can break free from their régime.

If I could give less than one star I would. They constantly call and hound you, steal your money, and give terrible service. Worst massage place in the DMV!

Called to make a reservation despite of the low ratings. Person said that unless I was a member I could not reserve a Sunday appointment. This is weird. Oh well I guess they will not be getting a new client.
Update, i appreciate Massage Envy attempting to reach out to me. Moved review up to 3 stars until I speak with them. ¹²⁄₁₈

Today’s Sing the Unsung goes to Kathey.
How many times have you dealt with customer service and felt like they resented your calling and resented your questions. Hundreds of times, right? How many times have you been startled at the level of above-​and-​beyond they display, resolving issues, following up, and getting ahead of the issue? Very few, right?
Well, Kathey falls into the latter category. She impressed me big time. There was a small billing question I had about a moment a year ago and a tip amount (I was doing my taxes, saw the charge and thought «man, I knew I was a big tipper, but this is a tad much even for yours truly the big spender!»). She said she’d call back. I thought «how many times have I heard that before from folks at businesses.» But then she did call back. Promptly. She’d looked into things with the thoroughness of a grad student researching a thesis. She knew all the details (of the billing question on an item from a year ago!) and all the options to address it. Which she promptly did.
Shockingly professional and courteous.
Incredible.
Thanks, Kathey.

I have been a member for past 5 years & love it! My main location is Germantown. However, I have been going to Bethesda location for the several months because of Justin, the best masseuse ever! Justin is always friendly, courteous, always make sure the table is perfectly heated & room dimly lit. The best part is, he gives a great massage & adjust the pressure as needed with little or no guidance from me.
Please note that before my membership at Massage Envy, I used to go to Red Door Spa, Aveda Spa or Lansdowne resort. When I say that he is one of the best masseuse I ever had, that is truly an understatement!

It is a slice of Heaven every time I go for a massage and I’ve been going since they opened over 5 years ago!!!
I can’t thank them enough for providing high quality services for me over the years. I have had times I could hardly walk and the technicians took the time to work out my pain and got me up and moving.
Thank you to the team at Massage Envy for the professional staff and continued great service, I’m a real fan.
Robbie

Amazingly, I got a call yesterday AGAIN. They have suspended my membership again. They were trying to charge my credit card once again, without my authorization. These people are the most incompetent I’ve ever dealt with. I guess I’ll have to put in another call to corporate. I can’t believe this «Brandy» person is still the manager, she’s a total snake.
UPDATE 2÷18÷2014: These idiots called me again about a week ago to tell me my membership was suspended due to non-​payment. Brandy is still running the show; I asked. I’ve been dealing with these clowns since summer 2013 and they still can’t get it together. DO NOT GIVE THEM YOUR CC NUMBER.

Have been with these guys for over a year and had many many issues. On 3 occasions massages were booked and the therapist did not arrive. They have tried to overcharge on several occasions. Noone communicates so when one person calls us and says you are entitled to a free massage because your therapist didn’t show up the person who wants check you out has no idea about it. I have had several issues like this. Anyway I AM DONE. I like their massages but their lack of professionalism is pretty impressive.

Reviews are mixed, so I wasn’t expecting a lot. Just needed a massage … bad. I ended-​up camping in the waiting area, just to see if anyone canceled and they didn’t. I was surprised that everyone showed-​up, based upon the reviews and just because that’s pretty normal for massage apts, not to mention the terrible weather. The only apt. available was at 6pm and I took it. I waited to see if anyone canceled around the 5pm hour and again, no one did, despite the rain. The front desk staff was super friendly and easy to talk to. Asked about the membership, but did not push to much. My massage was great and my therapist even extended my time to 1 ½ to really help me with my shoulders.
I think everyone’s experience is different, but I went in not expecting much, with an open mind and was pleasantly surprised with each aspect of my experience massage envy. I don’t think many places would let you camp out in the waiting room, hoping for an apt to open-​up, as well as to keep under shelter from a terrible t-​storm. I will be back again. Everyone was great. Thank you!

I have not had a massage here (yet), but after a very rude conversation with the scheduler/​front desk woman, I am going to go ahead and give this place a 1 star right off the bat for poor and unprofessional customer service. I will write another entry after my massage to rate the massage. I cannot believe how rude this woman on the phone was; I rarely write reviews but this was just plain unbelievalbe. She was mumbling and talking extrememly fast while literally barking at me at some points. I have the membership but she insisted that I give her my credit card over the phone without explaining what for. Finally she told me that it was to secure my booking but this does not seem to be an appropriate procedure for someone who already has a membership.
Anyway, I wouldn’t have minded if she was not so RUDE. They should hire people who are pleasant and polite to work at front desks in salons.

I really like the idea of a massage membership. The rates are good.
Anyway, the girl who signed me up was very friendly and pleasant. When I made my appointment there were only guys available. I just picked a name and went at my scheduled time. At first glance, the massage therapist
is very cute and nice with amazing blue eyes but his massage was the worst and
most uncomfortableI have ever had. He makes it feel awkward
and as well l felt very nervous and
very uncovered that I couldnt really relax. He took pauses to walk around the room
during the massage, the massage didn’t flow
and the lights weren’t dim like usual to complete the full experience. It was a weird experience with him and not what I was expecting from a salon spa.