The Castro Day Spa

A whiskery skin brought me in. but I decided to get a facial too, and when I looked in the mirror the next morning, I could hardly believe my eyes. My skin glowed — you’d think I’d just fallen in love. At the age of 80, I thought facials were probably pointless, but I won’t make that mistake again. My gratitude Sandy — see you soon.

The products — first class. The treatment — layered. My skin — amazing. The overall experience — priceless. Sandy is a rare find. Do yourself a favor and try Castro Day Spa. I was initially given a gift certificate a couple years ago and can’t stop coming back. I have honestly noticed a huge improvement in my skin since coming to Sandy. I should have done this much sooner.

Continue to go here and continue to be happy. At the Castro Day Spa they are all about service and in this day and age, that is hard to find.

Oh yes! I was looking for a quality facial treatment in the area, so I looked here on Unilocal.I was not disappointed one bit. Sandy gave me the most wonderful experience. She explained each step of my treatment. The products she used were so aromatic. I left feeling pampered, rejuvenated, relaxed, and indulged. My face looked glowing and beautifully hydrated. Why did I wait so long? I won’t wait so long again.

I’ve been a customer since 1998. Sandy uses the best products, stays up on current techniques and treatments, and makes you feel wonderful both inside and out. She is a wonderful person and appreciates all of her clients. Her salon is warm cozy and always inviting. I was spending hours at a dermatologist in the late 90’s trying to figure our why I was breaking out on my face and neck. After a few visits to Sandy, my face cleared up. I am still visiting Sandy on a regular basis and my face has never been so clear and clean. I’d give the Castro Day Spa even more stars if that were possible. Best products, friendly service, worth the money.

The people here are wonderful. Best place in Castro! Very cozy and unique place. Great service! Two thumbs up!

Very friendly staff. They always treat me like a king. The products they use are awesome.

The owner is amazing! Plus the experience was worth every penny! I’m coming
Back! I got a facial and eyebrows done and A+!!

Sandi is an extraordinary aesthetician. She really knows her stuff. Her facials last a full 90 minutes and are tailored to your skin and its needs. She uses only the best products, including my favorite, Yonka. I have been going to her for over 10 years and I always leave feeling fantastic.
In addition, she is funny and generous and it is a pleasure to spend time with her.

I’m a fan of:
— Sandy
— the ambiance (it’s built inside a house but still felt quiet & secluded enough to make me feel like I could set a drift on memory bliss~*)
— the SMELL! (–woah lordy– it smelt goooooood in there!)
— the quality of the work done (I’m Indian people & with a full-​leg waxing request — there was a lot of post-​Winter hibernation… shtuff to work through. nuff said.)
I’m not a fan of:
— the location (hard to find parking on a weekday afternoon)
— the prices (can’t afford to come here regularly)
I went in for full-​leg waxing & had a Groupon/​Living Social to use.
— paid $ 25 for $ 50-​worth coupon
— balance was $ 20 or so & I still left $ 31 (including tip) as Sandy was so nice to be around.
I live in the Sunset where I can get full legs waxed for $ 30!
Granted it’s hard communicating with the staff at times and they’re never as nice as Sandy, granted it almost always smells like well, just hot wax, and granted the parking is its own nightmare to deal with, but it’s significantly cheaper.
Don’t get me wrong — I’d love to return to CDS, but it’ll have to be for a splurge/​pampering kind of appointment as opposed to… monthly maintenance.

I discovered the Castro Day Spa in November 2006, completely by accident. I had a day off from work, and I was wandering around the Castro looking for a massage appointment (this was during the stone age, before the days of iPhone/​Android, let alone the Unilocal app). I wandered into Sandy’s business, and she advised me that she didn’t do massages, only facials. I quite-​flexibly forgot about getting a massage and made a facial appointment for later that day. It was the best facial I’d had, and — despite the fact that I am usually completely promiscuous with my spa/​beauty services loyalties — I decided that I was going to settle down with Sandy (as my facialist). Now I’ll admit I’ve strayed a couple of times (old habits die hard), but the couple of times I’ve gotten a facial elsewhere in the past 5+ years have only convinced me that I’d prefer to stay one of Sandy’s clients. I call her up every 6 – 8 months when my skin starts to feel dirty (pores clogged, occasional blackheads, and/​or slight blemishes starting to appear), and she works her magic. She also has a great personality, and I love catching up with her during my facial … another reason why facials elsewhere just aren’t as good. (If you prefer to be quiet and relax during your treatment, obviously you can do that as well.)
Tips for the cash-​conscious: she will mail 15−20% off coupons to repeat customers at irregular intervals (so get on her mailing list after your first visit!). At rarer intervals, she participates in deal sites — I think she did one Groupon last year and one LivingSocial this year. But — as someone who has paid her full-​price more often than I’ve paid a discounted rate — I’ve never regretted the money that I’ve spent on facials with her.

Sandy kicks a lot of day spa a$$!
Ever get a facial and feel like your entire face is getting eaten off by muriatic acid? Ever get an eyebrow wax only to end up looking like ants are marching in single formation across your brow? I have had both bad experiences and my girlfriend (of less than 6 months) swore I would love Sandy at The Castro Day Spa.
I like to live on the edge, so I took the plunge. Sandy IS amazing. She made me feel like I have known her for years, but more importantly, she didn’t eat my face off like that horrid scene in Poltergeist where the guy pulls out chunks of.. . oh nevermind all that gory detail. What you need to know is that Sandy is a pro. She knows her way around a face (even my face, which I like to describe as «ruddy,» but really just has seen a hell of a lot of life). She used YonKa products, which were amazingly smooth on my sensitive skin. She breathed some new life back into my face, and set me off with some YonKa products that have been a godsend for when I ride my bike and am covered with sweat and salt all day.
The massage was phenominal, and I nearly fell asleep on the cozy warm bed too.
Go there. See Sandy. Live big or go home!

Sandy was delightful. I had a gift certificate for 60 minutes facial. I wanted the deep cleansing facial. She said no problem and only charged me an additional $ 15 dollars. and it required 15 more minutes.
I left relaxed and felt totally pampered.
I am looking forward to my next visit.

Through some curse of genetics I ended up with caterpillar eye brows. We’re talking Peter Gallagher thickness. Needless to say, I’ve seen my fair share of estheticians over the years in an attempt to tame them. Sometimes I ended up with drag queen eyebrows, sometimes they were uneven and other times they were super sharp — as in you could cut glass with them. It seems like most people that do brows are geared more towards women (go figure) and try to apply the same brow technique to a man. This is not the look I was going for.
I met Sandy about 3 years ago and she instantly recognized that my brows had been overworked. She slowly rehabilitated them and today I have brows that are masculine, natural looking and just neat enough. I’ve also had the opportunity to have several of her facials and boy are they a treat! The environment is very relaxing and Sandy knows just what my skin needs. On top of all this, Sandy is a really great person. She’s easy to talk to and always makes me feel right at home.
Thank you Sandy!

Sandy is not only a talented esthetician, she is also a lovely, warm and super friendly person. I got a fabulous facial from her. The surroundings are also beautiful, she lights lovely candles, everything is set up to be soothing and comfortable. She had an instant rapport with her friendly, open demeanor and I will certainly continue using her services. She is the best!!!

i met sandy before she started her own business in ’89 at a different spa in the castro. she moved from there, across the street to another place, i followed her. when she moved from there to the second story on the corner of 19^th and castro, to an office of her own, i happily followed her. ten years later i left san francisco and whenever i come home, i make an appointment with her because, though i’ve searched in all the places i’ve lived since then – new orleans, milwaukee, portland, oregon – i haven’t found anyone who can do a facial like sandy. she knows exactly what products to use on my difficult skin, cleans me up, hydrates me, and gives me an hour and a half of pure relaxation.
she’s as good as it gets, for sure. plus, she’s hilarious.

I love Castro Day Spa. I have been to many estheticians and now I will never go to another. Sandy is the best! Not only is my facial a soothing, relaxing treat, but I look 10 years younger afterwards. She uses the highest grade products and spends time massaging your face and hands. She works on one client at a time and it’s her spa; you’re not sitting around in some robe on a bench waiting for your appointment. Sandy is a total gem.

I’m not generally comfortable with any part of the beauty industry, but I’m very happy with the Castro Day Spa. I’ve been going there since 2001 and really like Sandra, who does very good work and treats me very well. She never pushes me to try services or products that I’m not interested in. The office is pleasant and comfortable.