BEWARE! Elemis Detox in SPA

[maeffron]

I just returned from my trip on the Valor and I wanted to send out a big WARNING!:eek: My husband and I attended one of the seminars on losing body fat and detoxing. It all made good "medical" sense and we signed up for the $50 test to see determine our body composition of water retained - required detox length etc... That was all good until the SALES PITCH!

We were blown away by the first price of $1400 + per person for the detox program but were then told for only $600 we could do the minimum and share it until we felt comfortable and then continue from there. We did not feel comfortable doing this without researching any of it - we believed what she was saying but were definitely NOT going to invest that kind of money without more information.

Leann, the trainer we met with said that this program is only available in England and you have to sign up for it on the ship because you have to be recommended. If we don't do it before we leave the ship we won't ever get the chance again. And, according to her - there is no program in the US like it (she's from England).

Here's the kicker - we came home and I typed in the name of the product. I was linked directly to their website and store. You can buy the products on several sites on-line without any trouble.

I am shocked and disgusted by this treatment. You would expect the spa on the ship to be honorable and truthful. I guess they have very low standards of honesty on the boat. It was like a bad insurance scam.

 

 

PS - We also had the worst dining room service we've ever had. We quit going to the dining room after the first two nights and enjoyed our time at the buffet much more. We normally love the dining room experience, especially dressing up and meeting new people. It was disappointing. (bonus! no dry cleaning bills now that we're home!) This was our first carnival trip and our royal caribbean and ncl cruises were much nicer. The shows were good though and so were the ports - of course all but one of our excursions were handled by companies off the ship. I would suggest the Cozumel Great Amazing Race to everyone who is "fit". It's really "amazing"!:D

[Nunu]

Is that the detox where they put stuff in your butt? :confused:

[lillian marie]

I'm sorry that your trip did not meet your expectations. I hope you try another CCL ship and have an excellent experience in the future. I do not do any health treatments that has not had FDA approval. My husband and I are in medical fields and the United States Food and Drug Admin. tests products for our safety. Before beginning a program like that I'd speak to my doctor. Spas in my area also market similar programs and they are also very expensive.

[poobears]

Sorry you had a bad spa experience. I would never believe the over the top sales pitches given to me on a cruise or on a land spa etc. If they sound extreme it's probably because they made it up. Not unusual and not limited just to Carnival unfortunately.

 

Glad to hear you did have fun with other parts of your cruise. What was the problem in the dining room?

[happy cruzer]

Well, thanks for the warning. Most of us know that a sales pitch is a sales pitch, at sea or on land in any business or profession. thank goodness you realized it too after only spending 50 bucks. The spa does not sound like it did anything "dishonorable or untruthful". They offered a service at a high price that they say you can't get anywhere else. They mean with their staff doing the service and monitoring you.

 

You might add details about your bad experience in the dining room. Did you talk to the Matri D? You can have a bad or mismatched service team on any cruise line, what you do about it can make a big difference. It could happen on your other favorite lines, so remember that if you want the main dining room experience you can always ask the Matri Do to help you out, most likely assign you another table. Since you cruised during spring break that can be a problem and may be why you did not enjoy Carnival, some ships just have a hard time at spring break depending on who books then.

 

Sounds like you gave CCL a try but you are a better match to RCI and NCL. No problem with that, happy travels on any line!

[3redheads]

I don't think this is a troll. I had a similar experience on a RCCL ship. I think she's just shocked at the price.

[golfadj]

Amazing that people speak to an "expert" in the spa and decide to fall for their pitches even though they know nothing about them.

 

I like the accupuncture specialists who want to sign you up for a three treatment special. Have no idea about their qualifications and I always wonder if they are so wonderful why they do not have their own practice where they live.

[PROCRUISE]

I just returned from my trip on the Valor and I wanted to send out a big WARNING!:eek: My husband and I attended one of the seminars on losing body fat and detoxing. It all made good "medical" sense and we signed up for the $50 test to see determine our body composition of water retained - required detox length etc... That was all good until the SALES PITCH!

We were blown away by the first price of $1400 + per person for the detox program but were then told for only $600 we could do the minimum and share it until we felt comfortable and then continue from there. We did not feel comfortable doing this without researching any of it - we believed what she was saying but were definitely NOT going to invest that kind of money without more information.

Leann, the trainer we met with said that this program is only available in England and you have to sign up for it on the ship because you have to be recommended. If we don't do it before we leave the ship we won't ever get the chance again. And, according to her - there is no program in the US like it (she's from England).

Here's the kicker - we came home and I typed in the name of the product. I was linked directly to their website and store. You can buy the products on several sites on-line without any trouble.

I am shocked and disgusted by this treatment. You would expect the spa on the ship to be honorable and truthful. I guess they have very low standards of honesty on the boat. It was like a bad insurance scam.

 

 

PS - We also had the worst dining room service we've ever had. We quit going to the dining room after the first two nights and enjoyed our time at the buffet much more. We normally love the dining room experience, especially dressing up and meeting new people. It was disappointing. (bonus! no dry cleaning bills now that we're home!) This was our first carnival trip and our royal caribbean and ncl cruises were much nicer. The shows were good though and so were the ports - of course all but one of our excursions were handled by companies off the ship. I would suggest the Cozumel Great Amazing Race to everyone who is "fit". It's really "amazing"!:D

 

Regardless of the cruise line,(CCL,HAL,NCL) the spa seminars are basically an infommerical and huge sales pitch. Just go and enjoy the cruise.

[Husky61]

OP... first post and coincidentally your WARNING of the spa experience you had, turned into a bad review of your cruise BUT(t), turned into a plug for your wonderful RCI and NCL cruises ! TROLL !

 

Why are they a troll, and who are you to decide if someone is a troll?:rolleyes:

[poobears]

I know this is a crazy idea and couldn't possibly be true. But maybe this is OPs first post on the carnival board because this was Ops first cruise on Carnival :eek:

[cruz4evr]

I would also be interested to know what the service in the dining room was lacking.

[LemurCat]

You missed your true calling. Ever considered standup?:D

 

Doesn't pay well enough and the benefits are terrible.

[crewsweeper]

These "detox" treatments are essentially enemas that may or may not do anything for your health unless you are constipated. A serious "waste" of money. And if not administred properly they can be dangerous. Best to say no.

[cruz4evr]

I know this is a crazy idea and couldn't possibly be true. But maybe this is OPs first post on the carnival board because this was Ops first cruise on Carnival :eek:

 

 

I believe the total posts are taken into consideration not just a specific cruise board one posts in. I find it a bit odd too that the OP has been a member for 5 years and this is their first post. I imagine lurking for 5 years could be the answer. :D

[nrdsb4]

Doesn't pay well enough and the benefits are terrible.

 

I guess you're right. No health insurance, so a good "detox" program as noted in the OP would probably not be in the cards for you.:D

[nrdsb4]

These "detox" treatments are essentially enemas that may or may not do anything for your health unless you are constipated. A serious "waste" of money. And if not administred properly they can be dangerous. Best to say no.

 

 

I agree. The whole premise is total crap.;)

[kelz66]

I gotta download that tonight. btw I was in the studio for the Ronnie roast. :p

 

They keep playing the isolated track of his mic.....Kreepy...LOL

 

The roast must have been a good time...LOL :D

[donaldsc]

[. You would expect the spa on the ship to be honorable and truthful.

!:D

 

Expecting a spa on a ship to be "honorable and truthful". What universe have you been living in? I would expect that everyone working in a spa would have noses that are at least 5 feet long.

 

DON

[irun5k]

Funny thing- my wife and I have had lots of massages over the years; I suffer from chronic muscle tension and thus need someone named Helga to hit me with a meat mallet on occasion.

 

We've also been on many cruises but I've always 100% avoided the spa because I've always heard horror stories about the product push. Here on dry land, the absolute MOST I've ever heard from any spa/massage clinic was "you're so tight, you ought to come back in a couple weeks" which is usually legit and mentioned out of concern for my own wellbeing.

 

How many potential sales have the on-board spas lost due to this negative perception? Would there be a marketing angle here for some cruise line- "hassle free spa treatments?" Sadly, the realist in me says that most people go ahead and go to the spa and spend their hard earned money anyway, and then complain about the hard sell, and then go back again. However, I do respect the folks that never go back again!!! Hopefully that stat shows up somewhere back at corporate headquarters.

 

Sorry, I can handle this at a timeshare where the disney tickets are free at the end. But after spending a $100 or more? I expect only a "thank you for coming in" and a glass of water on my way out the door.

[jojoacq]

3 years ago when I used the spa on my first cruise I also was very disappointed. I treated my self to a what I thought would be relaxing

massage! Well the therapist was rude, and when it was over tried to

sell me all sorts of things! Like a special brush to get ride of impurities!

And other things I can't remember. I just wanted a massage!!! I know

the spa is not really run by Carnival. So I chaulk that up to that and I

will no longer use those services. Nothing worse than being hounded

after a massage to buy something! I mean she was rude because I

was adament I was not going to pay $60 for a body brush! Common,

I wasn't born yesterday!

 

Still love Carnival! Just not the spa and employees up there.

[cruiserNC]

Sorry you had a bad experience but I try not buy anything that I have not researched or experienced prior. Those tactics are shared by many salesmen in many fields. No different than a PVP saying if you don't book now the price will go up. Or a car salesman telling you this is the best car ever and someone else will buy as soon as you leave. My point being that is their job and I take most things salesmen say with a grain of salt.

[misterjohnny]

Here is a solution to the sales pitch.

 

When you go for your massage, put 4 $5 bills on the table. Tell the masseuse that those bills are her tip, but you'll take $5 away every time she tries to sell you something.

[borntocruise37]

Well hello experienced crusiers! We were not....Carnival Conquest to the Carribean. Nice cruise, ok dining room (did speak to matre'd to improve service and it helped).

We went to the spa, listened to the Detox speech, spent the $50 for the testing...and signed up for the product. It all sounded good, we gave in...we were promised some literature to read on the ship, never came, upon leaving spoke to the spa who was going to email the docs, never rcvd.

My husbands hip was hurting so bad he tried the accupuncture, not sure if it did anything. Dr promised to email the med form to try to recoup $$ from Ins Co, never rcvd.

We have sent a note to Carnival.

We are canceling the detox now that I am home and able to read about it. We should have known better.....now we are smarter.

We had a good time, ate waaay too much (thus the detox!) and spent way too much on drinks. Depending on where you got the same drink, the charge changed slightly but adds up fast. My learning will be to check the statement daily to stay on top of it.

[skylock]

I just returned from my trip on the Valor and I wanted to send out a big WARNING!:eek: My husband and I attended one of the seminars on losing body fat and detoxing. It all made good "medical" sense and we signed up for the $50 test to see determine our body composition of water retained - required detox length etc... That was all good until the SALES PITCH!

 

We were blown away by the first price of $1400 + per person for the detox program but were then told for only $600 we could do the minimum and share it until we felt comfortable and then continue from there. We did not feel comfortable doing this without researching any of it - we believed what she was saying but were definitely NOT going to invest that kind of money without more information.

 

Leann, the trainer we met with said that this program is only available in England and you have to sign up for it on the ship because you have to be recommended. If we don't do it before we leave the ship we won't ever get the chance again. "DING DING DING DING" And, according to her - there is no program in the US like it (she's from England).

 

Here's the kicker - we came home and I typed in the name of the product. I was linked directly to their website and store. You can buy the products on several sites on-line without any trouble.

 

I am shocked and disgusted by this treatment. You would expect the spa on the ship to be honorable and truthful. I guess they have very low standards of honesty on the boat. It was like a bad insurance scam.

 

 

PS - We also had the worst dining room service we've ever had. We quit going to the dining room after the first two nights and enjoyed our time at the buffet much more. We normally love the dining room experience, especially dressing up and meeting new people. It was disappointing. (bonus! no dry cleaning bills now that we're home!) This was our first carnival trip and our royal caribbean and ncl cruises were much nicer. The shows were good though and so were the ports - of course all but one of our excursions were handled by companies off the ship. I would suggest the Cozumel Great Amazing Race to everyone who is "fit". It's really "amazing"!:D

 

If you ever hear those words, just get up and leave. It is a sure sign it is something you probably do not want to be involved in.

[gonzo1124]

Overpriced services, that's all the Spa offers.