Fish Foot Spa

As instructed, I washed my feet in the shower, donned the towelling slippers, and made my way upstairs to find myself eye to eye with THE FISH!

So there they were, two times 150 sort of mini-sardines (Garra Rufa) swimming around with gay abandon in two tanks ....

I know they don’t have teeth, I know they only sort of nibble (suck) at your hard skin, and still I had to think twice before sitting on the stool and lowering my feet gently in to the tank. The documentation told me that by now they would be hungry (we had had them in the tanks for three days to acclimatize).

Indeed, as I put my feet into the water they seemed to divide automatically into two shoals and raced towards my toes and ankles, seemingly jockeying for the best position!

It was an odd sensation. At first it tickled and I felt (slightly hysterically) giggly. This tickling sensation continued for quite some minutes, then there was more a feeling of very light ‘pins and needles’. For a while I was mesmerized as they darted to and fro, attaching themselves momentarily to one toe, or to my heel and the ball of my foot, obviously relishing the abundance of hard and dry skin.

After a while I almost forgot they were there, and relaxed with my glass of wine while comparing notes with my neighbour (a friend I had invited to join me). There was lovely music and I began to feel a sensation of well-being. There is an informative booklet on the table next to your seat telling you more about the treatment which is used extensively in Asia, not only for feet but to cure other skin ailments. Fish Foot Spas are becoming very popular all over Europe. We are lucky to have one already in Tarifa.

There is also a form for your comments and suggestions and any other questions you may have. If we do not know the answer we shall endeavour to find out! The first question of my grandchildren was had I given all the fish names? I looked down at 150 of them racing round and wondered if I would ever distinguish Nemo 1 from Nemo 97?

After half an hour I was told to take my feet out of the water (making sure no stray fish remained attached) and The Salon Assistant dapped them dry. She checked for any remaining areas of hard skin (one session is not enough to remove the accumulation of hard skin after months of walking only on open sandals and doing plenty of beach walks).

I then went downstairs and stretched out on the massage table to enjoy a session of 20 minutes reflexology on my ‘new feet’. This is part of a ‘total package’ offered by The Salon. An alternative is to enjoy a shoulder massage as you sit with your feet in the tanks. Should you not wish either of these extra treatments, then the Assistant will gently cream your feet, you don your towelling slippers, and go downstairs to retrieve your own shoes.

Perhaps my only suggestion would be to install a back to the stools, half an hour sitting up with your feet dangling can be a bit long for anyone who tends to have back problems.