Surrender, Dorothy

If the Wicked Witch of the West was actually a spa therapist at the Montage Resort and Spa, then Dorothy might have reconsidered her decision about rushing back to Kansas. The hotel spa offers a treatment called “Surrender,” and after a five-hour flight to L.A. and an hour in the car to Laguna Beach, surrender was what I intended to do.

Each “Surrender” treatment is geared to the specific guest. (Before arriving, I had filed out a four-page questionnaire about my diet, family medical history, and exercise habits.) My therapist, Diane, explained her plan and I nodded in agreement. The treatment started with hydrotherapy (in an algae, salt, and bergamot-scented tub) and continued with a post-travel compress (my abdomen rubbed with cool mud and wrapped in a warm blanket) and proceeded to a deep-tissue massage followed by a hot-stone treatment. Stress? What stress?

Spa Montage is open to the public—not just hotel guests—and offers a range of services including facials, aroma-balancing therapies, water therapies, and massage, all provided by certified massage therapists, estheticians, and personal trainers. And the setting can’t be beat: the spa is on a coastal bluff overlooking the Pacific.

Surrender is my new favorite word, especially when spoken in Southern California. After all, O.C. is only one letter different than Oz.