A spa membership is worth it when you already go about once a month and would keep going without it. If you go twice a year, paying ahead mostly ties up money you could have kept. The quick test: divide what the plan costs by the visits you will really use, and compare that with the price of one visit.
The short answer
Worth it: you already book about once a month, and usually the same visit.
Not worth it: you go once or twice a year, or your next few months are hard to predict.
The test: the plan's cost divided by the visits you will really use, against the price of one visit.
Here: a ten-session package of 60-minute massages, foot, body or Combination.
The honest math
A membership usually bills you every month; a package is a set number of visits paid for once. Either way, a plan only saves money on the visits you actually take.
So count only the visits you are sure of, and divide the plan's full cost by that number. That is your real price per visit. If it comes out lower than a single visit, the plan pays off. If it comes out higher, you are paying for visits you skip.
Take a plan of ten visits. Going monthly, you use all ten in under a year. Going twice a year, the same ten take five years, and your money waits in the plan the whole time.
When a plan makes sense
You already book about once a month, or more.
You usually book the same visit, such as a 60-minute body massage.
A visit that is already paid for is one you are more likely to keep.
Not sure how often you would come? Start with how often to get a massage.
When paying per visit makes more sense
You go once or twice a year.
Your next few months are hard to predict: travel, a new job, a new baby.
You often want a length or service the plan does not include.
Buy a plan for the habit you have now, not the one you hope to build. If you are unsure, book single visits for three months and count how many you actually took.
What to check in any plan
What one visit covers: the length, the services, and whether add-ons cost extra.
What happens to a visit if you cancel late or miss it.
Whether unused visits carry over, and whether they expire.
For a membership: whether you are billed in months you do not come, and how to stop.
How it works at Serenity Zen
Serenity Zen sells a ten-session package: ten 60-minute massages, each one a foot massage, a body massage or the Combination. It suits a guest who already comes about once a month. The package and its price are on the packages page, and cancellation terms are on the policies page.
From Dr. Nick
A package should follow a habit, not try to create one. If you already come every month, it is simply a better way to pay for what you were going to do anyway.
Common questions
Is a membership cheaper than paying per visit?
Per visit, usually yes, but only if you use every visit you paid for. Unused visits are what make a plan cost more.
How often do I need to go for a plan to pay off?
About once a month, as a rule of thumb. If you go a few times a year, paying per visit usually costs less.
Can I use a gift card instead?
A gift card can be used for any service at either studio, and it never expires. See gift cards.
Book your massage
Serenity Zen has studios in West Covina and Diamond Bar. Open daily, 10 AM to 9 PM.