Massage Heights Congressional Plaza

Got a gift certificate for a couples massage here a couple years ago and finally got around to using it. Here’s the quick summary:
Plus: no upsell at all. Might not be everyone’s experience here but it was a relief in our case.
Facilities were great, with two bathrooms readily available, water.
Con: the massage itself was quite unremarkable. Not enough deep pressure where it mattered despite my specifying to focus on certain areas. I specifically noted on the intake form and verbally to the masseuse to skip the foot but she dismissed me saying the body needs it. Both husband and I were not impressed by our treatments.
Massage itself was a 2-​star experience.
Not an unpleasant experience but that’s about it. Felt almost like a waste of time. Won’t be back.

I’ve been coming here for over 2 years now and the service has always been consistently outstanding and professional. The front desk is always welcoming and friendly. The rooms are clean and they have a very calm environment — ideal for a relaxing massage! The massage therapists really listen and my massages continue to be great. I’ve been to several other places and you can’t beat the price.

I went in here for a 90 minute massage to celebrate landing my dream gig in February 2014.
I explicitly told the massage therapist not to put any pressure on my lower back due to an old injury. At one point, she put both hands in the small of my back and leaned in to put her weight on it. I freaked out and told her to stop but it was too late. The insane thing is that she went back to the area later and tried to do it again. I have no idea what she was thinking but I was in so much pain that I left my massage in tears. She tried to blame it on the fact that I was laying on my stomach. Really? I sleep on my stomach every night and don’t wake up in blinding pain each morning.
I asked for a manager, and they didn’t even apologize and had the audacity to try and pitch me a membership while I was hunched over in pain in the front waiting area.
The pain was so bad that I literally couldn’t stand up straight for days. I spent the first week at my new gig on muscle relaxers– not ideal, to say the least.
Fast forward to this week. A friend gave me a gift certificate for here, not knowing about my previous experience. I have called in every single day this week and left 2 messages asking to schedule an appointment, but no one ever picked up or returned my calls. I finally got a hold of someone today– her name was Sage– but she was so horrifically rude that I will never set foot inside here again.
Some tips– do not answer business calls on speaker phone, then ignore what the customer is saying, asking the same question over and over again.
«What time do you want to come in?»
«What times are available?»
«I said what time.»
«And I asked what times are available. What is your name?»
«WHAT TIME.»
If you’re too busy to pick up the phone and do your job, then let it go to voicemail. Of course, they don’t seem to check their voicemail, so it seems like this is a no-​win situation.
There are literally dozens of massage places in this area. There’s no reason to give your hard earned money to one that injures and insults their customers.

Called today to see if I could get in for a sports massage. I’m training for a half marathon and I was all sorts of sore after my first 10 miler this past Saturday. They were able to fit me in and I had West. He was great — made me feel very comfortable and focused on the areas we discussed in the beginning. They did push the membership a bit but I understand that’s pretty standard, and it felt so good I signed up. I’ve got another half marathon in April and have my sights set on joining the roller derby do something told me I’ll be needing it! Now I feel like a eucalyptus scented wet noodle, which is a good thing, I promise.

Girlfriend treated me to a couples massage as a birthday gift. Uncomfortable up sell at the beginning of the session. Cold hands, cold room, rather frantic rubbing. Put elbows on my neck and put full body weight on my neck. That hurt.

I first want to caveat this review by saying that I very rarely write reviews, however, the service I’ve receive at this Massage Heights store has been amazing so I had to spread the word! My girlfriend and I received a gift card for a couples massage here about a year ago, so we though we would try it out. It was a wonderful experience! The front desk staff is very friendly and offers you refreshments when you first arrive. Also, the masseuses are both professional and friendly and will cater to whatever pressure you prefer. We both felt great after the massage and decided to sign up as members on the spot since the cost was so affordable for the service we received. We’ve been going every couple of months since and I have yet to have a bad experience. I’ve had a few different masseuses and they have all been great. Highly recommend you give it a try!

i got a couples massage. we got an hour massage– was not the full hour. will did a great job on my back and shoulders, but the rest of my body was average. i also got the face massage with the cold stones. def not worth the extra money. it felt weird and not relaxing. he massaged my face, then went to massage my feet. that was weird. my friend had margie. he specifically asked for more work on his back and shoulders. said she was average. he also requested that she stretched his back out, she did not. the receptionist was helpful and polite. this place is super clean and the rooms were intimate. i would most likely not go back.

Britta is a great massage therapist! I get prenatal massages and she is phenomenal. I like deep tissue but have a broken tail bone in addition to being pregnant. Britta applies enough pressure to meet my needs, but is gentle enough to not hurt my sensitive lower back.
I would recommend Britta to anyone.

Ok, so major props to Massage Heights. I now know that this business truly cares about their customers, and here is why. I went back to see Marilyn again like I do almost every week, (who by the way the the best massage therapist I’ve ever encountered in this nation and abroad) and I was shocked to learn they had mentioned that they read my Unilocal review. They apologized and credited my massage back to my monthly account. They didn’t have to do this for me, but they chose to and that is really awesome! Then a few days ago, I got an email that they launched (for the first time ever), a summer «share you health with your family and friends». I can finally gift a massage and show my friends how awesome this place really is. I’m really hoping they run this promotion again during the holidays, because I would love to give a massage to a family member at my normal member price. Anywho, skip all the other places in the area, and give Massage Heights a call. I HIGHLY recommend Marilyn and Conrad, they are great professionals and seem to love what they do. BTW The girls at the front desk are an awesome crew, the owner is very lucky to have such a friendly staff.

Received a gift card from the in laws for a couple’s massage!
Customer Service was friendly, accommodating, and informative. I received a prenatal massage from Jessica and my husband received the hot stone massage. It was heaven, all the right pressures and points! The husband described it as very refreshing and immediately wanted to do it again.
As I tried to schedule the next massage it was a bit pricy and the packages were more money than other places. Will come back if I have another gift card. ;-)

Worst place ever… When massaging my face– the lady put stones on my eyeballs which I took off. Then she massaged the sides of my head and felt like she ripped some hairs out of my head– so I told her to stop. Then the receptionist was pressure selling after the massage and seemed like she refused to take no for an answer by throwing this amount for 3 months or that amount for this many months… As soon as the massage was over, I experienced extremely bad back pain which has continued for 3 months… I contacted the company after a month and no one got back to me. I think they hire inexperienced people. I will never recommend this place to ANYONE.

While the hard sell to sign up for membership can be a little uncomfortable, I gave in on my second visit, because the massages are fantastic, especially for the value (it’s hard to find a great 60 minute massage that, pre-​tip, costs under $ 90 in this area). I highly recommend.
They also said I could temporary suspend my account, at no charge, since I’m 4 months pregnant, once I give birth — I probably won’t, and will just accumulate the massages, but I appreciate that’s an option.

I went to a massage heights while on a business trip to Houston about a year ago. I locked in the Houston prices, which are cheaper, but planned to use the services in Rockville. I work in an extremely high stress job and carry a lot of stress in my upper back and neck. The lady in Houston gave me a really great deep tissue massage. She worked on all of my problem spots. I was sore for days but then felt a lot of relief from her massage.
When I first came to the Rockville store, I started with Stephanie. She was really great as well and did some limited trigger point massage. When she left, I wasn’t sure what to do, so I booked an hour with Steven for a trigger point massage and then an hour with Conrad for a deep tissue massage. My first appointment with them was the day after I finished a three week trial and my upper body was in such extreme pain from stress that I could barely move my neck. Steven was amazing. If you’re expecting an all-​over body relaxing massage, he is not the person for you. If you’re looking for someone to work on those sore areas and find long-​term relief, he’s the one for you. I was almost in tears when I walked in because I was in so much pain, but Steven found all of the sources of the stress in my back and worked on them. Then Conrad did an all-​over body massage. I had a day or two of pain afterward, but followed Steven’s advice to use ice and heat treatments. After two days, the soreness was totally gone and I no longer have the stress and tension in my back. In fact, I had no problem moving my neck or returning to my full workout routine, which was difficult before my appointment. I continue to see both Steven and Conrad each time. I always think I can probably forego my appointment with Steven, but his trigger point technique really is amazing at finding the sources of my tension and stress in my back and making it all go away, even sources that I don’t think are there but can feel them when he starts working on my back. I highly recommend Steven and Conrad, especially for back to back appointments.

Service is a 2, Masseuse is a 4, Atmosphere is a 4
Service — Staff was very friendly, but just like the other reviewers, they had issues with ringing up the gift certificate AND charged me $ 15 more than was listed on the website. When I pointed this out and showed them the website, they only gave me $ 10. they acted like I was the first person to show them this pricing issue, when this is clearly NOT the case. While they did give me some money back, they still gave me the impression this was my fault and they were doing me a favor. I also found it strange there were some many admin staff.
Massage –My masseuse was Brennan and I got mainly deep tissue. I had never had a younger man be my masseuse before and I found him very professional and never felt «weird». I have some slight issues in my shoulders, and he not only help work them out, he also provided helpful stretching and range of motion suggestions. This morning I am a bit sore, but only in my issue areas as expected
Atmosphere– The waiting area and the actual massage room was the best massage atmosphere I have ever been in. Chairs were nice, water available, sheet son the table were super soft, music good, lighting nice, clean bathrooms, etc
All that being said, I still overall have a bad feeling about this place due to the pricing issue. I just don’t like feeling duped and am unsure if I will re-​book.

UPDATE 6÷18÷13: Service at Massage Heights has gone downhill. Their policies are also rigid.
For example:
1.) Must provide 30 days notice to cancel your membership & avoid being billed for the next month. There are no exceptions to this rule. This is just another way for them to make it easy to squeeze more money out of you.
2.) If you cancel your membership, you only have 60 days to schedule an appointment to redeem any unused, paid massages you may have accumulated throughout your membership. After that, you forfeit them. If I paid for them, I should have longer than 60 days to use them. This policy is absurd.
3.) 24-​hour cancellation notice or you’ll be charged a sizable fee if they can’t replace your appointment. They need to use common-​sense discretion when applying this policy. There are circumstances when it makes more sense to do the right thing by the customer. In the years I’ve been going here, I’ve never cancelled same-​day, but I had to do it recently due to an illness. I felt pressured to keep my appointment, which made me feel like they’re more concerned about their pockets than my well being.
4.) Improve communication and training with their staff: I’ve had several therapists over the last year start my sessions late or cut my sessions short. I’m paying for a 50 minute massage and this isn’t acceptable. Massage Heights needs to do a better job ensuring their staff doesn’t ever do this to their customers. If it does occur, they should offer a free upgrade next time or a discount for the next massage. This is just bad business and that wouldn’t be acceptable if you went to an independent therapist.
CONCLUSION
After 2+ years of membership, I’ve just ended my membership and my involvement with «chain» massage centers in general. There are plenty of independent, licensed massage therapists that don’t charge much more than Massage Heights, and will provide me with consistent, quality service.

Massage: 5 stars
Customer Service: 2 stars
My husband bought me a $ 75 gift card, and it came with a $ 10 bonus gift card for Valentine’s Day. So, we are at an $ 85 gift card, you follow me? Yes? Ok, good. I go to the website, and see the introductory price is $ 75 for a 90 minute massage. Great, that leaves the bonus gift card to get the facial massage add on for $ 12, and I’ll pay the $ 2 difference. It started downhill with that initial call. Well really when my husband decided to purchase a gift card here! Anyways, the lady on the phone says no no those prices aren’t right. Excuse me? Yeah, corporate hasn’t updated the banner she says. Um, not my problem. He bought it here because of the great price, and great Unilocal reviews, and I really want a 90min. She says well you have to pay. No shit Sherlock, I’m not looking for a free massage, we’ve already dropped $ 85, and I just want the stated prices. She offered a 60min with an elevation. Read above where I said I really wanted a 90min massage. So, I book the now more expensive massage, and give her both gift card numbers over the phone. I arrive promptly on time, and was pleasantly surprised with how nice it was inside. Very relaxing spa like atmosphere. My therapist Nicole was amazing. She listened to my needs, worked on my tight areas from ½ marathon training and stress of life, and is awesome at deep tissue! So, I go to pay, and it *should* be easy peasy. I already gave her both gift card numbers, and just need to pay the $ 5 difference. I gave my therapist a cash tip before checking out just to make it that much easier. Well, they had trouble getting their system to work, and I was patiently waiting. Ten minutes go by, and she had the nerve to ask me was I sure this is a massage heights gift card? Yeah, really relaxing… So, they get someone else to come up front, and the girl says dude just take the gift card and figure it out later so she can leave. Meanwhile, I said its a $ 5 difference, and counted out $ 5, put it in her hand, and said I have to go. I can’t keep standing here all day 15min after my massage while you try to figure out what’s wrong with your system. Can you imagine if I had tried to pay the difference on a card. I’d probably still be standing there! Never again. Get some competent people up there if you’re going to try to play spa.

I became a member about a year ago and I absolutely love it. It’s a clean and tranquil environment and the staff is always friendly and helpful. When I first joined I tried 5 different massage therapists. They were all good but for me Brennan was the best. I love deep tissue massage and he is amazing!
I have a stressful job with long hours often spent in front of my computer. When I first joined my neck and shoulders were constantly tight, sore, and prone to injury. Since I have been going regularly to see Brennan I feel so much better and I have much better range of motion in my neck. It has definitely been money well spent.

Let me say that I am known to be very picky about the quality of service I receive, from nails, to hair to massages. And if I don’t get what I want I am a very unhappy camper. Essentially I am THAT customer that can be your worst nightmare if your customer service is even slightly off. But I also tip very well if I had a good experience.
Front desk receptionists are always very kind and accommodating. The spa itself is clean and smells wonderful.
The therapists you have to pick based on what your preferences are. I personally like Conrad because he employs asian techniques that usually is hard to find in a western type of therapist office. But he will only use those techniques if you are okay with it. Remember you are the boss of what happens, if something doesn’t feel right say something. Calvin and Tidiane are both very good as well. I understand that sometimes people have negative experiences depending on the therapist, but remember that some people liked to be talked to during the massage, others don’t. So if you don’t, stress that you must have everything nice and serene and quiet.
One last thing: TIP. Remember to tip based on 100 dollars. Because that is the industry standard. Sure the massage itself is discounted, thus you should be able to tip more. So stop complaining about the «pressure to tip», the therapists do amazing work, and thus deserve a good tip.

I’m in looooooove with Massage Heights!
I paid the introductory price for a 90 minute massage w/​hot stones added on and it was less than $ 100. I was placed with Will, who did a phenomenal job. I explained I like firm pressure but not quite deep tissue and he nailed it. Totally got the knots out of my shoulder!
I ended up buying a six month membership and I’m sure it’s going to be worth every penny. It’s $ 60/​month for a 60 minute massage, so you’re basically pre-​paying a monthly massage. However, you can add-​on 30 minutes for $ 25, which is what I plan on doing since I prefer 90 minute massages. $ 85 is a steal for 90 minutes! Can’t wait for November so I can go back!
For being in a strip mall, Massage Heights has a surprisingly serene environment. The waiting/​reception area is brightly lit due to the big windows but once you’re led through the double doors, it’s all dim lighting and dark wood.
The various receptionists were all friendly and patiently answered all of my questions about buying a membership.
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Edited 2÷27÷13
I took an appointment with Steven recently because Wil was already booked up for the only day I was free. Avoid, avoid, AVOID! I’m sure Steven may be a nice young man but he was so awkward, as in asking questions at random moments during the massage. Worse, he didn’t listen when I said my right shoulder/​upper back was really bothering me and spent most of the time on my lower back instead. Lastly, when I got home I realized he didn’t even offer me aromatherapy, which is an included elevation for members. It was not a relaxing experience and I didn’t feel any better than before the massage. Learned the hard way to never cheat on Wil!

Once upon a time, I needed to escape to a place that had a parking lot and suburbs surrounding it. I got in the car and drove north. Thanks to Unilocal,I found Massage Heights and pulled over.
For $ 50 you’ll get an hour massage (if its your first visit). I had Calvin as my masseuse, and he was great! Place is relaxing, and you’ll enjoy. I made a same day appt (literally just pulled off the turnpike) and had no problem getting in. Good price, friendly ppl — try it.