Go for: Japanese-style baths with healing waters
This Japantown institution is known for its Japanese-style communal baths, designed for harmony and relaxation. The art of bathing begins with ditching your devices and your clothes (optional), followed by a time-old ritual that includes a salt scrub, hot pool, steam room, cold plunge, and sauna, all meant to detox and renew, both mentally and physically. This process works even better when followed by a massage that blends Western and Eastern styles (because, let’s be real, what doesn’t work better when followed by a massage?). The communal bathhouse is all-gender (bathing suits required) on Mondays and Tuesdays, men-only on Thursdays and Saturdays, and women-only on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays.
Go for: Dance classes for all levels
ODC is a professional dance company, theater, and school all wrapped up in one. Anyone from 8 months to 98 years old can take part in classes for beginners, intermediate, and advanced dancers. The school offers every type of dance you can think of—contemporary, hip hop, rhythm and motion, African diasporic, ballet, belly dancing, jazz, Latin, tap, and more. Not sure if dance classes are in step with your vibe? New students can take their first class for $12.
Go for: The indoor/outdoor rooftop spa
The Bamford Wellness Spa at 1 Hotel is known for its Aromatic Bath Salt Soak in stone spa tubs on the rooftop terrace. Start or finish with a massage, and once you’re fully relaxed, head to Terrene, the hotel’s restaurant, for zero-waste cocktails made with fresh ingredients from the chef’s rooftop garden, best sipped on the heated patio, which boasts stunning views of the Bay Bridge and Ferry Building. You don’t have to stay at this LEED Gold Certified hotel to enjoy its restaurant, and nature-inspired spa, but if you do, you can also sign up for complimentary yoga and bootcamp classes.
Go for: Yoga on the beach with views of the Golden Gate Bridge
What could possibly make you more blissed out than a yoga class where, instead of staring at a self-consciousness-inducing wall of mirrors, you get to gaze out at waves crashing beneath the Golden Gate Bridge? These outdoor classes are meant to heal and rejuvenate but are also playful and challenging. And don’t worry about being unable to hear the instructor over the powerful Pacific. Each student is given headphones to create an immersive experience of music and guidance. Prefer your yoga without sand between your toes? Outdoor Yoga also offers classes in Golden Gate Park.
Go for: Hand-blended essential oils, crystals, and tarot readings
Hidden in a Cole Valley courtyard overflowing with vines, bushes, and flowers is The Sword & Rose, “a Spiritual and Metaphysical shop,” situated in a “magikal” cozy hut straight out of a fairytale. Step inside to discover a trove of healing treasures, including jewelry, rare books, crystals, incense, and more (the shop is known for its oils and bath salts that can invoke prosperity, wisdom, communication, and creativity, to name a few). The Sword & Rose also offers tarot, palm, and astrological readings known for being eerily accurate, so make sure you really want to know the truth before committing.
Go for: Magic mushrooms in all forms with clearly delineated dose levels
Studies show that “magic mushrooms” can reverse the effects of depression, anxiety, and PTSD, which is why SF has effectively decriminalized all “entheogenic plant practices.” As a result, it’s pretty easy to procure the fantastical funghi in safe and transparent dosages; you just have to know the right place to forage. At Ambrosia’s Door, you are asked to join the nondenominational Ambrosia Church, which means “accepting that entheogenic plants, including cannabis and mushrooms, as part of your religion” and pay a $5 fee, which isn’t too bad for access to an amazing supply of various strains of raw and chocolate psilocybin mushrooms. At the SF location in SoMa (which has an armed guard and metal detector), you simply check in and then go up a flight of stairs to a sun-filled room where a guide helps you figure out what will work best for you before taking your cash “contribution.” After that, whether you use your bounty to work through trauma or survive a boring dinner party is up to you.
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