IT'S no secret that some of Asia's most luxurious spas can be found in Thailand, but what savvy travellers are discovering is that aside from the famed five-star hotel spas, there are some great pampering deals to be found in the city's lesser known day spas.

When Singaporean business woman Elaine Tan is on one of her frequent trips to Bangkok, she schedules her meetings to end early and dinners to start late, to make room for a two-and-a-half hour break for herself. That includes a traditional Thai massage, and she has a standing appointment for a daily massage at her favourite day spa near her hotel - a treat she admits she would not indulge in in Singapore.

'Going to spas in Singapore is so expensive, most people would go as a special treat,' she explains. Asked which spa in Singapore is her favourite, she hesitates and confides: 'I don't know. I don't go to spas in Singapore. The prices are so high. But in Bangkok there are so many affordable places aside from the super-expensive luxury hotel spas. You can still get good service and a nice environment, and the price is so reasonable that I can afford to go every day. I get so tense from hunching over my computer all day and I feel so relaxed and light after getting a good massage. It's such a treat to be able to have one every day here!'

The smaller spas are usually attractively set in renovated houses or conveniently located within office buildings or shopping malls, with a high emphasis on unique decor and, of course, good service and reasonable prices. Treatments at smaller spas can range from, say, 1,000 baht (S$42) for a 45-minute facial at Harnn Spa, 1,500 baht for a 70-minute massage and herbal compress at DVN Spa, and 3,000 baht for a two-hour package at Thann Sanctuary - quite a savings from the five-star hotel spa prices which can be up to double or triple the price.

Accessibility is one of the key factors that makes the prices more cost-friendly in the smaller establishments. 'We want to deliver hotel quality service but at prices that are more affordable,' says Tony Jiraswakedelok, a founder of DVN Spas, 'because we believe that spas are part of maintaining one's well-being. We want it to be affordable so our guests can come regularly and make it part of their lifestyle, not just a rare treat'.

The strategy seems to work. Aside from business trips, Ms Tan and her friends, all 30-something to 40-something executives or business people in Singapore, often make a long weekend in Bangkok a mini-vacation to shop, eat and get pampered, because they reason that 'we get so much more out of it than spending the same amount of money shopping and dining out in Singapore or Hong Kong'.

Here are some day spas recommended for their convenient location in the central business and shopping districts, attractive ambience and great prices. All of them are easily accessible along the BTS sky train route.

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DVN Spa & Well Being Center
8 Sukhumvit Soi 35
Bangkok
Tel +66 (0)2 261 4818-9
www.dvn-wellbeing.com

JUST a few minutes' walk from the sky train, you'll find this spa set in a rambling white neocolonial mansion shaded by a towering ancient tree at the back of a big lawn. Spacious spa suites have a tropical Victorian feel.

While you won't spend that much money, expect to spend some time here. The shortest treatment is a 70-minute Siamese Massage for 1,150 baht. The spa menu then becomes increasingly elaborate with a dizzying array of creative treatments like the Four Hands Aromatherapy Massage (using two masseuses kneading your body in synchronised strokes) and herbal steam for 100 minutes at 2,850 baht. Or why not go all out with the four-hour Supreme Nourishing Package with body brush, herbal steam, mud wrap, aromatherapy body massage, facial treatment, warm milk bath and even a light meal for 5,350 baht.

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Thann Sanctuary
518B, Siam Discovery Center
5th Floor, Tel: +66 (0)2 658 0550
www.thann.info

IF URBAN chic puts you at ease, this little gem in Siam Discovery shopping mall is a good place to go. Its black-on-black contemporary Asian design recently earned this spa a favourable mention in Conde Nast Traveller's Hot List 2006. The spa is part of the stylish Thann bath and body products shop and puts the products to good use. The treatment menu is basic but satisfying, with a selection of eight massages at 1,600 baht for 60 minutes and 2,000 baht for 90 minutes; facials ranging from 1,000 baht for 45 minutes and 2,000 for 90 minutes; and two to three-hour packages ranging from 2,200 baht to 4,200 baht, plus body scrubs and waxing. Getting a good price on the treatments means you'll have more money to spend on the gently fragranced and innovative Thann products on your way out.

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Harnn
433 Siam Paragon 4 Floor
Bangkok
Tel: +66 (0)2 610-9715
www.harnn.com

YOU'D never guess there's a tiny spa hidden in the inner recesses of this aromatic bath and body shop until you step past the mysterious beaded curtain in the back. Plus it's conveniently located in hip shopping mall Siam Paragon. A variety of Thai-style massages are offered in an exotic, opium den-like couple's room decorated with Asian artifacts. Got a sore back? Try the 45-minute back massage at 800 baht. What about that dreadful head ache? The one-hour head massage at 1,200 baht is sure to fix it; other massages range from 1,600 baht for 60 minutes and 2,000 baht for 90 minutes.

There's a signature treatment at 3,200 baht for three hours with a body scrub, oil massage and herbal compress. The attractive shop is scented with the lovely aroma of Harnn natural soaps and products that make beautiful gifts to take home.

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Sareerarom Tropical Spa
117 Thonglor Soi 10
Sukhumvit 55, Bangkok
Tel; +66 (0)2 391 9919
www.sareerarom.com.

IF YOU like a simple approach, try this homey spa set in an unpretentious house with the spa rooms encircling a central garden courtyard and pond. Treatments use all-natural ingredients based on Asian traditions like rice bran scrub; mud wraps made from Thai white mud and green tea; facials made from beautifying Burmese Thanaka bark, and a selection of Asian-style massages. Facials and body wraps are all a standard 60 minutes long and cost 1,500 baht; massages range from 70 to 100 minutes with an average price of 1,800 baht. For a quick pick-me-up on problem areas, try the 50-minute Anti-Stress Back and Shoulder Massage for 700 baht or the 75-minute Foot & Leg Pampering scrub and massage for 900 baht.

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Divana Massage & Spa
7 Sukhumvit Soi 25
Bangkok
Tel: +66 (0) 2 661 6784
www.divanaspa.com

DIVANA calls itself a garden home spa, and is set in a renovated old house with a lovely little garden and lotus pond in front. Each spa suite has a different style bathroom, each with a custom-made tub inspired by traditional Thai rainwater urns. One of the most interesting is a huge wooden tub where you can have a floral bath overflowing with lotus and jasmine petals and scented with herbs.

There are reasonably priced massages like the Siamese Herbal Compress, a traditional Thai massage with heated compress to relax knotted muscles at 1,650 baht for 100 minutes, or the Anti-Stress Massage at 1,350 baht for 70 minutes. The Spa Specialty full day spa package is good value at 5,650 baht for five hours of total body, facial and foot treatments, including an organic meal and fresh fruit.

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Ruen-Nuad Massage & Yoga
42 Convent Road, Silom
Bangkok
Tel: +66 (0) 2 632 2662

WHILE not a full service spa, this charming massage establishment is well worth a visit if your only interest is massage. It's conveniently located in the CBD district near the Sukhothai Hotel between Silom and Sathorn Roads. The simple setting in a rustic old Thai wooden building (the name means massage house) gives it a quaint, old-world charm. It offers only Thai massage, reflexology and aromatherapy oil massages, from one to two hours, at prices ranging from 400 baht to 1,500 baht. It also holds weekly yoga classes.

The writer is a Bangkok-based freelance journalist