Spas are hot in Reno

Gentle bubbling sounds mingle with soft flute music. The ambient glow in the chamber shifts from one band of color to another as tiny star-like lights twinkle above. Fresh from a massage, you're reclining on a heated, tiled lounge seat. The warmth spreads through your body as you breathe in restorative salt air.

Welcome to the Brine Light Therapy Lounge at the Atlantis Casino Resort's spa in Reno. Spa Atlantis is one of the city's growing number of hotel health spas. Open for about a year, the Atlantis spa was preceded by an elaborate spa at the Peppermill Hotel in November 2008. The other local property most known for its spa is the Siena Hotel Spa Casino, a smaller, upscale hotel located on the Truckee River. All three hotels have extensive online menus so you can shop for the treatment of your choice. The Peppermill's menu runs to 19 pages.

Hotel spas are replacing or supplementing exercise rooms by providing a range of therapeutic services in stylish surroundings. A recent trip to Spa Atlantis demonstrated how lush and varied spa offerings have become.

Often a visit begins with the selection of one or more services. Massages using hot stones or aroma therapy are available at Spa Atlantis, as well as traditional Swedish massage and others, in addition to a variety of exfoliating scrubs using herbs, sugar or sea salt. Body wraps, an assortment of facials and pedicures are also available. Milk baths and mud treatment are other options.

Along with the selected service or treatment, comes a day at the spa. The brine lounge is one of several Spa Atlantis rooms you may visit for a long as you like. The Laconium Relaxation Lounge is a cooler version of a steam room. At 104 degrees, with a heated floor and heated glass-tile lounge seats, its warmth is calming, not oppressive.

The Aqua Lounge is decorated with fountains and offers two hot Jacuzzi pools and a small cold water plunge. Chaise lounges and chairs are arranged around the pools under a glass ceiling, especially welcome in the winter. Nearby is the fully equipped fitness center.

Men's and women's locker rooms feature steam rooms, saunas, and self-service tea rooms. Decor in the Spa Atlantis shows an Asian influence. Lighting in many of the rooms is subdued, music filters in from above and no one seems to be in a hurry. Guests and staff alike move slowly through the carpeted corridors.

After a few hours in the spa you'll be so relaxed you won't be able to pull a slot machine handle. But then most have push buttons now. {sbox}

Spa Atlantis: Atlantis Casino Resort, 3800 S. Virginia St., Reno. Sixty-minute massages $100 to $175, facials from $95. A la carte spa day, $45. 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. (800) 723-6500, www.Atlantiscasino.com.

Spa Toscana: Peppermill Hotel, 2707 S. Virginia St., Reno. Fifty-minute massages $100-$115; facials from $115. 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. (866) 821-9996, www.Peppermillreno.com.

The Spa at Siena: Siena Hotel, One South Lake St., Reno. Signature massage $50/30 minutes, $100/60 minutes. Facials from $80. Martini and a manicure from $35. 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. (877) 743-6233, www.sienareno.com.