Hacienda Joy Sauna Review

I had to head far east of LA recently on a weekday. Just because of the timing, I was going to run into traffic on the way back. Since there are few things that I enjoy less than sitting in my car in traffic, I decided to pay a visit to Hacienda Joy Sauna. I ended up spending a really long time there (about four hours) partly because I quite enjoyed myself and partly because it took that long for the traffic to finally clear up.

Guy's Spa Guide has a very thorough review of the facilities so I won't go into anywhere near as much detail. Everything he said about the facilities was still accurate when I visited. The one thing I want to emphasize is that the sleeping room is really warm. Don't go in there without a robe and a few towels. Even if you are going to be completely nude, you'll want something to lay on because the floor is that warm. I think I sweat more in there than in the dry sauna! I really like the layout - it uses the space very efficiently and has a good flow to it. In terms of how nice things were, I'd say it's roughly in between Wilshire Spa and Century. Joy still seems like it's stuck in the 90s but it doesn't feel run-down like Wilshire can.

Guy's Guide gave it a 4/5 in terms of cruisiness but I would give it a 5. Aside from a few older Asian guys, everyone there seemed to be in the mood to play. Both Asian and non-Asian. And there is plenty of opportunity to make connections with other guys. Because the dry sauna and steam room have narrow doors, there's a lot of privacy. Additionally, those glass doors are basically impossible to see through because of the water stains. It's also easy to hear people coming. You get plenty of notice.

The other popular play area is the sleeping room I mentioned above. There is a window in the door but it's one-way glass - you can see out of the room but not in. Because of the heat, no one seemed to use it for its intended purpose. As far as I could tell, everyone who went in was looking to play. Again, it's really easy to see and hear people coming. Lots of notice. Bring water in with you too if you can. You can get dehydrated very easily in there.

It was decently busy while I was there. I arrived around 3 and there were about 6 people there, about half interested in playing. As the day went on, more people started streaming in and there was a good turnover rate too. The crowd wasn't the most conventionally attractive and definitely skewed older than Century or Wilshire. I think I was the only person there below 35 (not that I minded since I like guys in their 40s). Don't go here if you're looking for someone with a gym body. I would describe most of the guys that day as having average physiques. That wasn't a big problem for me because when I go to a spa and feel sexual, most of the charge is from the setting. I guess you could say my standards get looser. All the guys I encountered that day were pretty uninhibited. Guy's Guide said it was difficult to get privacy for one-on-one and I would agree. However, I got in a lot of play still because the other guys (ones I wasn't interested in) would still want to watch and volunteer to act as lookouts. I haven't really had that happen before. So kudos to openness and camaderie.

I would probably go back to Joy if I was in the area again. If I lived a lot closer, I would go there from time to time (maybe once a month) because I did like the facilities. The relative openness is also a plus since Century can sometimes feel very inhibited and clique-y. I wouldn't go out of my way just to go there though.