Zeel

Zeel makes it easy to book massage therapy sessions at home or at your hotel when you’re traveling. The New York City-based startup helps clients find licensed massage therapists nearby, book a session, and pay and tip online. Zeel currently offers its service in New York City and the Tri-State Area, South Florida, Southern California, the Bay Area, Boston, Chicago, Denver, and Washington, DC. The company says it plans to expand to more locations soon.

Here’s our review of Zeel. We’d love to hear from you! Share your opinion by writing a review.

Pros:

Clients can choose single, couples, back-to-back (one client after the other), and group chair massage sessions. Massage type options include Swedish, deep tissue, sports and prenatal therapies; session lengths are 60, 75 or 90 minutes. You can book a massage for yourself or someone else, and the menu includes a place to type in relevant health information such as ongoing pain, allergies, or injuries. You can specify a preferred or required gender for your therapist as well.

Zeel users can book massages anywhere from an hour ahead of time to a month in advance, and recurring massages are available at a lower rate through the Zeelot program, described below. Zeel has an app for bookings but you can also use the Zeel website to set up appointments.

Cons:

Media reviewers who’ve tried Zeel have been positive, so the only notable downside is that the service isn’t yet available in more parts of the country.

Fine print:

Zeelot members can apply their monthly discounted rate toward 90-minute sessions or roll over unused credits to another month. Zeel says Zeelot credits don’t expire, and program members get the discounted rate on other massages they book.

If there’s a service problem or dispute, Zeel may offer mediation but, as with many other online service platforms, the resolution of the problem is up to the customer and therapist. Zeel’s terms of service state that the company does not offer refunds on services booked through the site.

Cost:

Pricing varies by location and service. For example, I priced a hypothetical one-hour deep-tissue massage at a Manhattan hotel and got same-day appointment options for $160, which included an 18% gratuity and 4.5% tax. The same service in Denver was priced at $105, which also included the 18% gratuity but no sales tax.

Zeel also offers a program called Zeelot, which gives members a discount on one 60-minute massage each month for a year, along with a free massage table or an upgraded version at a steep discount. Zeelot’s monthly fee varies by market. In South Florida, it’s $99.12; in New York City it’s $121.28.

Best for…

Seniors who want regular in-home massage sessions with licensed therapists; family members and friends who want to give a massage session as a gift; anyone who needs same-day or next-day massage services at home or on the road.

References:

• http://stylenews.peoplestylewatch.com/2015/03/19/soothe-app-review-zeel-app-review/
• http://www.mensjournal.com/health-fitness/health/the-on-demand-massage-app-20140221