Picking a Tanning Salon

People who sport tanned skin are usually regarded as physically appealing. People who want to get a tan do not need to endure endless hours at the beach in harmful sunlight. Instead, tanning salons can provide you with tanned skin in less than 30 minutes, over a course of appointments.

When choosing a tanning salon, you should perform a little research to find the best one in your area. Consider the following when picking a tanning salon:

• Ask for referrals. If you've friends who frequent local tanning salons, ask questions and they will tell you which are the best and which to avoid.
• Tour the tanning salon before making a selection and visually inspect the appearance of the salon for cleanliness. Tanning beds and booths should be sterilized by the staff before and after each use.
• Ask about packages. Tanning salons usually offer package deals that include discounts, while single visits are usually more expensive.
• Choose a salon that also offers sunless tanning appointments and packages.
• Check the credentials of the owner and personnel.
• Decide how the visits will fit into your active lifestyle.

Be aware that the Food and Drug Administration urges consumers to avoid sun lamps and ultra violet light bulbs. If you choose to use a tanning salon anyway, make sure that you do not reset the timer attached to your machine. A good tanning salon will post FDA rules mandating how much time you should spend in a tanning bed or booth. Your skin pigment determines the amount of time you are permitted to spend in front of UVA and UVB light bulbs.

A good alternative to harmful UV light, reputable tanning salons also offer tanning sprays. A far cry from the hideous orange result garnered from earlier tanning creams, tanning sprays are offered by tanning salons in the form of spray booths, spray technicians, or spray machines. The machines have more than 30 nozzles pointing at your body in the booth, coating your skin using a spray comprised of naturally-occurring fruit and vegetable sugars. Using a spray machine affords privacy, since you are alone in the booth. If you choose to have a technician apply the spray, your modesty may be compromised.

Unlike tanning under bulbs or direct sunlight, sunless tanning sprays have been deemed safe by the FDA.