What is a traditional hammam scrub treatment (gommage)?

Gommage simply means the scrub, and it is the moment that turns a steam bath into a proper hammam. Here is how it actually unfolds: you spend ten or fifteen minutes in the hot, humid steam room first, lying or sitting on the warm tiles while your skin slowly softens and your pores open. Only then does the attendant — the kessala — paint you with savon beldi, the dark, almost black olive-oil soap, and leave it to soak in. It smells faintly of olives and eucalyptus, and your whole body goes slick and supple.

Then comes the scrub itself. The kessa is a rough, dark exfoliating mitt, woven coarse on purpose, and the attendant works it over you in firm strokes — arms, back, legs, the lot — while you are rinsed with bowls of warm water. The first time you see the little grey rolls of dead skin lifting off you, it is genuinely startling, and a bit comical. People always say the same thing: "I had no idea I was that dirty." You were not dirty; that is months of dulled, sloughed skin coming away, and the smoothness underneath is remarkable.

I want to be honest about the sensation, because it surprises people. A traditional gommage is vigorous — the kessala does not tickle, they scrub with intent, and on a public-hammam day they are quick and businesslike. It should feel deeply invigorating, a little rough, but never actually painful or scraping. If it ever crosses into hurting, say so; a good attendant adjusts at once. Tender, sensitive or sunburned skin should ask for a gentler pass, and skip the scrub entirely over fresh cuts or rashes.

My practical guidance: drink water before and after, go easy on sun the rest of that day because freshly exfoliated skin is delicate, and let the experience be slow rather than rushing off afterwards. In a budget neighbourhood hammam the gommage is fast, communal and brilliantly cheap; in a spa hammam it is private, gentler and drawn out with oils and tea. Both are "real" — choose by how much pampering versus authenticity you want, and tell the attendant your pressure preference before they start.