Spring break is on the horizon, and Auburn tanning salons are ready to help the beach-bound achieve their desired tans in time for a week of fun in the sun.
Here are a few recommendations for the safest ways to tan.
Carmen Littleton, consultant at Palm Beach Tan on South College Street, said employees are trained to adhere to the "golden rule of smart tanning: don't ever sunburn."
Littleton said she doesn't want customers to walk out burnt.
"We would rather them leave and never come back than leave burnt," she said. "Each time you burn, your skin loses a little bit of its ability to tan each time. So it has been instilled into us to not let customers burn."
While she doesn't have a golden rule, Christina Awbrey, owner of Tantastic on Opelika Road, agreed burning is harmful and should be avoided.
"I think the biggest misconception people have is that they have to burn," Awbrey said. "So they will come in and want to tan 20 minutes their first visit, and that's unsafe."
To avoid burning, Awbrey recommends tanning for six minutes at the first session. The tanning time can then be adjusted according to the person's skin type.
In addition to the tanning time, the tanning level is also key to safety.
Palm Beach Tan has four different tanning levels.
"Level one and two beds are mainly base-building beds, which bring your melanin to the top of your skin," Littleton said. "Level three and four are the bronzing beds. It is in these beds that your skin actually begins to tan."
Tantastic has three tanning levels.
"Level one is a 20-minute bed, which is good for someone with fair skin," Awbrey said. "Level two is a 15-minute bed that is a little bit stronger, and level three is for more advanced tanners."
Palm Beach Tan and Tantastic also have stand-up tanning booths.
Kendra Santora, consultant at The Beach Tanning on Webster Road, said using lotion when tanning is a great way to accelerate the tanning process.
Awbrey agreed and added that lotion also keeps your skin "looking healthy, not dry or leathery."
Littleton said dry tanning, or tanning without lotion, is not good for the skin.
"(Dry tanning) also isn't going to give you a good color or lasting color," Littleton said. "I would never ever recommend tanning without lotion, indoors or outdoors."
Another key to safe tanning is wearing goggles.
"Tanning without goggles is extremely dangerous to your eyes," Littleton said. "Every single time we tan someone, we are required to see their goggles before they can tan. When we sell a membership, they are required to purchase a pair of goggles that day."
Awbrey said requiring goggles is one of the most important rules enforced because there is a possibility that people who don't wear them while tanning could become color blind.
Tanning frequency is also an important factor.
Santora said she does not suggest tanning every day.
Awbrey said once a base tan is established, she recommends tanning in a high-level bed only once or twice a week to maintain a desired color.
Palm Beach Tan also offers sunless tanning or spray tanning.
"We have lots of people who just do sunless tanning, and we do have a sunless membership for those people," Littleton said.
One of the spray tan options lasts three to five days, and the other lasts five to seven days.
However, there are also safety precautions with sunless tanning.
"I would still recommend using a SPF (when outside) because the spray tan is not going to keep you from burning, and the tanning bed doesn't keep you from burning either," Littleton said.
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