26 October 2026
Before you book a hair salon, check four things: whether it publishes its prices in full, whether it asks for a patch test before colour, what the colour price actually includes, and what happens if you need to move the appointment. Those four answers tell you more about how a salon runs than any photograph will, and all four should be findable before you pick up the telephone. Changing salon is mostly about removing surprises, and surprises hide in the things nobody thought to mention.
Contents
- Does the salon publish its prices?
- Does it ask for a patch test before colour?
- What does the colour price include?
- Does it do the colour technique you actually want?
- How do you explain what you want?
- What are the booking and cancellation terms?
- Is the salon somewhere you can realistically get to?
- Frequently asked questions
- Book a hair appointment in Canterbury
- Further reading
Does the salon publish its prices?
A published price list is the simplest test there is. If every service has a figure next to it before you enquire, you can plan, compare and budget. If prices only appear after a conversation, you cannot do any of those things.
Look for prices that distinguish between the variants rather than a single number for the whole category. Colour is not one service, and a list that shows a regrowth and a root to end separately, or a T section, a half head and a full head separately, is telling you the salon expects to be asked. Our hair prices in Canterbury guide sets out what each of ours covers.
Does it ask for a patch test before colour?
This one is a safety signal rather than a convenience. At Therapy, all hair colouring services require a patch test at least 48 hours before the appointment. A patch test needs repeating every six months. It is quick, it is free of charge, and it cannot be done on the same day as the colour.
A salon that asks for one is taking the product seriously. A salon that waves it away is saving you a trip into town and giving up the reason the wait exists. Whichever salon you choose, ask about the patch test in the same conversation as the booking, because a missing one is the most common cause of a first colour appointment having to move. Our guide to salon patch tests covers which treatments need one.
What does the colour price include?
Two salons quoting the same figure can mean quite different things by it. The question to ask is what happens at the end of the appointment.
At Therapy, all colour services include a professional blow dry and finish, so the price you see is the price of leaving with the hair done. A cut is separate and can be added to a colour appointment for £30, against £70 for a cut and blow dry booked on its own. Knowing which of those applies before you book is the difference between a £145 appointment and a £175 one.
Does it do the colour technique you actually want?
Colour services are not interchangeable, and a salon may be strong on one and not offer another. It is worth knowing which you are asking for before you start ringing round.
Global colour puts a single shade through the hair, either on the regrowth at £105 or root to end at £120. Highlights lighten in sections, from £130 for a T section around the parting and hairline through to £170 for a full head. Balayage is hand painted so it grows out softly, at £170 partial or £195 full custom, and it typically holds for three to six months where highlights want refreshing every six to ten weeks.
If you are choosing partly on how often you want to come back, that last difference matters more than the headline price does.
How do you explain what you want?
Bring pictures. A photograph removes most of the ambiguity in words like ashy, natural, warm or subtle, all of which mean different things to different people. Two or three images, including one you dislike, is more useful than a long description.
Say what is already on your hair as well. Previous colour changes what is achievable and how long it takes, and a stylist would far rather hear about it at the start than discover it halfway through.
What are the booking and cancellation terms?
Find these before you book, not after. At Therapy, cancellations or amendments require 24 hours notice, and appointments cancelled with less than 24 hours notice incur a 50 percent charge. On a full custom balayage at £195 that is not a trivial amount.
Also check how far ahead you need to book for the appointment you want. A blow dry is easier to fit in at short notice than a full head of colour, and bridal and occasion hair wants booking as far ahead as you can manage, because popular dates fill quickly over spring and summer.
Is the salon somewhere you can realistically get to?
Colour appointments are long, and a salon that is awkward to reach is a salon you will quietly stop going to. Think about where you will actually be on the day rather than where you live.
Therapy is at 21 Burgate in Canterbury, a short walk from the cathedral and in the middle of the city centre, which suits an appointment either side of work or a morning in town. If you are also booking nails or beauty treatments, having them in one place saves a second journey entirely.
Frequently asked questions
What should I check before booking a hair salon?
Whether it publishes full prices, whether it requires a patch test before colour, what the colour price includes, and what its cancellation terms are.
Do I need a patch test if I am new to a salon?
At Therapy, all hair colouring services require a patch test at least 48 hours prior to the appointment. A patch test needs repeating every six months. It is quick and free of charge, and it cannot be done on the same day as the colour.
Does a colour appointment include a blow dry?
At Therapy it does. All colour services include a professional blow dry and finish, and a cut can be added for £30.
Should I bring photographs to my appointment?
Yes. Photographs remove most of the ambiguity in describing a colour or a style, and it helps to bring one you dislike as well as ones you do.
Which colour service needs the least upkeep?
Balayage can last three to six months, where highlights typically want refreshing every six to ten weeks.
What is Therapy's cancellation policy?
Cancellations or amendments require 24 hours notice. Appointments cancelled with less than 24 hours notice incur a 50 percent charge.
Book a hair appointment in Canterbury
Therapy is a hair salon at 21 Burgate in Canterbury. Every cutting, colour and styling price is published in full on our hair services page, and our contact page is the quickest way to ask a question or book. If colour is what you are after, ask about the patch test at the same time so the 48 hours are already in the diary.
