Entry No. 10 — the Des Moines file — filed under: soak
Inner Space — ZeroBody Dry Float & Salt Lounge
A 6,000-sq-ft clinical 'gym for your insides' whose strangest offering is the ZeroBody Dry Float: you stay fully clothed and suspended on a heated, water-supported membrane that mimics floating with no water touching you. They also run a Salt Lounge where micronized salt fills the air.
The story
You pull off the diagonal slant of Keosauqua Way—the paved seam between downtown Des Moines and Sherman Hill—and step into 6,000 square feet of muted, low-lit clinical quiet. Inner Space opened in 2019 not as a cucumber-water day spa, but as a high-tech tune-up shop for your nervous system. Behind its unassuming storefront, the atmosphere feels closer to a subterranean recovery lab than an indulgence center.
The centerpiece of the floor plan is the ZeroBody Dry Float, an Italian-engineered machine that bypasses the annoying parts of sensory deprivation. Instead of stripping down and getting coated in wet Epsom salts inside a claustrophobic pod, you keep your clothes on, lie down on a flexible membrane, and let heated water rise beneath you. You hover fully dry in a state of simulated zero gravity, letting your spine decompress while your brain gets tricked into thinking you've lost weight.
A few steps down the corridor sits the Salt Lounge, a quiet chamber where a halotherapy generator pulverizes medical-grade salt into a fine airborne vapor. Sitting in zero-gravity loungers while microscopic salt coats your respiratory tract feels slightly conspiratorial—like you've stumbled into a private biohacking facility hidden in plain sight along Keo Way.
What it's like
Expect an unhurried, clinical calm from the moment you walk through the door. Since the facility runs strictly by appointment, you won't wade through crowded waiting rooms or noisy foot traffic. Wear loose, comfortable clothing so nothing pinches when you sink onto the dry float membrane, and leave your phone locked away. Plan to schedule your session with nothing pressing on your calendar immediately afterward so you can drift out into Sherman Hill with your nervous system completely dialed down.
The move: Book back-to-back dry float sessions and decompress side by side without getting wet, then sit in the salt lounge together and compare how weirdly weightless your bodies feel afterward.
📍 Before you go Despite the speakeasy framing, this is a clinical wellness center on Keosauqua Way, the diagonal arterial that links downtown to the northwest side at the edge of Sherman Hill. It opened in 2019 and runs by appointment only, so book ahead rather than walking in, and request two-person availability for both rooms. The dry float and salt lounge are only part of a larger tech-therapy menu, so leave time to ask about the others. Treat it as a slow, unhurried outing: schedule it so nothing is rushed afterward, then wander the historic blocks of Sherman Hill or grab a quiet bite downtown to extend the decompressed feeling.
- 📍 Sherman Hill / Downtown edge (Keosauqua Way)
- 💸 $$
- ⚡ Low-key
- 🌗 Indoors
Where: 1251 Keosauqua Way, Des Moines, IA 50309
Hours: By appointment; dry float and salt lounge booked as individual sessions. Confirm two-person availability when booking.
Pair it with
- Good News, Darling — Follow up your float session with a quiet, low-lit drink inside this hidden 26-seat cocktail parlor located just six blocks south.
- Sherman Hill Historic Gaslight Ghost Tour — Pair your high-tech nervous system reset with a night walking the Victorian streets and ghost sites of neighboring Sherman Hill.
- Emily MacFarland Ceramics — Trade total weightlessness for tactile hands-on clay throwing at Mainframe Studios, just two-tenths of a mile up the road.
Good to know
Do I need to change into a swimsuit or get wet for the ZeroBody float?
No. You remain fully clothed during the entire dry float. You only slip off your shoes before lying down on the heated membrane.
Can I bring a partner or friend?
Yes, but you need to confirm two-person availability when booking your appointments online or over the phone.
Can I just walk in without a reservation?
No. Inner Space operates by appointment only to maintain a controlled, quiet environment for everyone inside.
Where is the building located?
At 1251 Keosauqua Way, along the diagonal thoroughfare right on the edge where downtown Des Moines meets historic Sherman Hill.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: Official site · Yelp
last checked: 2026-06-06