The first attempt at the establishment of a Spa Association in Malaysia began back in 1999. It was under the then Asia-Pacific Chapter of the USA based International Spa Association (ISPA), headed by Molly Goh with a group of early Spa enthusiasts, including Datin Ramona and Sylvie Hyde from the current Board.

Due to a policy change in year 2002, ISPA cancelled the 2 international chapters outside of USA, hence the formation of a spa association in Malaysia then, came to an end.

In April 2005, upon the encouragement Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH), its then Vice President, Ms Maleia Marsden, called for a meeting to discuss the various issues faced by the booming spa industry. This meeting became the inaugural meeting on the formation of a spa association in Malaysia, with the setting up of a Pro-tem Committee.

After nearly 2 years of dedicated work of the Pro-tem committee, AMSPA was officially registered by the Registrar of Societies (ROS) on 12 September 2006, as a national body to represent the interest of the spas owners, spa operators and spa goers in the country.