Sun, holidays and your skin
Light and colour get in each other's way. If there is fresh colour from sun or a sunbed in your skin, it takes up the light from a laser or IPL and the energy goes to the wrong place; that is why tanned skin is not lasered. After a treatment your skin is more sensitive to sun instead, and then daily SPF 50 belongs with it.
- Before laser
- Your own colour back
- After a peel
- SPF 50 daily
- Sun holiday
- Book it afterwards
- Pigment programme
- Not in summer
What the sun does
to your skin
Tanning is not a colour you get but a reaction your skin makes. That is exactly why it gets in the way of a treatment with light.
Under UV the pigment cells in your epidermis make extra melanin. That pigment settles as a layer above the cell nuclei and catches part of the light coming in afterwards. Your skin does that to protect itself, so it is a sign that damage has occurred and not that nothing was wrong.
That extra pigment stays for weeks to months, even when you feel your colour has already gone. For a laser only what is in your skin at that moment counts, and not what you see in the mirror.
Sun also speeds up the ageing of your skin and drives pigment spots. With melasma, sun protection is not advice alongside the treatment but part of the treatment itself: without that protection the rest falls back within one season.
Freshly treated skin is temporarily missing part of its defences. After a peel, after microneedling and after laser the barrier is more open and the pigment reacts more sharply to UV. That is the period in which one day without protection can leave a spot that was not there before.
What sun protection does exactly for pigment is on melasma and on pigment spots. What part your skin type plays is on the Fitzpatrick skin type.
When we wait a while
There are two moments when sun moves an appointment: the colour already in there, and the sun that is coming. Each has a different solution.
If you come with fresh colour from sun or a sunbed, a treatment with light does not go ahead. The light aims at pigment, and the pigment you have just built up lies in front of it. The energy then lands in the top layer instead of at the hair root or the spot, and that brings a risk of a burn or a new discolouration.
How many weeks you then wait, you hear at the intake. That is deliberately not given here as a number: it depends on your skin type, on how much colour there is and on where on your body the treatment would happen. The measurement can simply go ahead at that moment, and treatments that do not work with light usually can too.
If a sun holiday is in the calendar, the reverse applies. Freshly treated skin should stay out of the sun for a while, and that is exactly what does not work on holiday. So book the treatment afterwards, or well before, so that your skin has settled before you leave.
The measurement is useful before departure too. You then know what to watch out for in the sun, and on your return there is a starting point to begin from straight away, rather than only then thinking about the waiting time.
Anyone starting in autumn has it easier on all these points. The sun is lower, the holidays are over, and a programme lasting months does not run into summer halfway through. That is also why the calendar for pigment programmes is fuller from September than in May.
What a skin consultation involves
What helps and what we advise against
A sun holiday need not put your programme on hold. Mostly it decides the order in which you book things.
This works
- The measurement and the advice, just before departure too
- Treatments that do not work with light, in consultation with your therapist
- Starting a programme in autumn, once the sun is out of it
- Maintenance you have without recovery time, such as a gentle facial treatment
We advise against this
- Laser or IPL on skin with fresh colour from sun or a sunbed
- A peel just before a week in full sun
- Starting a pigment programme in the months of May to August
- Skipping sun protection as soon as a spot lightens. Then it is back within a season
What the sun does
per treatment
Whether a treatment goes ahead on tanned skin, and what to take into account in the weeks after. The rules apply to a sunbed as well; it gives the same colour.
| Treatment | With colour from the sun | In the weeks after |
|---|---|---|
| Laser hair removal | No. The light aims at pigment, and fresh colour lies in front of it. | Keep the treated area out of full sun and protect it. |
| IPL for pigment or redness | No. IPL sends several wavelengths at once and is even more sensitive to this. | Protect daily, otherwise the discolouration comes back. |
| Chemical peel | Usually not, and otherwise at a lower strength. | Let the peeling happen, do not pick, SPF 50 daily. |
| Microneedling | Often yes, provided your skin is not burnt. | A few days red, then protect against UV. |
| Cosmelan and Dermamelan | No, and we do not start between May and August in any case. | Peeling, and after that protection all year round. |
| Fotona 4D | Not on tanned skin; it is still a laser. | A day red and warm, then protect. |
| HydraFacial | Yes. No light is involved. | No recovery time. The usual sun protection still applies. |
| Dermaplaning | Yes, unless your skin is burnt. | No recovery time. The usual sun protection still applies. |
Where to find us
in Rotterdam
On the north side of the city, in a residential area and not on a shopping street. That helps with parking and it is quieter when you have just been treated.
3054 LS Rotterdam
You park in the street. The route from the ring road and by public transport is on the contact page.
Route and contact- Monday
- Closed
- Tuesday
- 10:00 to 18:00
- Wednesday
- 10:00 to 21:00
- Thursday
- 10:00 to 21:00
- Friday
- 10:00 to 18:00
- Saturday
- 10:00 to 18:00
- Sunday
- Closed
The calendar is more up to date than this list: within opening hours not every hour has a therapist free.
The therapist looks at your skin and at the area due when you arrive. If they see fresh colour, the light treatment does not go ahead and we discuss what is possible at that moment. That judgement comes before the calendar.
Who works here, with what title and what that title means exactly, is on the team page with photos and all.
Frequently asked questions
How long do I have to wait before lasering after the sun?
Until your skin has its own colour back. How many weeks that takes you hear at the intake, because it depends on your skin type, on how much colour there is and on the area. What you see in the mirror is usually ahead of the pigment still in your skin.
Can I go in the sun after laser hair removal?
The treated area should stay out of full sun for the first few days, and be protected after that. Freshly treated skin reacts more sharply to UV, and then a discolouration can be left that was not there before. Covering up works better than cream alone.
Does a sunbed count too?
Yes, exactly so. A sunbed makes the same pigment as the sun, and that pigment gets in the way of a light treatment in the same manner. So do say it if your colour comes from a sunbed.
What SPF do I need after a treatment?
SPF 50, every day, even when it is cloudy. With a peel and with a pigment programme that is not a side issue but part of the treatment: without protection the result falls back within a season.
Can I have a treatment just before my holiday?
Preferably not. Freshly treated skin should stay out of the sun for a while, and that rarely works on holiday. Book the treatment afterwards, or well before so that your skin has settled. The measurement and the advice are possible, and those are useful before departure.
Why do you not start a pigment programme in summer?
Because a programme like Cosmelan or Dermamelan lasts months and your skin is extra sensitive to UV in that time. In the summer months the sun works against the treatment, and then you pay for a result that falls back straight away. So we start outside the months of May to August.
I am naturally dark. Does this apply to me too?
Your own colour is something other than fresh colour from the sun. Every skin type is treated here, with a setting to match. What matters is the colour that has recently been added, because the setting is not tuned to that.
What is possible when I have just come back from holiday?
The measurement and the advice are always possible, and treatments without light usually are too. Then your starting point is fixed and you can begin as soon as your colour has gone, rather than only then thinking about the waiting time.
Do I need sun protection in winter too?
With a pigment programme and in the weeks after a peel, yes, every day. UV comes through cloud and through glass too, and pigment cells respond to it all year round. Outside those programmes it is mostly a matter of habit: what you skip in winter, you skip in March too.
Does sun protection really help that much with pigmentation?
With pigment it is the largest part of the work. A spot that has been lightened comes back as soon as UV falls on it again, and that goes faster than the treatment lightened it. So protecting daily is cheaper than treating again.
Where in Rotterdam are you?
At Weissenbruchlaan 166 in Rotterdam, on the north side of the city in a residential area. You park in the street. The route and the opening hours are on our contact page.
Unsure about the timing
Let us know when you book. If a holiday is in the calendar or you have just come back, we choose the treatment and the order accordingly, rather than having you come for nothing.
If you know what you are after but are unsure about the timing or the combination with something else, ask via WhatsApp. There is a therapist on the other end and not a form.
Last updated on 12 September 2026 . Rates and treatment times are checked at every change.
Book it at the right moment
At the skin consultation we measure your skin and discuss what is possible now and what had better wait. Even if you have just come back from holiday, that is the right starting point.
Book a consultationNot sure yet? Ask your question