Hong Kong is a city where people like to look their best, driving a high demand for the most innovative facial treatments – the best of which can be found at the city’s high-end hotel spas. So, whether you’re looking for a post-flight boost, a lifting Chinese face massage, the latest laser technology, or simply to lie back and be pampered, here’s our pick of Hong Kong’s most spectacular face therapies.
Margy Monte-Carlo at The Peninsula
The facial: Ultimate Radiance Aesthetic Facial
Best for: Smooth, sculpted skin
High-tech meets hands-on at The Peninsula Hong Kong, where Margy Monte-Carlo’s signature facial is combined with ancient Chinese bone-setting techniques. Performed in shadowy suites overlooking Victoria Harbour, the 100-minute treatment begins with an application of cooling algae that’s stimulated with (entirely pain-free) ultrasonic cold plasma waves, boosting the growth of new collagen. Next, there’s a firm yet incredibly relaxing Chinese massage, which noticeably lifts and tightens the skin. The treatment ends with a bespoke face mask and scalp massage, which lowers blood pressure while leaving skin looking noticeably younger.
Margy Monte-Carlo at The Peninsula
QMS at the Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong
The facial: Collagen Renewal Facial
Best for: A boost of post-flight radiance
This 90-minute, science-based treatment delivers an immediate hydrating boost to long-haul-lashed skin. It involves double cleansing with gentle milk and purifying gel in preparation for exfoliation with an AHA-active salve and peeling cream. While your lavish algae face mask is working, your neck, décolletage, hands, and feet are massaged, lulling you into a coma-like state. It wraps up with a hydrating toner, soothing serum, and another face mask, before a selection of creams suited specifically to your skin is applied. Between the skincare and the snoozes, no one would guess you’d just walked off a 12-hour overnight flight.
QMS at the Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong
10X Longevity at The Upper House Hong Kong
The facial: Biodynamic Facial
Best for: Uplifting (inside and out)
Since opening, The Upper House has been without an onsite spa – and it always felt like something was missing. Enter: 10X Longevity, a new boutique wellness facility housed in the building opposite. Its regenerative face treatments are delivered by the city’s most sought-after facialist, Bernadette Fava, whose facials are completely bespoke and combined with fascia muscle release (to undo underlying tension), lymphatic drainage (to reduce puffiness), LYMA PRO laser therapy (to boost elasticity), and biodynamic massage (to connect to the universal life force). Post-treatment, you’ll be glowing on the inside as well as outside.
10X Longevity at The Upper House Hong Kong
Joanna Vargas at the Four Seasons Hong Kong
The facial: Triple Crown Royale Facial
Best for: Being red carpet ready
Esthetician Joanna Vargas has been an A-list favourite for years, prepping the likes of Julianna Moore, Rachel Weisz, and Greta Gerwig for the Oscars and Met Gala. Her signature treatment is the Triple Crown Royale, which combines a range of highly-effective ingredients (centella asiatica, hyaluronic acid, panthenol, shea butter) with exfoliation (to slough away dead skin cells) and microcurrents (to increase circulation and lymphatic drainage, rejuvenate tissue, and minimise fine lines and wrinkles). Facials are tailored to meet the client’s needs, and while there are immediate, visible results, regular treatments provide culminative benefits.
Joanna Vargas at the Four Seasons Hong Kong
La Mer at the Ritz Carlton Hong Kong
The facial: Genaissance de la Mer Facial
Best for: Relaxing with results
This is the only hotel spa in the city where you’ll find La Mer treatments – and the 90-minute Genaissance de la Mer facial, featuring the brand’s latest serum-essence, is the most luxurious of them all. Feel your pulse slow and shoulders slump from the moment you enter the treatment room, which overlooks Victoria Harbour and smells like the ocean mixed with lavender and basil. Enter a Zen-like state of calm as layers of diamond-dust cleanser, cell-regenerating toner, healing concentrates, and a plumping face mask are applied. Wake up to glowing, glassy skin before taking tea in the relaxation room.
