Urban spas have come a long way from a perfunctory massage in a windowless room. Nowhere is this more true than in Hong Kong, where you don't have to look far to find thoughtful, luxurious spas packed with lavish facilities, offering everything from pampering rituals overlooking the harbour to full-blown retreats. Here's our pick for some self-care in the neon-lit city.
The Peninsula Spa
This palatial spa is perhaps the prettiest in Hong Kong, with Chinese fretwork, lashings of marble, low lighting, cascading water and views across Victoria Harbour. Treatments include opulent massages, wait-listed Margy Monte Carlo facials, and hours-long rituals combining the two. If you're a guest of the hotel, the spa can also be combined with Peninsula's new ‘Life Lived Best’ programme, which includes in-room exercise equipment, fitness and meditation videos, Subtle Energies sleep patches, and complimentary wellbeing classes.
The Peninsula Spa
The Oriental Spa at the Landmark Mandarin Oriental
Spread across two floors, this spa is a favourite with the city's models and fashionable set, who come as much for the fitness classes as they do for the energy flow massages. Circuit training, TRX and aquafit all appear on the weekly schedule, while pop-up wellness programmes cover everything from spirituality to nutrition. Facilities include a heated 20-metre indoor swimming pool, a bronze mosaic Rasul, and a gym filled with all the latest equipment. The spa is also home to the only Bastien Gonzales mani-pedi studio in Hong Kong.
The Oriental Spa at the Landmark Mandarin Oriental
The Spa at Four Seasons
Even following a full refurbishment, it’s the expansive spa that remains the main draw of Four Seasons Hong Kong. It features a carousel of treatment rooms: some with up-close harbour views, others with roof gardens, and one set up for Ayurveda. The menu covers a myriad of treatments, from abyanga and shirodhara to chakra balancing and gong baths – plus massages and facials, of course. Stellar amenities include a vitality pool and amethyst crystal steam room, as well as access to one of the best outdoor swimming pools in Hong Kong.
The Spa at Four Seasons
The Mandarin Spa at the Mandarin Oriental
This Hong Kong institution has all the five-star frills, but the icing on the cake is its exceptional spa. Located on the 24th floor, there are a host of scrubs, wraps, massages and facials available but – with a traditional Chinese medicine doctor on staff – it's local therapies that lead the way. Try the signature 90-minute Oriental Essence massage or a chi nei tseng stomach massage to improve digestion and release pent-up negative energy. Those with a few hours to spare should sign up for traditional Chinese therapy involving singing bowls and meridian massage on a warm volcanic stone bed.
The Mandarin Spa at the Mandarin Oriental
Asaya at the Rosewood Hong Kong
More than your average hotel spa, Asaya is a comprehensive urban wellness concept offering everything from sleep retreats to sexual health workshops. There's a glut of gorgeous treatment rooms, a hydrotherapy suite, yoga studios, and a huge high-tech gym, as well Asaya Kitchen which specialises in healthy Mediterranean cuisine. To fully immerse yourself in the experience, book one of two Asaya lodges tucked within the spa gardens; they come with their own private spa treatment rooms.
Asaya at the Rosewood Hong Kong
The Ritz-Carlton Spa
Set on the 116th floor of the International Commerce Centre, you’ll want to arrive early to the Ritz-Carlton Spa to take full advantage of the bird's eye view: helicopters pass at eye-level, laps of the swimming pool come with wisps of cloud, and there are indoor and outdoor jacuzzis to flit between. 11 sky pod-like treatment rooms include a lavish couples' suite with a whirlpool in the window, and the extensive menu features an impressive range of anti-ageing facials using cryotherapy, nanotechnology, micro-currents and lasers.
The Ritz-Carlton Spa
For further information or to book a spa session, please contact your lifestyle manager. Based in Hong Kong and looking for next-level lifestyle management? Get in touch with Quintessentially Hong Kong.
