Discover New York City’s new breed of wellness clubs

With the arrival of 2024, many of us have New Year's resolutions related to health and wellness. Or maybe you're just ready for a refresh? Either way, New York City has welcomed a new breed of wellness centre. Unlike a typical spa, these fuse the ever-popular social club model with wellness, offering a sanctuary-like space to experience the latest advances in wellness alongside tried-and-true techniques to members and visitors. From lymphatic compression to infrared sauna sessions, acupuncture to sound baths, these seven alternative spas and wellness clubs offer the latest wellness technology.

Remedy Place

This Flatiron retreat bills itself as a 'social wellness club,' and when you arrive in the 7,000-square-foot space, it all makes sense. There are serene spots to gather, as well as private and shared rooms to book therapies like infrared saunas, hyperbaric chambers, IV vitamin drips, and cryotherapy. The lymphatic compression has you don a pair of trousers and boots that compress and decompress automatically over an hour, helping to drain toxins. 

Book the Contrast Suite for up to six people to take advantage of an infrared sauna and ice baths. You can also set up appointments with practitioners like chiropractors and acupuncturists or join group classes in sound bath meditation and breathwork.

Sage + Sound

Sage + Sound opened on the Upper East Side in 2022 as a 5,000-square-foot mindfulness oasis amidst bustling Manhattan. Inspired by its founders' personal journeys navigating trauma, grief, addiction, and serious health issues, Sage + Sound is intentionally non-prescriptive, in an effort to enable guests to create their own routine. 

Group classes include meditation, breathwork, and sound experiences, whilst services like facials, lymphatic massages, acupuncture, and energy healing like Reiki are all available. There's also a non-toxic nail salon and a healthy and sustainable market and café, Isle of Us, attached to the spa, so it's easy to serve all your needs in one place.

THE WELL

THE WELL has several locations globally, but their New York City club is the original and flagship. Their robust East-meets-West offerings include everything from bodywork to acupuncture to vibrational healing. For example, the Integration Massage allows guests to choose from up to three customisations: hot stones, cupping, deep tissue, or Swedish massage. They also have integrated medicine health coaches to help guide your personalised wellness journey. 

The 13,000-square-foot luxurious facilities here are top-notch, with steam rooms, dry and infrared saunas, and cold plunges; a beautiful meditation dome; beauty and grooming bars with Dyson products; and plush relaxation areas where you can get a foot rub or IV drip. Three studios host movement classes like yoga, barre, and pilates. There's also a café, a well-stocked shop, and visiting master workshops (Deepak Chopra will be there this month).

Wthn

Wthn's tagline is ancient medicine, modern wellness, and they aim to make Traditional Chinese Medicine practices more accessible and understandable to their Western customers. Their curated offerings focus on acupuncture, cupping, and ear seeding, with members getting discounted services. They also sell various herbal blends and tonics. The space is cosy and welcoming, with a minimalistic design. Wthn now has two locations, the original in the Flatiron district and a new one in Williamsburg.

The Spa by Equinox Hotels

Towering above Manhattan with Hudson River views to match, Spa by Equinox at the only hotel and spa by the luxury fitness centre brand focuses on cutting-edge, science-backed medical spa treatments. The results-driven spa menu is designed for inner and outer body improvements, employing the help of known experts with various innovative therapies. 

The Icoone Roboderm is a noninvasive lymphatic body-sculpting device that helps reduce cellulite, muscle tension, and soreness to promote digestion and overall gut health; the Gold Collagen Facial was created in collaboration with renowned plastic surgeon Dr Lara Devgan; and their new Detox Dome, featuring the MLX i3 Dome by Gharieni, utilises Far Infrared Rays technology to stimulate the body's metabolism and encourage sweat production. There are also various saunas, an extensive IV drip menu, and, of course, a state-of-the-art gym to explore.

Gaia NoMaya

Opened in 2022, Gaia NoMaya is the quintessential Brooklyn wellness wonderland. The massive social wellness, music, and arts club in the Prospect-Lefferts Garden neighbourhood is yes, a spa where you can get a massage, Reiki, and use the sauna and ice plunge, but it's so much more. It's also home to a 7,000-square-foot crystal-and-plant-filled event space where it holds healing sessions like cacao ceremonies, sound bath meditations, jazz shows, and even raves. 

Healthy Colombian food and drinks are offered up front in a lush cafe with lots of macrame decor, and there's even a full bar with healthy cocktails and alcohol-free options. The Desert Wellness Lounge has low-slung embroidered couches, art installations, and a giant gong. There's also a room full of amethyst and citrine crystals, an ice plunge and sauna area, and a pink Himalayan salt cave, where they sometimes hold wellness and music events. Yoga and breathwork classes, as well as a lengthy treatment menu with Ayurvedic Abhyanga, Thai, and moon cycle massages, are also available.

ORA

With two NYC locations (one on the Upper East Side and one in Noho), ORA is more specialised and smaller than others on this list, focusing on Eastern medicine offerings, albeit in a modern, Western space primed for relaxation. They offer customised acupuncture and acupuncture facials, cupping, and two types of massages – deep tissue and their signature, which is inspired by acupuncture, Shiatsu, and cupping. A tea and tonic bar also offers herbal blends rooted in Traditional Chinese Medicine. 

Imagine breezing into one of the world’s most exclusive spas for a complimentary treatment. Or sitting down for a consultation with industry-leading practitioners and experts. You’ll feel your best inside and out with a Quintessentially membership – find out more here.