UPDATED: June 2012
Check out our 10 Best Luxury Hotel Spas for 2012.
Serenity Now! is the clarion call of that inimitable Seinfeld character who looks for peace and quiet in all the wrong places. Too bad he didn’t know about the luxury spas below. Each one offers no end of peace and calm. You’re likely to pay dearly for the experience, but it’s one you won’t soon forget.
Amangani (Jackson, Wyoming)
It’s all peace all the time at this all-suites resort, where western hospitality complements Eastern simplicity — high ceilings, platform beds, and large soaking tubs. Just gazing at the mountain and valleys is therapeutic enough. The spa and fitness programs are icing on the cake. (photo, right)
St. Regis Monarch Beach Resort & Spa (Dana Point, California)
With luxuriant, fully wired rooms and round-the-clock services, this 172-acre resort mixes modern comforts with more traditional flourishes. Pacific Ocean views complement the world-class spa and championship golf course. Can’t live without your room’s plush robe or Bose wave CD player? Order them from the Monarch’s store.
Arizona Biltmore Resort & Spa (Phoenix)
Entering the 1929 landmark hotel is like stepping back to a gentler, more refined era. One way to escape from modern-day pressures is to rent one of the private cabanas near the Paradise Pool—they’re equipped with mineral water, shower, and phone. (photo, right)
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Greenbrier (White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia)
The grande dame of spa resorts has a genteel air — think afternoon tea and dressing for dinner. The old-world grandeur has attracted its share of royalty and celebrities. Tennis and golf are de rigueur; you can also try skeet and trapshooting, even falconry.
Four Seasons Resort Hualalai (Kona, Hawaii)
Attentive service and great culinary sensibilities make for an unforgettable experience at this beautiful resort. Treat yourself to a massage in the spacious spa complex or garden. Guest rooms with large lanais facing the ocean make room-service breakfasts in the fresh air almost irresistible. (photo, right)
Park Hyatt Beaver Creek Resort & Spa (Avon, Colorado)
The feng shui-inspired Allegria Spa is one reason this ski-in, ski-out resort is popular year-round with skiers and nonskiers. Want the feng shui feeling? Try a Balance massage, performed by two therapists and then relax by the fireplace in the Sanctuary.
Grove Park Inn Resort & Spa (Asheville, North Carolina)
The 40,000-square-foot spa of this Arts and Crafts-style resort is a subterranean granite-walled fantasy punctuated with skylights, multiple pools, and waterfalls. Touch screens enable therapists to set the treatment-room temperature, music selection, and lighting levels. Fireplaces warm all waiting areas. (photo, right)
Post Ranch Inn (Big Sur, California)
The eclectic structures of this nature-oriented property, atop a ridge on the Big Sur coastline, perch on stilts amid trees and jut out of cliffs. Quigong, Pilates, and yoga are offered, but you may never want to leave your room — each has a fireplace, massage table, and oversize slate-lined tub.
Ritz-Carlton (Key Biscayne, Florida)
The pampering at this oceanside resort extends beyond the spa’s creative wraps and “facial elixir” treatments. Tennis “butlers” retrieve wayward balls; pool attendants offer iced towels and spritz mineral water. The inimitable Ritz touch is apparent everywhere and in everything. (photo, right)
Bellagio Las Vegas (Las Vegas)
More than a thousand water nozzles sway and spray to music over an eight-and-a-half acre lake in front of the Bellagio. The spectacle continues inside. You can dine at 12 restaurants, including Le Cirque and Olives; ooh and aah while watching Cirque du Soleil; and luxuriate at the spa.