Three of the best new spas
From a country house hotel in the Cotswolds to a hillside resort in Crete. Jasper Spires reports
Wellness in the Maldives
The arrival of the Joali Being resort in Raa Atoll is set to transform the Maldives into a popular wellness destination, says Maria Shollenbarger in the Financial Times. Everything about the resort, from the rooms to the menus, is built around the concept of wellness. The Joali Being’s “immersive programmes”, developed in tandem with Gerry Bodeker, a professor at the University of Oxford, range from five nights to three weeks, allowing guests to make the most of the indoor and outdoor-therapy oases, hydrotherapy hall and herbology centre, with its extensive gardens and resident herbalist. Even the 68 beach and water villas come with therapeutic lighting and musical instruments to aid meditation. Villas from $2,142 a night, joali.com
Following the science in the Cotswolds
The Botanical Bothy at Thyme, an award-winning country house hotel in the Cotswolds, will offer a new take on wellness when it opens in March – one based on science as opposed to Sanskrit and scented candles, says Susan d’Arcy in The Times. It is sure to be one of the hottest new spas of 2022. The spa consists of a “spacious hammam-style wet room, decorated in neutral tones, with soft curves, ergonomic heated seating and massage benches”. From there, you will be able to walk out into a garden planted with healing herbs, “guarded by tall yew and copper beech hedges so you needn’t feel nervous about stripping for an al-fresco dip in the side-by-side soaking tubs, or self-conscious while lounging on day beds beside the roaring outdoor fire”. The bespoke Bertioli products used in the spa are “deliciously fragranced with essential oils of wild water mint, thyme, rosemary and apple blossom found along the estate’s riverbanks”. “From my first sniff I’m sold.” From £320, thyme.co.uk
Back to basics in Crete
The spa at the new Royal Senses Resort & Spa, in Crete, consists of a long outdoor terrace with an infinity pool, whirlpools and canopied Bali beds, and an indoor hydrotherapy centre. “I have a Cretan raki and olive oil massage… that leaves my muscles soft as a chamois cloth,” says Sarah Holt on Mailonline. The use of local ingredients and materials is a feature that runs throughout the hotel, from the ceramics and artworks created by Cretan artisans to the terracottas, woods and rattan, reflected in the “earthiness of the hotel’s hillside setting”. From £195, hilton.com