19 of the best luxury spas in the Mediterranean

From Monaco to Bodrum the Mediterranean is full of hotspots that attract some of the largest private superyachts and the most expensive luxury yachts for charter. Thankfully, the Mediterranean is also home to some of the world’s best spas. So after a long week of socialising at some top Mediterranean party destinations, hop off your yacht and enjoy a spot of pampering.

1. The Opium Health Spa, Elysium Hotel, Cyprus

From a bright and contemporary reception area with a Grecian mosaic at one end, stroll down the stone-floored corridor to the vast indoor pool, which is surrounded by comfy loungers and lies adjacent to a Jacuzzi, sauna and steam room, perfect for an afternoon of relaxation after a stint in the fully-equipped gymnasium. Opt for a Pilates class with the charming in-house personal trainer to help improve your posture and core strength.

For the main pampering event, retire behind a curved wooden wall into the Balinese styled relaxation lounge, a quiet spot to enjoy a cup of herbal tea and a book before your treatment. Begin with an ESPA full body Balinese massage and enjoy 80 minutes of muscle unravelling by way of warm essential oils and hot stones — be sure to say what pressure you prefer, though a stronger massage will leave you feeling light and extremely relaxed. To add to your experience, opt for a restorative mud wrap to leave your skin feeling smooth and rejuvenated.

Best by boat: Superyachts up to 110 metres can moor at the Limassol Marina on the southern coast of the island.

With calming views out onto the gulf of Elounda the spa at the heart of Crete’s Blue Palace Resort offers 24 treatment rooms, three thalasso pools and two traditional Turkish Hammams. As well as its focus on Thalassotherapy, using seawater as a form of therapy, the spa offers a series of treatments using natural ingredients from Crete to improve your wellbeing.

Try the Traditional Cretan Experience, which starts with a relaxing soak in a hot tub of seawater at 34◦C, with chamomile, dittany and sage. This is then followed by a body scrub using a mixture of dried herbs, olive oil and warm honey before a final massage using olive oil, herbs, honey and raki.

Leave time after your treatment to unwind in the luminous relaxation pool which, during special spa evenings, is lit by candles and has a musician playing a grand piano.

Best by boat: Moor out in the bay, which is protected by the now deserted island of Spinalonga, and tender in to the hotel’s private jetty.

From the times of Emperor Augustus Capri has been a favourite retreat for Italy’s most influential. The draw of the island is not just its natural beauty and balmy temperatures but also its pure air and rich, health giving waters.

Located in the Capri Palace Hotel, and run under the guidance of Professor Francesco Canonaco, Capri Beauty Farm provides a balance of luxurious spa treatments with long-term medical benefits. The Beauty Farm offers the Metabolic Response weight loss program, the Clean & Lean method by Bodyism. It is also home to the “Leg School” — designed to give you the perfect pins the method has a celebrity following which includes Gwyneth Paltrow, Mariah Carey and Julia Roberts.

If you just want to recover from the stresses of life then book in for the three-day “La Dolce Vita” programme and truly embrace Mediterranean indulgence.

Best by boat

Capri is home to some of the most iconic Italian moorings. Simply anchor out and tender in to enjoy the delights of the Capri Palace.

Resplendent on the 43rd floor of this slick beachfront hotel — just one floor from the top — the views of the city from 43 The Spa are staggering indeed. The treatments are spine-tinglingly good, too. Kick-start the proceedings with a circulation-boosting whirl around the circuit of vitality pools, steam rooms and ice fountains. Then switch the chromotherapy mood lighting to a soothing blue before you sample the wickedly indulgent spa treats from Natura Bissé, Spain’s most innovative skincare brand. Everything here looks tempting, but if you sign up for only one treatment, make it the 43 Sea Experience. The therapist uses deep-tissue chiropractic techniques followed by pressure manoeuvres with small sea shells. It’s so relaxing most people struggle to stay awake.

Best by boat

After completing an €80 million development in 2014 a further expansion is underway at OneOcean Port Vell in Barcelona, which can accommodate yachts up to 190 metres. Its central location makes it perfect if you are planning to spend 24 hours away from your superyacht in Barcelona.

There really is nowhere else quite like this place: a 15th century fishing village built on a tiny islet that rises out of the sparkling Adriatic Sea. Its cute cottages have been converted to five-star hotel suites and, across on the mainland at Aman’s Villa Miločer, is one of the best luxury spas in the Mediterranean, with a heated indoor/outdoor swimming pool and treatment rooms with fireplaces for cosy winter pampering. Therapists make full use of the herbs that grow wild along this rugged coastline to create restorative massages that are heavenly scented with local valerian, sage, thyme and lavender. You can moor in the nearby Bay of Kotor at the Adriatic’s superyacht capital, Porto Montenegro, which has ambitions to become as important as Saint-Tropez and Porto Cervo on the Mediterranean yachting calendar.

Best by boat

Superyacht Heaven Porto Montenegro has 400 berths ranging up to 180 metre and a huge range of facilities. Yachts often anchor off Villa Milocer and tender into its pier, or to the pier on Sveti Stefan island.

Located on the north coast of the Bodrum Peninsula, a destination that’s currently sizzling hot with superyacht owners, this resort is a great choice for families. Rooms are big enough for bounding, the restaurant has a sweet shop, there’s a dedicated children’s pool, playgrounds and the MiniMO Panda Club, which will entertain your four to 12 year olds. If you book the VIP sea-facing apartment, which features its own hammam, sauna and spa pool, you might even raise a smile from that sulky teenager. The luxury spa offers a myriad of treatments using olive oil, local pumice stone, honey and herbs from the resort’s organic garden. If you venture out for some adult time, head for the grand, white marble hammam. A Turkish delight: you’ll be laid on warm stone, brushed with soft muslin until you’re heaped with cloud-like piles of bubbles, gently scrubbed and massaged. You might even forget you have a family.

This award-winning clinic offers a full medical menu in a warm and pampering environment that feels rather more caring than clinical. There’s revolutionary work going on here and you can be one of the first to try pioneering cognitive stimulation. It uses electrodes to monitor brain activity, identify weakness and prescribe exercises to strengthen key neural pathways for protection against early dementia and Alzheimer’s. If getting a good night’s sleep is the problem, check into the specialist clinic to reset your body’s biorhythms through a programme of meditation, acupuncture and nocturnal polygraphs. General health is boosted with intravenous vitamin drips as well as macrobiotic cookery classes in the chef’s studio.

After the energy-zapping fluster of the Côte d’Azur, the green hills of Grasse are a rejuvenating haven. This Shiseido Spa is housed at the Hôtel Le Mas Candille in the medieval village of Mougins, 10 minutes from Cannes – and it brings the latest Japanese-inspired anti-ageing treats to brighten skin and undo the sins of sun worship. Indeed, as you cross the spa’s ornamental bridge you can feel your frown unfurrow. All the treatments use the Qi method: a traditional Oriental philosophy that aims to restore the vital energy that runs through the body. The Future Solution LX Facial Ceremony, which uses ingredients ranging from pearl to green tea and star fruit, involves a number of delicate steps, from exfoliation to light steaming with Oshibori hot towels and a firming face massage. And there’s the excellent Shiseido boutique, which sells hard-to-find specialist anti-ageing creams and Serge Lutens fragrances.

Resembling a luxury spaceship hovering over Port Hercules, this massive spa is a suitably cutting-edge place to rejuvenate after the Monaco Grand Prix or Monaco Yacht Show. There’s a spectacular pool and a sprawling gym, both of which overlook the clutch of superyachts far below, but the must-have experience here is cryotherapy. Used in the sporting world to help speed athletes’ recovery, clients brave a cold sauna (at -110C) for three minutes, wearing protective socks, gloves and not much else. This is not for the panic-inclined but it’s worth gritting your teeth for the serotonin-induced marathon runner glow. Kiss insomnia, jet lag and muscle inflammation goodbye and rejoice in your newly glowing skin. The less intrepid can enjoy elaborate pampering, too. Don’t miss the Absolute Youth Experience, with its mother-of-pearl powder body peel and series of massages and scented baths. Cleopatra would certainly have approved.

A 10 minute tender ride from Puerto Banús harbour, Puente Romano is a palm-fringed oasis set in gardens brimming with orange trees, open cabanas and swings that gently rock to the rhythm of the ocean. Treatments at its Six Senses Spa have a wonderfully Mediterranean flavour thanks to the Organic Pharmacy’s uplifting orange blossom therapies, while the spa itself exudes typical Andalucian charm with its hand-painted tiles and natural stone and timber.

The focal point here is the splendid wet area, where you can relax in the perfectly ergonomic loungers, your privacy assured by waterfalls running down the big windows and a strict limit on numbers. For more intense beautifying, the Olive Oil and Sea Salt Treatment is perfect for softening parched skin. Come back later for an Indian head massage and you’ll ooze out the door. There’s a cluster of fine dining options around the hacienda-style courtyard; don’t miss chef Dani García’s, which has two Michelin stars.