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.

Wrapped around a bay in Northern Greece with a marina for yachts up to 33 metres at the centre, the Sani Resort has five spas (with just a golf buggy ride between each). There is an extraordinary amount of treatments and wellness options for guests to try, all boasting luxurious products by Anne Semonin.

Guests at Sani Club can head to the beautiful Club Spa to unwind with a range of treatments, including Thai massage, Mediterranean salt exfoliation and Indian Shirodhara, among many others. Additionally, there's a couple's suite where you can enjoy a treatment with your other half. Bright, light and airy, this is an elegant space with both indoor and outdoor relaxation areas alongside thermal offerings.

The resort's newest hotel is the stunning Sani Dunes, which features the D spa. Here, guests can partake in the latest cryotherapy treatments, Xerolipo Bodysculpting, Opera LED therapy and a sparkling pink quartz exfoliation body scrub, among an expansive list of relaxing therapies.

Guests staying at Sani Asterias can enjoy an exclusive-use and fully-equipped spa, complete with two private rooms with steam baths and a couple's suite – this VIP-only spa is just one of the reasons to visit Halkidiki this summer.

The towering atrium that houses the Finca Cortesin spa is a soothing oasis, which boasts a 25 metre salt water indoor pool bathed in natural light. Mirrored doors lead guests to beautiful stone thermal areas with steam rooms, Finnish saunas, a plunge pool and the first snow cave to be built in Spain.

A huge range of treatments are on offer, from manicures and pedicures to facials and body wraps – don't deny yourself the indulgence of a therapeutic Thai massage, which will leave you feeling so relaxed you can barely grasp your post-treatment cup of herbal tea.

Guests can also make use of the fully-equipped gymnasium just around the corner and the three outdoor pools – opt for 50, 35 or 30 metre lengths to keep in shape while on vacation in this tranquil corner of Casares.

Best by boat: Superyachts can make use of the anchorage just off the hotel's Beach Club, tender in and take a private car up to the hotel, which is just 1.5 kilometres away.

This glamorous beachfront resort is the first phase of an audacious plan to turn a little-known but spectacular pocket of the south west Peloponnese into a rival for Sardinia’s Costa Smeralda. Explore Messinia’s secret islets and hidden bays on board the hotel's yachts, Carmen Serena and Carmen Fontana, with local crew recounting the area’s ancient myths and legends from the deck. The spa also references Messinia’s fascinating history. Its indulgent olive-oil treatments were inspired by techniques described on centuries-old clay tablets discovered at the nearby Palace of Nestor. They outlined the ancient Greeks’ bathing rituals, elements of which have been incorporated into signature treatments. These include Nestor’s Baths, a hydro massage in a therapeutic bath, using herbs from the spa garden, and the Healing Massage Remedy by Hippocrates that combines therapies described by the father of western medicine with cutting-edge methods.

Best by boat

Kalamata Marina, about 20 miles away by road, accommodates small superyachts, but if you moor in one of the quiet coves near the resort you can zip straight back to your yacht to explore the beautiful western Peloponnese coast when you are all spa-ed out.

There’s no better place to avail yourself of age-defying know-how than at this sexy space-age Saint-Tropez bolt-hole. Add in the country’s first Crème de la Mer spa and you have an unbeatable formula. The skincare brand’s success is centred around its Miracle Broth, made from sea kelp treated with light and sound to intensify their potency. The results can be astonishing. The food here is all about stripping out unnecessary sugar and fat. Don’t worry: that tastes a whole lot better than it sounds in dishes such as celeriac mousse followed by coffee parfait.

Helicopter in

Port de Saint-Tropez, just north, accommodates 100 visiting yachts, but those over 70m must drop anchor out of port. Helicopter facilities are at La Ramatuelle.

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.

Rocco Forte, who built Verdura, is one of the world’s leading hoteliers and this is one of the Mediterranean's best spas. Forte has also represented Britain at the World Triathlon Championships and looks 10 years younger than his 70 years. How does he do it? Verdura’s anti-ageing Vita Health programme is overseen by Forte’s personal physician, Dr Nyjon Eccles, an integrated medicine expert who will customise treatments according to your test results. Yachts can moor just off this rugged stretch of coast and ask for masseurs to come on board. On land, the glamorous spa flows from an impressive gym and workout studio, to a vast hammam and alfresco hydrotherapy pools that overlook cypress-studded hills.

Helicopter in

Anchor and take a helicopter in to the resort’s helipad. This coast boasts beaches, olive groves and ancient history, so stick around for post-spa cruising.

From the glass-walled gym, you look out on to a sparkling bay, where there’s always a visiting yacht – as well as the hotel’s own charters, an Azimut 55 and a 30 metre Turkish gulet. This slick resort has enlisted the personal training services of Bodyism, the fitness company that keeps Rosie Huntington-Whiteley’s curves in cover-girl shape. Post workout, soothe aching limbs with a sea salt and oil scrub and an Aegean sea shell massage. Bodyism’s philosophy is hardcore but it’s not heartless, so sushi at the resort’s branch of the swanky Japanese restaurant, Zuma, is also on the schedule.

There are changes planned for the spa this summer so keep your eyes peeled as it looks set to become even more stunning in 2016.

Best by boat

Yachts anchor out in the sheltered bay around D-Hotel’s beaches. Tenders zip guests onto the jetty and straight into the heart of the resort. If you fancy a couple of nights on dry land book into the Presidential Suite which offers spectacular views across the bay.

The nuns moved out a century ago but they still ring the church bell on your arrival at this heavenly spa hotel. Perched high on the cliffs at Conca dei Marini, overlooking the Amalfi Coast, the old convent is set among herb gardens that cascade down towards a wonderfully dramatic infinity pool; the perfect spot for eyeing the superyachts in the bay below.

In keeping with the ecclesial feel, treatments use Santa Maria Novella’s healing herbal creams and balms, originally made by Florentine monks for Catherine de Medici. The vaulted treatment rooms, in the old wine cellar, are cool and quiet. There, you can enjoy a herbal body scrub, nourishing bee pollen facial or maybe an Aloe Coulis body wrap that takes the sting out of sunburnt skin with manuka honey and ice poultices. Amen to that.

Built from scratch in 2011 in the style of a traditional whitewashed village, this place is pretty enough for French Vogue to book it as a backdrop for fashion shoots. Staff welcome your bambinos with open arms at one of the Med’s best kids’ clubs. Furthermore, it doesn’t close until 10pm, so you can park the progeny and enjoy a gaping, guilt-free window to hit the spa. Expect acres of buttermilk marble, flickering candles, soothing pools, toga-clad therapists and top-notch treatments (Aquann, the saline float tank, is one of the best legal highs available).

Best by boat

The 318-berth Cala Ponte Marina from Camper & Nicholsons has recently opened, just down the road.