Spas

Cream of the crop of Bermuda’s resort spas, The Spa at Elbow Beach (60 South Shore Rd., tel. 441/239-8900, fax 441/239-8906, www.mandarinoriental.com/bermuda [1], 9 a.m.– 9 p.m. Mon.–Sat., 9 a.m.–8 p.m. Sun.) is also the most luxurious. How luxurious? A basic manicure and pedicure combo will set you back $200. But then again, the facility’s wow factor is pretty impressive. If you feel like treating yourself, this is the place to go. Six private spa suites (including couples’ suites) offer daybeds, granite baths, pebble-lined showers, bamboo floors, and glittering ocean views from private balconies.

Thai, Balinese, and Tibetan influences permeate the facility, located in a separate building near the hotel’s entrance. Massage, face, and body treatments include deep tissue massage (80 minutes, $225); a petal bath (20 minutes, $75), an “age-defying” facial (80 minutes, $225); a marine mud, algae, and clay body wrap (50 minutes, $150); and signature body treatments of two hours or more, ranging from $320 to $900 (for a three-hour couples’ treatment). Forty-eight-hour advance bookings are highly recommended. Minimum age for spa access is 18.

Samadhi (27 Harbour Rd., second floor, Shoreby Building, tel. 441/236-6060 ext. 23, info [at] samadhispas [dot] bm, 9 a.m.–7 p.m. daily) opened at the Newstead Resort & Spa [2] back in 2005, while it was still in the throes of major construction. Today, the spa has an elegant setting on the edge of Hamilton Harbour. With three treatment rooms, two luxurious spa suites, a wet room, lounge, and hair salon, the spa offers body treatments like the sugar glow (90 minutes, $155), using turbinado sugar, lavender, aloe, and rosemary, as well as detoxifying seaweed and mud masks and aroma wraps. Massages range from the “Four Hands,” carried out by two therapists (90 minutes, $270) to couples’ massage ($285) to deep-tissue and prenatal massages. A 15 percent gratuity is added to your final balance, which can only be settled with cash, MasterCard, or Visa.