photos/_pages/dayspas/hero.jpgDay Spas ◆ 18 houses ◆ 18 cities
The second ELIXIR directory: thermal baths, hammams, urban spas and hotel spas that sell day access — inspected to the same standard as the resorts, and bookable for a Tuesday afternoon.
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Showing all 18 day spas
photos/aqua-mayfair/1.jpgLondon ◆ United Kingdom
Day access to a hotel spa that normally keeps to its guests: two pools, a thermal suite and a treatment list that runs to forty pages.
photos/bains-saint-honore/1.jpgParis ◆ France
A cellar spa under the first arrondissement: vaulted stone, warm water and no windows, which after an hour is exactly the appeal.
photos/liquidrom-berlin/1.jpgBerlin ◆ Germany
Salt water held at body temperature under a concrete dome, with music played underwater. The least precious spa in the collection and one of the best.
photos/mueller-bad-muenchen/1.jpgMunich ◆ Germany
Art nouveau bathing halls from 1901, restored rather than modernised. Roman-Irish bath, two pools and tiling worth the entry on its own.
photos/therme-wien-city/1.jpgVienna ◆ Austria
Imperial-era thermal water in the middle of the city, with a sauna world upstairs that most visitors never find.
photos/thermalbad-zurich/1.jpgZurich ◆ Switzerland
A converted brewery with the bathing hall in the old vaults and an irrigation pool on the roof looking over the lake.
photos/bagni-milano/1.jpgMilan ◆ Italy
A courtyard spa behind Brera with a hammam, a small pool and the best facial list in the city.
photos/aire-barcelona/1.jpgBarcelona ◆ Spain
Candlelit bathing in a Gothic Quarter cellar: six pools at six temperatures, salt flotation and no clocks anywhere.
photos/hammam-atocha/1.jpgMadrid ◆ Spain
A traditional hammam run by the same family since 1998: black soap, kessa glove, and tea in the courtyard afterwards.
photos/zuiderbad-amsterdam/1.jpgAmsterdam ◆ Netherlands
A canal-house spa on three narrow floors: sauna at the top, treatments in the middle, and a cold plunge in what was once the cellar kitchen.
photos/kobenhavn-badehus/1.jpgCopenhagen ◆ Denmark
Harbour bathing with a sauna on the water and a cold-water club that meets at seven every morning, all year.
photos/dune-spa-dubai/1.jpgDubai ◆ United Arab Emirates
Day access to a tower spa on the fourteenth floor: snow room, hammam suites and a pool that looks straight down Sheikh Zayed Road.
photos/wat-po-sathorn/1.jpgBangkok ◆ Thailand
Traditional Thai massage practised at the standard of the temple schools, in a quiet shophouse away from the tourist strips.
photos/onsen-shinjuku/1.jpgTokyo ◆ Japan
Real onsen water trucked from Hakone into a Shinjuku basement, open until two in the morning. Tattoo-friendly, unusually.
photos/bathhouse-tribeca/1.jpgNew York ◆ United States
A Russian-Turkish bathhouse rebuilt for people who take contrast bathing seriously: banya, hammam, ice bath and a 25-metre pool.
photos/canyon-day-la/1.jpgLos Angeles ◆ United States
Physician-supervised day treatments in the hills: skin diagnostics, laser, injectables and IV therapy, with a garden to recover in.
photos/ocean-drive-day/1.jpgMiami ◆ United States
Beachfront hotel spa selling day passes: sea-water pools, a cold plunge under the palms, and treatments on the sand at sunset.
photos/bondi-icebergs-spa/1.jpgSydney ◆ Australia
Ocean pool below, sauna above. The most Australian thing in this directory: swim, sauna, swim, coffee.
Nothing matches that yet. Clear a filter, or tell the chat what city you are in and we will say whether something is coming.
How these are chosen
Day spas are visited unannounced and paid for like any other customer. We look at water testing and plant records, therapist qualifications, how the changing rooms actually smell at five in the afternoon, and whether the quiet room is genuinely quiet.
Plan a stay
Tell us what you want to change and how long you have. A physician reviews the enquiry before anyone quotes you a rate at one of the five houses.
Searches this directory only. Not medical advice, and not a booking system.