Ananda for Ayurveda

If there's anything about the ancient Indian practice of Ayurveda that the Shanti Ananda Maurice in Mauritius doesn't offer, it either doesn't exist or isn't worth trying. This intimate resort's spacious spa boasts 25 Ayurvedic Panchkarma and international therapy rooms, in addition to yoga pavilions, a tea pavilion and a special saltwater Watsu pool for a floating massage. There's plenty to keep the whole family active, from biking to kayaking, snorkelling to beginner's windsurfing — even yoga for kids. Meanwhile, single travellers and couples can look forward to 36 acres of peaceful tropical landscaped gardens, ocean views and some of the biggest private pools and villas on the island. Wellness cuisine is a key focal point of the resort, as are the Shanti Ananda health and targeted wellbeing packages, including Ayurvedic Rejuvenation, Stress Management, Detox and Pure Romance.
www.shantiananda.com

Costa del Spa

Champneys is promising fans of its well-known British spas some sun, sea and more state-of-the-art spa in the group's first non-UK spa development on Spain's Costa del Sol. On track for completion in December this year, Champneys Marbella is situated in the rolling Ojen hills, just 10 minutes from the Mediterranean beaches of Marbella and close to the unspoiled Andalucian village of Ojen. Did we mention its unspoilt coastline, complete with beautiful views of the yacht-dotted port of Puerto Banus? If you want to bag yourself a luxury apartment in the exclusive resort, you'd better be quick with the readies before the stampede: €696,358 (around £606,000) will buy you a two-bedroom apartment, with two-bed penthouses up for grabs at €971,729 (around £845,000) and €1,026,705 (in the region of £900,000) a pop. So what are you waiting for?
www.champneysmarbella.com

Rocking Spa

Rockliffe Hall, near Darlington in County Durham, has been converted into a magnificent 61-room country house hotel. The conversion of this 18th-century building and 375-acre estate has created a sizeable spa housing the UK's largest hydrotherapy pool, 11 metres in length. There are 12 treatment rooms and eight thermal suites, with treatment ranges by Ila and Comfort Zone. The health benefits don't stop there, with Nordic walking, a gym workout or a round of golf on the 18-hole course sure to blow away the cobwebs. Head to your room afterwards and you can enjoy a little colour therapy there, too, since Rockliffe Hall is the only hotel in the UK to offer adjustable chromatherapy bedrooms. Having trouble sleeping? Book yourself into Rockcliffe's Sleep Retreat, and Dreamtime Journey with lifestyle analysis, for long-term benefits.
www.rockliffehall.com

Spa with a View

Kempinski opened its second Kempinski The Spa in February, in the historic Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten Kempinski on Munich's famous Maximilianstrasse. This spa follows hot on the heels of the first Kempinski The Spa concept launched by Resense Spa S.A. at the Grand Hotel Kempinski High Tatras at Strbske Pleso in Slovakia, last October. Located on the hotel's sixth floor with views of top Munich landmarks, the new spa's facilities include an indoor pool, a Finnish sauna with a view, hammam-style steam bath, ice fountain, grotto shower, relaxation lounge, sun terrace, gym and solarium. Phytotherapy treatments tailored to the individual are the focus of the spa.
www.kempinski.com

Stately Spa

Enlarged and restored to its former stately home glory, Hoar Cross is a Grade II listed building set in 100 acres of Staffordshire countryside. Visitors will be able to enjoy its spa resort with salt water and hydrotherapy swimming pools, aerobics and yoga suite, 4,000sq ft gym and slumber lounge, while the spacious grounds have lakes and wildlife in abundance, Italian roof terrace gardens, tennis courts, a nine-hole golf course, croquet, boules and archery.
www.hoarcross.co.uk

Glam it up

Made in luxurious red Georgette fabric, the 'Jenny' is a blouse-cum-kaftan that's part of Beach Glamour's new spring collection. Available in a variety of colours — including classic black and cool turquoise — the versatile design can be thrown over a bikini to cover up on the beach, teamed up with linen trousers for elegant day wear or jazzed up with jeans for an evening out. Delicately edged with diamonte studs, the kaftan ties up at the bust and is surrounded by the fullness of a double circle skirt. Designer bikinis and one-piece swimsuits, dresses and culottes complete the collection. From £105.
www.beachglamour.co.uk

Shop and drop

Good news for shopaholics and shop-phobics alike: shopping in London's West End just got a whole lot more pleasurable with the opening of Bond Street's deeply cool O SPA London. This contemporary multi-level spa emporium is there to provide welcome respite for aching muscles and sore feet after you've traipsed down Oxford Street. With Soil Association certification, its second floor offers a range of fab treatments, from the restorative O SPA Fire and Ice Ancient Stones body massage to oxygen facial and Ayurvedic specialities such as Shirodhara. Tip: Book your man a facial featuring the fab 'Homme' product range — he'll be putty in your hands and with luck won't need persuading to pick up your shopping bags.
www.ospalondon.com

Marrakech icon

The 207-room La Mamounia has been a celebrity favourite for decades, and is still an iconic hotel within the walls of Marrakech's old medina. The property reopened this winter following a three-year restoration that saw it return to its Moroccan heritage and splendour. It also introduced a jaw-droppingly beautiful 27,000sq ft La Mamounia Spa, set among 20 acres of olive groves, with traditional Moroccan, eastern and modern influences. There are no less than three hammams, eight treatment rooms, six outdoor massage cabins, an indoor pool, Jacuzzi, fitness pavilion and spa suite. Face and body spa treatments are by the renowned Shiseido brand.
www.mamounia.com

Grand Spa

Designed by Yves Pierre Rochon, the opening of Le Spa at the Grand Hotel du Cap-Ferrat is creating something of an ooh-la-la frisson on the tip of the Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat peninsula. Nestled in 13,000sq ft of lush spa gardens, overlooking the Mediterranean sea, just 30 minutes from Nice airport, the spa's decor consists of bamboo flooring, white linen furnishings and elegant Persian and white marble statues. Guests can relax between treatments on the outdoor sundecks and lounges. And anyone booking a massage in one of the five outdoor cabanas can enjoy a spa treatment al fresco within the privacy of white muslin screens before diving into the aqua pool or relaxing in the hydrotherapy suite of saunas, steam rooms, whirlpools and tropical showers. Six treatment rooms offer heavenly treatments by Carita and Comfort Zone spa brands.
www.grand-hotel-cap-ferrat.com

Beet the gym

Everyone has 'off days' when it comes exercise. Organic beetroot juice produced by drinks manufacturer James White may be the perfect pick-me-up. The benefits of beetroot have been backed by University of Exeter research, which found drinking the juice before exercise can boost stamina by 16%. Studies at St Bartholomew's and the Royal London Hospital found just 500ml of beetroot juice lowered blood pressure within an hour. Beet It costs from £1.40 at Holland & Barrett and selected supermarkets.
www.jameswhite.co.uk

Time for tea

Solaris Botanicals, the award-winning makers of Jasmine Dragon Pearl Tea, Chun Mee Green Tea, Rooibos Chocolate Chai and the celebrity weight-loss secret, King of Pu-Erh, has introduced a new Solaris Spa tea - an innovative Chinese Flowering Tea of Jasmine-infused Organic White tea leaves, carefully hand-sewn into tea buds. Once immersed in hot water, the tea leaves' petals unfurl with stunning effect in the pot. And with one bud making 2.5 litres, we think no spa relaxation room should be without it.
www.solarisbotanicals.com

Reader Offer

Shopforspa.com is a new website selling spa products for the face, body and hair from Dead Sea Spa Magik and Spa Find. Rich in Dead Sea minerals, these healing spa products help to relax, uplift and promote health. The website also features spa therapist tips, skincare advice, spa breaks and spa lifestyle. Plus spa loyalty points are given for every purchase made.
Shopforspa.com is offering Spa Secrets readers a 25% discount on all products and a free Spa Find Sculpted Silhouette Body Extract Intensive Anti-Cellulite pack (RRP £35) when you order online. This anti-cellulite treatment blends caffeine-rich guarana with butcher's broom, a type of plant found in herbal remedies, to stimulate the circulation and noticeably reduce cellulite. With added horsetail and ginseng to help tighten and tone the body contours, skin is left feeling smooth, supple and firm.
To take advantage of this offer type, all you have to do is type the promotional code: BEAUTIFUL09 in the Use Your Voucher section of the Checkout. Offer ends 31 August 2009; one promotional order per customer.
www.shopforspa.com

Hong Kong Bliss

After scrubbing and smoothing skin in New York, Dallas, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco and London, Bliss Spa is stretching its beauty footprint across the globe with the launch of its first full-service spa in Asia at the W Hong Kong.
At 9,000sq ft, Bliss Hong Kong boasts two floors of facilities, including a retail beauty boutique, two manicure stations with the facility to watch films while you have your nails painted, nine treatment suites — including two for couples — lounges for both men and women, and relaxation rooms, perfect for a post-treatment cat nap. Trademark Bliss touches include a cleverly compiled menu of super-effective treatments, such as the ever-popular Ginger Rub, Hangover Herbie and Betweeny Wax, as well as rhythm and blues tunes to soothe your senses and the legendary brownie buffet. More Bliss openings are in the pipeline with a spa due to open in Barcelona this October.
www.whotels.com/hongkong

Wellness Rooms

The five-star Fortina Spa Resort in Malta has opened its first Wellness Rejuvenation Rooms in a star-studded ceremony attended by prime minister Lawrence Gonzi and tourism parliamentary secretary Mario deMarco. The rooms are equipped with the latest technology to revitalise both body and mind by creating the perfect environment to soothe you into a deep healing sleep. Features include a magnetic mattress to relieve aches and pains and a Vibrogym giving the equivalent of a full-body workout in just 15 minutes. Or hop into your private balcony Jacuzzi and enjoy views of Marsamxett harbour.
www.fortinasparesort.com

Nailing It

Nail Girls has opened in the heart of Islington in London, based on the concept of a New York nail spa where customers can socialise while enjoying treatments. This stylish nail bar is like a comfy pad with white-leather pedi-seats, plasma screens and splashes of shocking pink, plus a drying lounge where girls can relax with a glass of pink fizz or a cup of green tea and some tasty nibbles while they wait for their nails to dry. The salon uses products that stretch nails during wear, dry in up to three minutes and are free from chemicals such as toluene, formaldehyde and dibutyl phthalate.
www.nailgirls.co.uk