The 9 best Spas in Thailand for Honeymoon

Thailand is Asia’s big-hitting wellness destination, with a clutch of grande dames and newcomers on the well-established spa scene keeping the country at the top of many people’s must-visit list. From retreats on lush islands such as Phuket to urban boltholes in buzzy Bangkok, these are our 10 favourite spas across the country. For your Thailand honeymoon tour, you shouldn’t miss that.

• Mandarin Oriental Bangkok

The 145-year-old hotel, which spa has long been a destination in its own right. Try the pampering Oriental Harmony programme or yoga one-on-ones. Healthy food is on the menu: mango salad, sweet-sour tamarind fish soup, and shrimp and peanut curries, available in the restaurants, rooms, by the pool and in the spa. Upping the ante yet further is the Spa Studio, four glamorous treatment rooms in the serene Garden Wing, with an emphasis on results-driven, time-efficient therapies: rejuvenating facials; reflexology-induced micro naps; warming head-and-shoulder massages. All in all, the Mandarin Oriental offers a masterclass in growing old gracefully.

• Six Senses Yao Noi

Set between Phuket and Krabi, this Six Senses outpost peeps over Phang Nga Bay. It’s the go-to destination for fitness fanatics in Thailand – a spot that kicks guests into shape without boot-camp bossiness. Training might include Thai kickboxing, rock climbing and yoga, as well as serious workouts in the glossy fitness centre. The spa is set on the hillside and modelled on traditional Northern Thai houses, incorporating local treatments into its acclaimed roster of options. Try chiropractic oriental massage, shirodhara, a Thai silk facial or herbal steam. Back at the villas, there are private pools to sink into and outdoor showers for invigorating wake-up calls before heading back to the fitness centre.

• Amanpuri, Phuket

Amanpuri was the first address in the global brand’s acclaimed portfolio, but exciting new spa programmes were added a few years ago. These ‘immersions’ were dreamt up by Aman’s CEO, wellness fanatic Vladislav Doronin, and launched by Chiva-Som’s former general manager Paul Linder at the glamorous hideout made up of traditional teak villas set across a one-time coconut plantation and private beach. Treatments focus on one of four wellness themes: cleansing, mental awareness, fitness or weight, taking a holistic approach that might incorporate kick boxing, massages, silent reflection or muay Thai. This is a sophisticated way to restore your health in one of the slickest settings in Thailand.

• Absolute Sanctuary, Koh Samui

In a spruced-up hotel on a steep hillside inland, about 10 minutes from the coast, Absolute Sanctuary has now honed its delivery of a comprehensive but easy-going programme of fitness, cleansing, detox, weight-loss and stress-reduction regimens to such an extent that it’s quite likely the person in tree pose next to you will be a fan on a repeat visit. Here’s the opportunity to join outstandingly good and varied daily reformer Pilates and yoga, eat delicious and nutritious vegetarian meals, and enjoy all the usual spa treatments.

• Rosewood, Phuket

This was Rosewood’s first hotel in South-east Asia, and with it the brand’s wellness offering Asaya was launched. When it opened in 2018, Rosewood Phuket made waves with its eco-approach (vegetation was carefully removed then replanted during construction, rooms have living roofs, shower water is harvested from purified rainwater). Itineraries here last anything from three to 14 days, for quick stops or intensive regimes. Guests book HIIT sessions and meditation classes, mindful eating plans and massages, as well as more unusual Taoist healing treatments. And, this being a Rosewood, the hotel itself is impeccable – with glossy pools, wonderful restaurants and spot-on service.

• Chiva-Som, Hua Hin

This is the undisputed queen of spas. It has won more awards during the past almost three decades than its rivals have had hot, cold or carb-free dinners. A four-year £20 million refurb was completed in 2020 – the fitness centre was expanded, a Re-functional Studio added and interiors updated. Before the makeover, nobody would linger in the Orchid Lounge, which had all the allure of a sixth-form common room. Reimagined by master of understated elegance Ed Tuttle and his team, it has become a stylish space of mosaic mirror panels, white orchids and low sofas in soft-wash silks. Thankfully, some things haven’t changed. The food is still exceptionally good. Service is stellar, as is the communication between departments – team members are always bang up-to-date on your progress – and, most commendably, management really listen.

• Samahita, Koh Samui

Originally a famous yoga teacher school, Samahita now welcomes yoga enthusiasts as well as experts. Set right on a strip of sand on Koh Samui, it’s the brainchild of Paul Dallaghan, an internationally renowned teacher. Solo travellers come here for the challenging schedules that mix yoga practices with spinning and high-intensity workouts. Design is pared-back and open-plan – the dining room is communal and food is locally sourced with wholesome fish and vegetarian dishes on the buffet-style menu. Many guests are drawn into the slow pace of life and keep coming back year after year, refining their yoga skills and building on their breathwork in this most serene of settings.

• Keemala, Phuket

This wonderful Thai hideaway illuminates the hillside of Kamala Bay, on the west coast of the island, like so many fireflies in a bewitched forest. Suites seem to sprout out of the ground. Some resemble clay chestnut mushrooms, others rise up to the treetops like wooden-clad enoki, and the gentle hum of the wild is all around. Each one has a beautiful sapphire-blue pool big enough to do laps in. You can eat healthily from a light menu of steamed fish and organic vegetables, or go nuts on the lamb-shank massaman curry and sublime coconut pastries. Traditional Thai massages are given in bamboo pods surrounded by water and therapists blend home remedies of aloe vera and lavender to soothe sunburnt skin. Join morning flow-yoga classes, kick your butt into shape at a Thai boxing lesson or thrash about in the pool during an invigorating aqua-aerobics class.

• Rakxa, Bangkok

Set in Thailand’s capital rather than on one of its tropical islands, relative newcomer Rakxa (a rare 2020 hotel opening) is already drawing in serious wellness seekers. It’s an all-in-one retreat set on the Chao Phraya river that offers a more rigorous health MOT than you might expect from a Thai spa. Guests undergo blood tests, breathing analysis and hormone screenings to determine an action plan that’s backed by the renowned Bumrungrad International Hospital. Heavy-lifting equipment includes a hyperbaric chamber and cryosauna, but there’s also a considered holistic element that embraces traditional treatments. Sixty serene villas have been kitted out in wood and indigo and dotted with antiques found around the country. This is an impressive new name stealing the limelight in Thailand’s strong spa scene.