Best spa in London for: holistic treatments rooted in chinese medicine
Lording it up at the top of Sloane Street, the MO Hyde Park is a bastion of Knightsbridge glamour, home to two extremely good restaurants, two Michelin-starred Dinner by Heston Blumenthal and The Aubrey, and boasting some of the best bedroom views in London, looking out over the park where the Household Cavalry take the horses out for a hack in the early mornings. But there also happens to be terrific spa spread across two floors of the hotel – and it’s equally holistic as it is spoiling. As soon as you arrive, your shoes are whisked away, and along with a tiny cup of steaming white apricot tea, you’re handed a questionnaire. How do you feel today? Do you often feel irritable? Do you crave objects and recognition? Do you have vivid dreams? It may feel a little intrusive, but it’s all designed to help your therapist uncover your elemental balance: wood, earth, water, fire or metal – with treatments here deeply rooted in Chinese medicine in a nod to the Mandarin Oriental brand’s Eastern heritage.
Every treatment begins with a welcome foot ritual, with feet gently cleansed and massaged in a bowl of warm water filled with amethyst crystals. Signature massage treatments focus on resetting your yin and yang, and after totting up the answers to your questionnaire and choosing your oil, a full-body massage (which includes the stomach, to help balance the digestive system) begins, honing in on pressure points everywhere from your fingers to your toes (think of it as acupuncture without the needles). Then it’s off to the relaxation room, where you can tuck yourself under a weighted duvet and zen out with the colouring book thoughtfully left beside each bed. The books are packed full of advice on how to practice mindfulness and switch off – and you may find yourself lingering far longer than planned. Which is no bad thing, as there’s also a great swimming pool, a suite of steam rooms and saunas, a Rasul chamber, a Bastien Gonzalaez Pedi:Mani:Cure Studio and a heavy-weight gym – plus a range of in-house wellness experts to book in with, running the gamut from reiki healers to osteopaths.
Treatment to book
If you’re never experienced a four-hand massage, this is the perfect spot to try one out. The spa’s signature treatment, Oriental Harmony, involves two therapists working in perfect unison – and will leave your entire body feeling like jelly. From £480 for two hours.
Insider tip
If you’re unsure what you want, book a length of time rather than a specific treatment. It’s the most holistic way to get exactly what you need out of a spa trip, and after a thorough consultation, your therapist might diagnose a stress-relieving massage, a skin-healing Biologique Recherche facial, or a revitalising top-to-toe body scrub.
Address: Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park, 66 Knightsbridge, London SW1X 7LA
Telephone: +44 207 838 9888
Website: mandarinoriental.com