[trip style = spa]
As a Hawaii lover and a spa-thusiast, indulging in treatments in the Aloha State is my version of fluttering near the heavenly realms. And let's be honest, in January, the mid-Pacific's natural eau de plumeria and tranquil temperatures are enough to make us book a ticket to the tropics---the spas are a bonus! Having soothed my skin on almost all of Hawaii’s islands, here’s a chorus of tried, tested and trip-styled spas to make you sing m-ahhh-halo!
Maui Fifty-thousand square feet of East-meets-West serenity is dedicated to rejuvenation and healing at Spa Grande, the state’s biggest and most highly-rated spa, in the Grand Wailea. Don’t just pop in for your treatment between poolside mai tais. Once you take a gander at the Termé Hydrotherapy Circuit mingling Swiss jet showers, a Roman whirlpool, Hawaiian sea salt soaking pools {pictured above} and a Japanese Furo bath, you’ll tell yourself “the sun can wait” while extolling the praises of your spa day. The Termé Hydrotherapy Circuit is included in most treatments, or can be booked solo for $65.
Lanai One of my Hawaii happy places is lounging at the Four Seasons Resort Lanai at Manele Bay---featured as a TS Approved, Roam+Board stay in in 2013. The property---one of only three hotels on Hawaii’s smallest inhabited island---reaches over the tumbling landscape like a palm tree bowing toward the shore. Hidden from the hotel, a bevy of Oceanside Hale are closed for privacy on three sides with one open panel framing Lanai's most photographed landscape: Sweetheart Rock {pictured above}. Intent on luxuriating in Lanai, I complimented the hut's gorgeous view with a Makala Massage, which saw my masseuse performing a head-to-toe bamboo stick drumroll to awaken my muscles---strangely fabulous---as well as maneuvering my skin to mimic the ocean’s movement.
Trip Styler Tip: Find all the serenity-now details ofHawaii's Heavenly Spas in my Expedia Viewfinder article.
Hawaii, The Big Island One of my top treatments in 2013 was at The Fairmont Orchid's Spa Without Walls. Similar to my other spa-capades on Maui and Lanai, I booked a local treatment---always a best practice. For all 110 minutes of my Ali’i Experience, I felt like a Hawaiian princess being prepared for a suitor with the island’s most luxurious botanical essences and potions---fitting given Ali’i is the Hawaiian word for royalty. Sprawled in a cabana a mere five feet from the ocean, I was rubbed with fragrant Hawaiian herbs, massaged with sweeping lomilomi-style strokes and adorned with a crown of coconut oil. When the oil started trickling down my scalp, my state shifted from deep relaxation to divine gratitude. Heaven, indeed.
[photos by @tripstyler, except Spa Grande, courtesy Grand Wailea]