All products are independently selected by our editors. If you buy something, we may earn an affiliate commission. A Europe spa break is a great way to physically and emotionally reboot — often through a customised combination of hi-tech health tests by expert doctors, feel-good massages and a refined diet, all in a stunning back-to-nature setting. Of course, finding the best spa in Europe really depends on what you're looking for — do you want a retreat, where you can really get away from it all, or would you rather a chic spa housed in a hotel, where you can float in and out of your treatments with ease?
Whether for cutting-edge treatments that tackle a specific issue such as insomnia or stress, or a cosseting retreat that rebalances and energises, this is our pick of the top game-changing spas in Europe that really deliver on wellness. Deciding between Dolomites spa resorts is like having to choose between a bevy of suitors, each handsome, articulate and spiritually evolved. This year, Lefay Dolomiti swooped in and stole my heart. Its mountain setting is as magic as a cover spread, the crowd skews cool but not intimidating, and I have a private sauna and hot tub in my spacious, uncluttered room.
The spectacular indoor-outdoor pool is the centrepiece of public spaces, but there are all manner of saunas, steam rooms and nooks to relax in. Yet it is the spa and its ethos based on the Chinese elements that melts my heart. The Active and Balance programme at Lefay brings me back to myself with the space to process feelings.
It starts with a consultation with resident doctor Monica Colombini, a type of Yoda if he had been an articulate, beautiful woman. She suggests concrete things to try when I get home, and how to return to activities I love.
She sources equine therapy near where I live I used to be a huge rider and have missed it terribly and suggests slower runs in the woods instead of sprints in the open countryside, because of feeling emotionally exposed. The support gives me the confidence to believe I can work through emotional pain: in nature, on spiritual hikes, with yoga and through acupuncture, during which I cry purifying tears.
