France is home to some of the top spa resorts in Europe. From the snow-capped mountains of the French Alps to the crystal blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea to the lavender fields of Provence, we have gathered a list of irresistible spas that will have you hopping on the next flight to France.
Richard Nahem
1. Hotel Chais Monnet And Spa
Located in the town of Cognac, the home of the iconic liqueur, in western France is the five-star Hotel Chais Monnet and Spa. At one time an industrial complex of a wine and cognac producer in the mid to late 20th century, the numerous buildings were transformed into a luxury hotel and spa in 2019.
Codage and KOS Paris are two high-quality skincare and cosmetic brands marketed to upscale clientele, and in recent years, they have put their names on a number of spas at hotels across France. The spa at the Hotel Chais Monnet offers a comprehensive list of Codage and KOS Paris signature treatments and massages including a tailor-made massage and facial using a custom-designed serum, a draining and slimming treatment which also includes a body wrap, a leg massage along with a reflexology session, an exfoliating treatment using sugar from Mauritius Island and essence of honey, vanilla, and chestnut, and a travel detox massage focusing on the back, neck, and scalp.
Beauty treatments include manicures and pedicures, makeup application and consultations, haircuts and blow-dries, eyebrow coloring and sculpting, and leg, bikini, and arm waxing. A selection of Codage skincare products and cosmetics are also sold at the retail shop in the spa.
The spa complex has a unique pool that is half indoors and half outdoors and a fitness center with the latest exercise equipment plus a steam room, sauna, and jacuzzi.
2. Cheval Blanc Courchevel
Courchevel is the Beverly Hills of ski villages of France in the breathtaking French Alps, and the Cheval Blanc Courchevel Hotel and Spa is the premier hotel where guests are pampered beyond their expectations.
After a long day of skiing the challenging but exhilarating slopes of the Alps, a relaxing massage or beauty treatment is very much needed. The Cheval Blanc Spa is under the helm of Guerlain, the iconic beauty and cosmetics company which at one time produced fragrances for royalty, and they have developed an exclusive treatment menu. The five treatment salons (one has space for two people for couples’ treatments and massages) offer a myriad of custom-designed treatments and massages including the Black Imperial Facial Treatment, a powerful immune and peeling that gives an intense cell metabolism boost, using double massages for the face and eye contour areas; the Royal Repair Treatment, which uses highly effective bee products; the Scents of the Orient, an intoxicating massage using East Asian techniques and fragrances; and the Mountain Performance Treatment, an invigorating treatment that helps you reach your peak performance on the slopes. If you want to go full monty, treat yourself to the Winter Immune Boost, a three-day course that includes a private Pilates session, repairing massage, a face sculpt treatment, and a consultation with a personal coach.
There’s also a fitness center, hammam (a Turkish steam bath), an indoor pool and jacuzzi, and a banya (an Eastern European steam bath with a wood stove).
3. Auberge Du Jeu De Paume
An 18th-century fairy tale castle with acres of magnificent gardens and forest and a significant racetrack is located in Chantilly, a 28-minute train ride from Paris.
Auberge Du Jeu De Paume is an elegant hotel and spa situated on a multi-acre property with lovely gardens just adjacent to the Chantilly Castle.
Valmont is a well-respected beauty company that operates a number of spas at luxury hotels. Their signature treatment at the Auberge Du Jeu De Paume spa is the decadent Thousand and One Chantilly, an exfoliating treatment during which the masseuse kneads off dead skin, followed by a relaxing massage and then a slathering of chilled Chantilly whipped cream all over your body. Other treatments include a deep tissue massage, Kansu Bowl Foot Relaxation, an Asian technique for relaxing and massaging the feet, and the Ayurvedic Massage, which is a body, face, and scalp massage using hot sesame oil.
The Valmont Spa offers other types of beauty and wellness treatments such as manicures, pedicures, and waxing procedures, too. There’s also a fitness facility with state-of-the-art workout machines, a heated indoor pool with chaise lounges to relax on, a sauna, and a steam room.
Editor’s Note: For more on vacationing in Chantilly, consider Exploring Chantilly, France: The Perfect Day Trip From Paris.
4. Sofitel Biarritz Le Miramar Thalassa Sea And Spa
The seaside resort of Biarritz in southwest France on the Atlantic Ocean, close to the Spanish border, was a popular destination for the wealthy French at the turn of the century. Today, Biarritz still retains some of its former glory but is now a more casual and inclusive place that also is one of the best surfing beaches in all of Europe, with challenging waves.
Sofitel Biarritz Le Miramar Thalassa Sea And Spa is a modern hotel directly on the beach with an outdoor seawater swimming pool. Thalassotherapy comes from the Greek for the Mediterranean Sea and saltwater and involves health treatments using natural sea or saltwater. Le Miramar offers an unusual menu of spa treatments such as Full-Body Cryotherapy, which uses bursts of cold water in a specially designed chamber; a Marine Rain Scrub, where you are gently exfoliated with sea salt under a gentle shower of warm seawater; the Hot Sand Ritual, a head-to-toe massage including the feet, done in the sand; and the Oxygen Bubble, a scrub with three sea salts from the Himalayas, the Dead Sea, and Brittany, France.
Le Miramar also offers multi-day programs such as My High-Vitamin Break, a program for either four or six days designed to get your vitality back on track with a sea salt body exfoliation, seven essential individual Thalassotherapy treatments, two body wraps, and a body strengthening program with exercises on an underwater trampoline combined with seawater circuit training.
5. Evian Resort
Did you know that Evian, the popular French bottled water company, has a spa resort? Evian-Les-Bains, on the south shore of Lake Geneva, is the source of the pure water that goes into the Evian bottles, and it’s also where the Evian Resort, a multi-acre property with two hotels, a golf course, a casino, and a live performance venue, is located.
The expansive thermal spa uses fresh Evian water directly from the nearby source. A specialized Asian-inspired treatment includes shiatsu massage, Thai massage, a Korean relaxation treatment, and Shirodhara, an intense head and face massage with imported oils. Other specialty treatments include the Sensorial Journey, which uses color to relax you with a hydro-massage bath and a combination body and face treatment.
The Evian spa also has a relaxation room, hair salon, steam room, sauna, cold pool, outdoor and indoor swimming pools, cardio room, full gym with free weights and weight training machines, and an aqua-gym pool.
6. Baumaniere Hotel And Spa
In the heart of Provence, one of the most beloved regions of France, is the Baumaniere Hotel And Spa. The celebrated hotel, more like a country inn with a small number of rooms and suites, has been host to celebrities and royalty including Queen Elizabeth, Hugh Grant, Bono, and Johnny Depp.
The backdrop for the hotel and spa is the rugged beauty of the area of Les Baux-de-Provence.
The intimate spa, operated by Genevieve and Jean-Andre Charial, is a calming oasis set partly in nature with a fragrant garden on a raised wood terrace. They have partnered with the French skincare and cosmetic company Sisely, using their products along with their own product line, Un Olive en Provence, which uses freshly extracted oil from the olive trees of Provence.
Treatments using Une Olive en Provence include the Olive Scrub, which combines a heavenly scented mixture of apricot kernel, olive, and bamboo powder to clean and exfoliate the skin, and The Immersion Program that features a foot bath, body modeling, reflexology, and a cranial massage.
The Sisley Phyto-Aromatic Body menu includes a specially designed phyto-aromatic treatment for dry and sensitive skin and a slimming body treatment that targets areas of stubborn fat deposits.
Pro Tips
It’s recommended that if you’re planning to visit any of the spas listed above, you reserve your treatments in advance. If you have any existing medical conditions, check with your doctor to see if they are safe. For additional inspiration, consider 11 Reasons To Fall In Love With Provence, France and our picks for the six best spas in Paris.