The Best Spa and Wellness Hotels in Riga

The Grand Poet is a reference to Rainis, a Latvian literary great, and the bold refurbishment of its imposing fin-de-siècle buildings in 2018 injected bohemian pizzazz into this smart but staid neighbourhood. The in-house Hedonic Spa features cleansing and anti-ageing skincare treatments by EviDenS de Beauté (from France and Japan) and Moss of the Isles (from Ireland and Britain), the latter boasting handcrafted ethically sourced ingredients. The wellness centre has a 15m (50ft) pool with massage seats, plus a range of saunas, steam rooms and a gym.

In the Old Town, the 15-room Dome fastidiously combines careful restoration and thoughtful modernisation, the 17th-century fabric overlaid with traces of Baroque, Rococo, Art Nouveau and Art Deco. Nowadays, there’s also a 21st-century roof terrace. The spa features Thalion thalassotherapy and structural cosmetics for facial treatments and body peels, plus a range of full-body, back and foot massages. Aromatic spa rituals include steam baths and oil massages for two with an option for a Latvian herb peel to reduce fatigue, balance mood and relax the mind.

Around 15km (9mi) northeast of Riga by tranquil Lake Baltezers, Baltvilla is a modern four-storey building with a good (and very popular) restaurant with a charming pine-scented terrace. The top-floor spa features Biodroga vegan cosmetics, which include dragon fruit and caviar extracts, spa rituals using chocolate-vanilla, cupuacu shells and apricot sugar scrubs. “Full-body chocolate” (using an emulsion of melted dark chocolate and almond oil) and Asian hot stone massages add a touch of exoticism.

Lielupe features rooms and suites with balconies and floor-to-ceiling windows, but the location by the glorious beach at Jūrmala really scores. Just north of Riga, the area’s rejuvenating pine-scented air has long captivated visitors, and many of the spa therapies draw on the wholesomeness of the locale. Lavender, sea-salt crystals (there’s a salt-inhalation room), honey, cranberry and marine extracts populate the treatments, while Ericson Laboratoire dominates the facial skincare, from “energy lifts” to enzymacid cleansing. And there’s a 25m (82ft) pool, too.

Close to the National Opera House and rebuilt just after WWII, the Grand Hotel Kempinski has supremely large and elegant rooms graced by a restrained decor of panelled wood with subtly patterned drapes and carpets. There’s a vast array of spa treatments, from scrubs to facials alongside massages, but you can also enjoy a more distinctly Latvian experience in the private Pirts Suite, which is inspired by local bathhouse traditions. From sauna to cold plunge, you’re primed for gentle birch-leaf whisking followed by a full-body radiance-inducing massage.

Enveloped by floor-to-ceiling windows, the white terraced façade of the Baltic Beach Hotel faces the broad sandy beach and sea at Jūrmala much like a cruise liner. Rooms are spacious though surprisingly un-beachy, and there’s gourmet cuisine in six restaurants and bars. Then there’s the colossal luxury spa with 400 treatments, some medically certified, and facilities such as salt caves and climate therapy. From a 25m (82ft) seawater pool to Roman steam baths, from Himalayan salt saunas to Rasul mud treatments, from a Russian-style banya to Kneipp hydrotherapy, a stay here will have you feeling like a whole new wonderful you.

The arresting steel and glass facade of the Kurshi, with triangular panels and sharp angles, seems a bit out of place in seaside Jūrmala. But behind that theatrical lobby area stands a more conventional hotel with neat unfussy rooms and two-level suites. The extensive spa features Ericson Laboratoire and Ella Baché facial treatments, while, unusually, the massage inventory includes an Ayurvedic range (which need to be pre-booked). Saunas and steam baths include options for oak, birch and eucalyptus whisks, while “Royal Whisking” includes bamboo.