The Best Spa Hotels and Wellness Retreats to Book in Brisbane

Vibrant and colourful with an opulence that says “look at me”, the Emporium Hotel is conveniently located on the top section of Grey Street, a stone’s throw from the popular South Bank precinct. Take the hologram-patterned lift to the 21st floor to the Healing Stone. This women-only Japanese-style day spa is renowned for a kaleidoscope of services including shiatsu, the traditional Japanese massage, facial treatments and reflexology. Or for a sauna with a difference, try the ganbanyoku chamber, built incorporating magma rock and Himalayan rock salt – for vigorously good, revivifying results.

The sunken lounge in the Calile lobby is so inviting that it’s any wonder guests make it beyond the ground floor. But venture upstairs you should – to the KAILO Wellness Medispa, right beside their Gymnasium on Level One. The hotel’s soft pastel palette extends into the dusky pink wellness pods. In this gender-neutral space, you’re spoilt for choice: there are medical aesthetic treatments to target specific skin concerns or a massage to relax and unwind – and everything in between. This Brisbane wellness retreat uses the iconic French skincare range Biologique Recherche, DMK or SkinCeuticals, depending on the selected treatment.

At the top end of town is Brisbane’s W Hotel. Here, the W’s Away Spa, on the sixth floor, has six treatment suites, relaxation pods and “his and hers” salt-inhalation chambers. The set-up steers away from neutral, opting for a kaleidoscope of vibrant prints, mirrors and a customised playlist by W’s music curator, Kane Dignum. Once your Away Spa treatment is complete, take a while to soak in the mineral-rich vitality pools or drink in the view of the Brisbane River from your relaxation pod, while sipping on a beverage from the drinks menu.

Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley has some of the area’s best shopping, drinking establishments and live-music venues. When you need a break, here’s the place: a tropical oasis that’s the foyer of this boutique hotel. Drag yourself away from all the bohemian artwork to check into a large spa room. This super-spacious room comes with an expansive en-suite and your own private spa bath. Run a bath and get stuck into the snacks from your complimentary loot bag, eased down with a drink from your fully stocked free minibar.

This inner-city hotel – find it above Brisbane’s Central Railway station – is a hit thanks to its appealing air of continental chic. Near the level-three pool terrace, the European flavour extends into the French-informed Stephanies® Spa retreat, recipient of many a much-deserved trophy. Your mission here is to indulge in traditional spa body therapies, relaxing inside one of the 11 spa therapy suites. Or, if you’re part of a large group, consider messing around en masse with a mud therapy treatment in the renowned Opal Rasul Steam Temple. Organic flower-tea infusions are a perfect conclusion to your pampering session.

Inside this renovated heritage-style Queenslander house in Hawthorne, a suburb in Brisbane’s southeast, is an innovative day spa devoted to relaxation and rejuvenation. Petrichor Day Spa employs a skin care range by Esse – South African-made products that are certified organic, vegan and cruelty-free. Drift off amid the Scandi decor and savour the attention to detail on small things such as signature towels and blanket throws during your facial, body treatment, manicure, pedicure, massage, hot stone therapy or hydrotherapy courtesy of an impressive Vichy spa.

Mercure Clear Mountain Lodge is a 35-minute drive north of the river city, built into a hillside on the top of Clear Mountain, with sweeping views of the distant Glasshouse Mountains and Moreton Bay. The establishment can organise overnight stays – choose from 51 rooms. There is a wide selection of treatments at Stephanies Mountain Spa. Stephanie Shephard, the same woman behind the highly regarded spa experience at the Sofitel Brisbane Central Hotel, is the city’s wellness spa guru bar none. The bespoke spa menu lists pages of experiences with an emphasis on organic treatments, so you’ll be doing yourself and the planet good.