An hour on the massage table, booked before you land.
Hammam scrubs in Istanbul, Balinese oil massage in Ubud, a beer bath in Prague. What each treatment costs and what you get for it.
Four spa bookings worth planning a trip around.
A private hammam in old Istanbul, an Andalusian bathhouse, a geothermal lagoon ritual and a beer bath in Prague. Prices and verdicts below each one.
01The classicIstanbul: Private Turkish Bath, Massage, and Spa in Old CityA private marble room in the Old City: steam, a hard kese scrub, a foam wash and an oil massage to finish.
02The Moorish bathhouseMalaga: Hammam Al Ándalus Entry Ticket with MassageWarm, hot and cold pools under brick arches in Málaga, with a massage folded into the session.
03The lagoon ritualReykjavik: Sky Lagoon Entrance Pass With 7-Step Spa RitualA cliff-edge infinity lagoon outside Reykjavik, then seven steps of cold plunge, sauna, scrub and steam.
04The odd onePrague: Bernard Beer Spa with Beer and Massage OptionAn oak tub of warm water with hops and brewer’s yeast, a tap of lager within reach, then a straw bed.
A Turkish hammam: Old City marble, or a resort bath on the coast.
The bath is why most people book a spa day in Turkey. Decide where you want it, how private it should be, and whether an oil massage follows the scrub.
Our pick★★★★★★★★★★ 4.6 · Istanbul: Private Turkish Bath, Massage, and Spa in Old City · from $53
IstanbulHistoric bathhouses and private rooms in Sultanahmet and Taksim.
Hammams on the coastFoam, scrub and steam in Alanya, Side and Antalya, often with hotel pickup.
The bath, then a massagePackages where a full oil massage follows the kese.
AlanyaThe busiest resort bathhouses on the Turkish Riviera.
All 54 massage and spa treatments in Turkey →
Six places people travel to for a massage or a bath.
Each does it its own way: oil and flowers in Bali, black soap in Morocco, thermal water in Budapest. Each tile carries the cheapest session on the list.
Hammams beyond Turkey: black soap in Marrakech, Moorish vaults in Granada.
The bath travelled. In Morocco it comes with savon beldi and a kessa glove, in Andalusia as warm and cold pools under brick vaults, on the Red Sea as an afternoon away from the beach with a pickup from the hotel.
The full body massage, and every way the world does it.
Long oil strokes, deep tissue for a back that has carried a rucksack, hot stones, or just the feet. The three full body massages travellers book most, then every style worth a session.
Three spa treatments you cannot book at home.
A soak in beer, a hammam named after a queen, and a foot massage with river limestone on a bamboo raft.
Bathing in Beer
Czech brewers worked out that hops, yeast and malt make a warm, soft soak. You sit in an oak tub of it for twenty minutes or so, pour unfiltered lager from a tap beside you, then lie on a bed of straw while the warmth settles. Most rooms are private and booked by the hour, for one or two.
- 1Prague: Bernard Beer Spa with Beer and Massage Option★★★★★★★★★★ 4.8 · 4,164 reviews
- 2Budapest BeerSpa with Unlimited Beer and Optional Széchenyi Bath★★★★★★★★★★ 4.5 · 416 reviews
- 3Prague: Beer Spa Experience with Unlimited Beer and Sauna★★★★★★★★★★ 4.3 · 190 reviews
The Cleopatra Bath
A Hurghada spa tradition named after the queen who bathed in milk: a soak in milk and oils, usually after a hammam scrub and a spell in the sauna. Most packages bundle the hotel pickup, the bath and a massage into one afternoon off the beach.
- 1Hurghada: Cleopatra Spa and Massage★★★★★★★★★★ 4.4 · 806 reviews
- 2Hurghada: Sultan Cleopatra- Turkish Bath&Spa With Transfer★★★★★★★★★★ 4.3 · 364 reviews
- 3Hurghada: Cleopatra Plus Spa, Massage, Shared Tour★★★★★★★★★★ 4.4 · 304 reviews
The Limestone Foot Massage
On the rivers inland from Montego Bay a raft captain poles you downstream on a long bamboo raft, then pulls into the shallows and works your feet and calves with smooth river limestone. Half river trip, half massage, and the water stays cool in the hottest months.
- 1Jamaica Bamboo Rafting Experience with Lime Stone Massage★★★★★★★★★★ 4.5 · 549 reviews
- 2Private Montego Bay Bamboo Rafting with Limestone Foot Massage★★★★★★★★★★ 4.5 · 200 reviews
- 3Bamboo Rafting and Limestone Foot Massage on Lethe River Private Tour★★★★★★★★★★ 5.0 · 114 reviews
What a massage room or hammam expects of you.
- Say it at booking, not on the tablePregnancy, recent surgery, a heart condition or blood thinners change what a therapist can safely do. Many spas decline massage in the first trimester.
- Know the dress codeHammams lend a cotton peshtemal and paper briefs. Thermal baths in Budapest and the Icelandic lagoons expect swimwear; many saunas in Central Europe are textile-free.
- Check who shares the roomTraditional public hammams in Morocco and Turkey separate men and women by room or by hour. Couples who want to stay together book a private session.
- Keep the scrub away from sunburnA kese or salt scrub on burnt skin hurts for days. Book it early in the trip, or on a day you stay in the shade.
What a massage costs, from Hue to Reykjavik.
Every treatment on the site, grouped by price per person. Southeast Asia fills most of the first column, the lagoons and long ritual days the last.
Hour-long massages in Vietnam, Bali and Cambodia, and the resort hammams on the Turkish coast.
Private hammams in Istanbul and Marrakech, Andalusian bathhouses, Budapest day tickets.
Lagoon rituals, couples packages with dinner, long days with several treatments.
Four spa bookings that fill up before you arrive.
Most massage rooms will fit you in the same afternoon. These run on timed sessions, private tubs and capped numbers, and the good slots go days ahead.
- 01Reykjavik: Sky Lagoon Entrance Pass With 7-Step Spa RitualEntry is sold by time slot, and the evening slots, with the sun going down over the sea, go first.
- 02Malaga: Hammam Al Ándalus Entry Ticket with MassageSessions start at fixed hours with a cap on bathers, so the evening entries fill well ahead.
- 03Prague: Bernard Beer Spa with Beer and Massage OptionEach oak tub is a private room booked by the hour, and weekend evenings are the first to go.
- 04Budapest: Széchenyi Spa Day Ticket with Optional UpgradesWeekend afternoons bring queues at the ticket hall. A ticket bought ahead gets you to the pools faster.
The spa and massage bookings travellers make most.
Every review →Thermal day tickets, private hammams and a lagoon ritual: the treatments more people book than any other on the site.
1
Budapest: Széchenyi Spa Day Ticket with Optional Upgrades
Spend a full day at Budapest’s Széchenyi Spa, a 1913 Neo-Baroque complex with 3 outdoor and 15 indoor thermal pools. Your ticket includes one-time entry and either a locker or private cabin, depending on the option you choose. Bring swimwear, towel, flip-flops, and a swimming cap for the proper swimming pool.
From · $51
Read our review →2
Reykjavik: Sky Lagoon Entrance Pass With 7-Step Spa Ritual
from $111
3
Prague: Bernard Beer Spa with Beer and Massage Option
4
Body Massage Experience in Ubud Traditional Spa
from $21
5
Budapest: Full-Day Gellért Spa Ticket
from $48
6
Istanbul: Private Turkish Bath, Massage, and Spa in Old City
from $53
7
Marrakech: Spa Massage and Steam Hammam with Pickup
from $73
8
The Dark Side of Florence: Mysteries and Legends
from $3
By place: where the massage happens
By treatment: hands, stones, steam or soap
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