Everyone knows that a transatlantic flight leaves you dehydrated and a touch groggy, but if you’re landing in the international hub of London, there’s an easy pick-me-up just steps away. Head to these six spas for the city’s top beauty treatments.
Paul Edmonds in Knightsbridge is known as one of the London’s best hair salons, but they also offer beauty treatments, from nails to waxing, and are coveted for their facials (call for price). A SkinCeuticals flagship, the treatment begins with an in-depth skin analysis, in which the aesthetician takes a series of pictures to keep on file, so they can track your progress if you continue to visit.
The entire treatment and experience is bespoke, made to optimize an individual’s personal look. Our favorite touch, however, is universally appealing: every client is offered a complimentary blow-out.
Everything about the Gazelli brand is alluring, from its inspiring co-founder Jamila Askarova (pictured above) to its female-focused outlook. Currently providing treatments (call for price) out of Josh Wood Atelier in Holland Park, Gazelli is about to open a “House” on Walton Street in South Kensington.
It's a period townhouse that will include treatment rooms and Gazelli’s products, but it will also encourage clients to use the space to read, engage, and relax. In addition there will be a focus on nutrition and mindfulness. What more could you ask for from a spa day?
Deborah Mitchell rose to fame when it was revealed that her signature bee venom facial (treatments from $85) was a favorite of the Duchess of Cornwall (it’s rumored that she also treats Kate Middleton). Mitchell has the best hands in the business—the perfect combination of strength and subtlety. She also sells covetable take-home products; her makeup removal wipes are the best on the market.
A facial with Abigail James (treatments from $275) feels like a catch-up with an old friend. James has that rare ability to make anyone and everyone feel completely at ease. James works from the Liz Earle flagship store off the fashionable King’s Road, and mostly leans on the British brand’s products; although, at times she will integrate slightly stronger-grade substances into the treatment.
With Debbie Thomas, don’t expect long, lingering massages and caresses. She’s focused on results, and clients go to her for her ability to leave your skin glowing and covetable (treatments from $145). Thomas spent a good part of her career in Los Angeles, and she has some serious machinery-muscle behind her. She’s equipped with red and blue light therapy, diamond-tip crystal-free microdermabrasion, and a form of collagen injection called skin needling. This is much more than a clay mask and a shoulder rub.
The Rosewood London hotel is one of the city's finest, so it’s no surprise that Face Place, the famed L.A. facial treatment, has chosen the Holborn hotel as its only London outpost. The Face Place signature treatment (from $199) has been an A-list favorite for more than 40 years for it’s perfect combination of clinical and cossetting. The focus is their extraction technique, which involves a galvanic current. Don’t get caught up in the science—the outcome will speak for itself.
