The Ultimate Guide To Top Feel-Good Cruise Ship Spas

Our favourite soothing spas you can find at sea

Cruise holidays provide the perfect time to indulge yourself and enjoy some well-earned rest and relaxation.

Days exploring far-flung destinations or at sea, chilling out by the pool with an exotic cocktail or two and evenings savouring exquisite dining or marvelling at an incredible Broadway-style show all await those onboard cruise ships sailing around the world. 

But to really get into a relaxed holiday mood, a visit to the ship’s spa is the perfect way to ensure any stresses just melt away. And with highly qualified spa experts at the ready and only the best in treatments and facilities, you can expect spas on cruise ships to deliver the ultimate luxurious experience, offering a real treat to look forward to. 

We’ve collated a list of some of the best, zen-inducing spas which are available on top cruise lines. Read on to discover all the best spas at sea…

Celebrity Cruises: The Spa

Celebrity Cruises have their luxury spa offering perfected. Created by highly respected leaders in wellness, every moment onboard has been considered for unrivalled restoration. 

Step into The Spa, which is Celebrity Cruises’ luxurious spa sanctuary with more than 120 innovative, rejuvenating treatments. Their SEA Thermal Suite, available on all Celebrity Edge series ships, offers eight nature-inspired therapeutic experiences while the aquatherapy environments of The Persian Garden, which can be found on all Celebrity Millennium and Solstice series ships, ensures deep relaxation. 

Time to raise your endorphin levels? Try out one of their F45 fitness classes or a Peloton® cycling program before lying back on their sumptuous eXhale® bedding for an exquisite night’s rest.

Norwegian Cruise Line: Mandara Spa®

Recharge, revive and refresh in the soothing hands of the wellness professionals at the Mandara Spa®. Offering over 50 speciality treatments, from an Aroma Stone or Herbal Poultice massage to a Conditioning Hair and Scalp Ritual or an aromatherapy pedicure, you’ll feel more relaxed with every exhale. 

Choose from the cleansing crystals in the Salt Room, herbal steam or sauna or a dip in the Vitality Pool to wonderfully reawaken the senses and energise you for the remainder of your cruise holiday. 

Thermal Suites are available on all ships except the Joy, Sky, Spirit, Sun, and Pride of America. A Salt Room is available on Norwegian Cruise Line’s Breakaway, Getaway, Escape, Bliss and Encore ships. 

Additionally, every vessel as part of Norwegian Cruise Line’s hotly anticipated new Norwegian Prima Class, which includes Norwegian Prima and Norwegian Viva, will feature an industry-first charcoal sauna on board, alongside a two-story cascading indoor spa waterfall, an ice room, a floatation salt pool and an infrared sauna. 

MSC Cruises: Aurea Spa

Delight your senses as you step inside an MSC Cruises Aurea Spa, available on all MSC Cruise ships, with rich interiors comprising natural stone, wood, intricate mosaics, and scented aromatic oils filling the air; you’ll feel relaxed before even commencing one of the many exquisite treatments.

Book a traditional Balinese, hot stone or Himalayan salt massage, a soothing Finnish sauna, a visit to the snow grotto or an energising dip in the whirlpool. Or perhaps a session in their high-tech gym or with a personal trainer is what’s needed to restore your energy levels and leave you feeling rejuvenated.

Princess Cruises: Lotus Spa

On Princess Cruises, you’ll find everything needed for complete body and mind renewal. Visit The Enclave®, Princess Cruises’ largest-ever thermal suite like no other, and relish in its spectacular hydro-therapy pool with cascading rain shower. 

The delicate herbal scents of the steam chamber in the Caldarium provide the perfect reinvigoration remedy, while the Laconium dry chamber supports uplifting detoxification of the body. Or maybe you’ll be enticed by a salt or sugar scrub, specifically tailored to your skin type by the expert spa mixologists. 

Princess Cruises’ Lotus Spa is so good that it has even been named Best Spa on a Cruise Ship by Spafinder Wellness 365. If you're seeking even more serenity onboard a Princess Cruise, wander up to the top deck to the Sanctuary, an adults-only venue - and enjoy an open-air massage as attentive steward service ensures your every need is met.

Royal Caribbean: Vitality Spa & Fitness

In addition to Royal Caribbean’s exceptional range of exhilarating family-friendly activities and entertainment, the cruise line operates its own Vitality Spa and Fitness - a fabulous sanctuary to renew and recharge. 

The lavish retreat, available on all Royal Caribbean ships, has a range of massages and body wraps which are designed just for you, plus indulgent treatments for two - perfect for an at-sea spa date! - and even a menu of special treatments for teens. The YSpa for teens and tweens offers facials for young skin, manicures and more. 

As part of the Vitality Spa and Fitness, there are also exercise classes on offer utilising high-tech Technogym equipment and salon treatments, including make-up and hair services, on offer.