South Florida Is the Best Place to Go for a Luxury Spa Vacation This Labor Day

1. Acqualina Spa by ESPA

Photo: Acqualina Resort and Spa/Facebook

At over 20,000 square feet, Acqualina Spa has some of Miami Beach’s most luxurious amenities: a sparkling crystal steam room, a Himalayan salt wall, a refreshing ice fountain, and a shower with cool arctic and warm Caribbean mists. This summer, choose from two discounted holistic rituals, a Summer Firming facial, which includes special eye-area nourishment, and a scalp massage or soothing Swedish massage with essential oils of sandalwood and rose geranium. The hotel’s co-ed oceanfront terrace with a heated jet pool and Roman waterfall is the perfect place to enjoy the hotel’s background of rustling palm trees and the warm Atlantic ocean breeze.

Where: 17875 Collins Ave, Sunny Isles Beach

2. The Atlantic Hotel & Spa

Photo: The Atlantic Hotel & Spa/Facebook

Visit this spa in Fort Lauderdale Beach for unique treatments rich in seawater, seaside plant oils, and salts. For $99, you can book a Hydrate and Plump facial with multi-dimensional hydration or the Atlantic Swedish massage, where Moroccan oil is massaged into the scalp to relieve dryness and leave the hair healthy and shiny. If you are in need of a longer ritual, try the Atlantic Journey, which includes a 50-minute massage and a classic manicure and pedicure for $199. After your treatment, experience the sauna, steam room, and jacuzzi before lounging by the hotel’s rooftop pool and to enjoy serene oceanfront views.

Where: 601 N Fort Lauderdale Beach Blvd, Fort Lauderdale

3. The Diplomat Spa

Photo: The Diplomat Beach Resort/Facebook

On the special summer menu at this waterfront sanctuary along Hollywood Beach, find two signature treatments, a Swedish massage enhanced with aromatherapy to increase circulation, reduce tension, and induce deep relaxation and the Diplomat facial with collagen eye treatment designed to revitalize the skin. There’s also a special CBD herbalistic ritual manicure and pedicure, which includes exfoliation and a deep hydrating mask. Make sure you save time to enjoy the rain wall and steam room before taking a dip in the resort’s infinity pool. Cost for each treatment is $99 through September 30.

Where: 3555 S Ocean Dr, Hollywood

4. Eau Palm Beach Resort & Spa

Photo: Eau Palm Beach Resort & Spa/Facebook

This 40,000-square-foot retreat in the secluded town of Manalapan in Palm Beach is the ideal destination if you want to get away from everything. Begin your visit with a glass of Champagne and then make a wish in the spa’s wishing well before immersing yourself in a wonderland of etched-glass mirrors, gleaming wood floors, marble baths, and sheer, flowing drapery. After your ritual, lounge in the alfresco, self-centered garden, a tropical oasis lined with draped cabanas, and make time to enjoy the indoor whirlpool, which features an overhead waterfall. Menu highlights are The Muse of Music massage where you can customize the color and scent of your treatment room ($119), MJ’s Mellow Yellow CBD manicures ($50) and pedicures ($60), and the Express Brazilian Blow-Out ($150).

Where: 100 S Ocean Blvd, Manalapan

5. The Spa at Carillon Miami

Photo: Carillon Miami Wellness Resort/Facebook

At this sophisticated, 70,000-square-foot beachfront spa and wellness facility in Miami Beach, you can indulge in any 50-minute massage or body treatment from its expensive regular menu for only $109. Options range from a Himalayan Salt Stone Massage to a Rejuvenating Treatment combining a foot exfoliation and warm body hydration. Another great option is the 80-minute electro-sound lymphatic drainage therapy followed by an infrared sauna session, designed to reduces cellulite, slims the waist, and enhance cell nourishment and immunity ($139). Don’t miss the Thermal Experience, which includes aromatherapy steam rooms, a Finnish sauna, an open-air HydroSpa, rainfall showers, and an igloo spritzing cooling, aromatic mists. For a $40 upcharge, you can also enjoy the hotel’s private pool and beach.

Where: 6801 Collins Ave, Miami Beach

6. The Spa at Mandarin Oriental

Photo: Mandarin Oriental, Miami/Facebook

A unique roster of treatments at this luxurious urban oasis in the vibrant Brickell neighborhood combines Florida elements and Oriental techniques. Summer treatments include a $139 Mo Destress customizable full body massage with the spa’s signature aromatherapy line, a keratin hair treatment at more than $200 off its regular price, and a range of Biologique Recherche facials for immediate rejuvenating results. If you are seeking a personal haven, request the spa suite for one, where you can experience a bespoke series of treatments for $195/hour. From Monday to Thursday, spa guests have access to the hotel’s exclusive pool and beach.

Where: 500 Brickell Key Dr, Miami

7. The Spa at Auberge Beach

Photo: Auberge Beach Residences & Spa Fort Lauderdale/Facebook

The Auberge Beach Residences in Fort Lauderdale beach is home to this new luxury spa, where therapists perform indulgent body therapies indoors or at oceanfront garden cabanas. From August to September, the spa is featuring a discounted plumping and collagen-boosting Rx Facial and a 50-minute Auberge Soothe Massage with layers of aromatherapy, cleansing stone crop back scrub, hot stones, and pressure point crystals ($99 each). There’s also a $189 vitality package on the menu, which combines a 50-minute massage and a custom organic facial. The signature self-guided vitality circuit includes a sound meditation lounge, a salt cave, a detoxing infrared sauna, and a hot steam room and deluge shower. With your treatment, you get a glass of prosecco and access to the quiet beach with a lounge chair and umbrella. After dark, lounge in front of the fire pit at the oceanfront terrace with a glass of wine.

8. Thémaé Spa at the Setai

Rich wood furnishings and neutral hues come together to compose an elegant Art Deco fusion style throughout this exclusive South Beach retreat, which celebrities and locals visit year-round to benefit from the healing properties of tea-infused rituals. Book one of the four spa suites overlooking the hotel’s lush gardens and pool to experience the Southeastern Asian techniques used in the Brilliance Facial ($109) or the Bali Fusion massage, which frees the body of all its tension with agile, graceful strokes and gentle, comforting movements ($139). If you are a couple, opt for romantic baths complete with candlelight and flower petals as a way to relax together. Use of the private beach and recycled-glass pools is based upon availability, so make sure to get to the hotel early in the day.

Where: 2200 N Ocean Blvd, Fort Lauderdale

9. Tierra Santa Healing House at Faena Hotel Miami Beach

Photo: Faena Miami Beach/Facebook

Miami’s South American influence takes center stage at this contemporary spa, set on the third floor of the five-star Faena Hotel Miami Beach. The 22,000-square-foot space features shaman-developed rituals usually priced upwards of $400, but during the summer you can experience a hair mask and blow out for $109, a customized facial for $139, and the Sacred Warrior therapy with virgin coconut oil for $199. At the lavish wet spa, de-stress at the jasmine-infused hammam and eucalyptus aromatherapy herbal steam room before moving on to the tepidarium of heated stone beds, then cooling down at the ice parlor. Treatments include a meditation session and a beach pass with a chair and umbrella.

Where: 3201 Collins Ave, Miami Beach

10. Waldorf Astoria Spa at the Boca Raton Resort & Club

Photo: Boca Raton Resort/Facebook

The Waldorf Astoria Boca Raton is one of the more luxurious places to stay in South Florida, equipped with a 50,000-square-foot spa for hotel guests only. Built to resemble the Alhambra palace in Spain, it has sunny terraces, cascading waterfalls, a private pool, and a Great Hall with a fireplace. One of the best ways to experience is to book the signature restorative Ritual Bath and let yourself be guided through the inhalation room, a bath soak with Champagne and sorbet, and Swiss and deluge showers with pressurized water massages to relieve tired muscles ($85). Other highlights are Shankaratm Abhyanga massage ($170) — a ritual of continuous flow of aromatic oils, rhythmic massage, and thoughtful intention — and the Citrus Essence Facial, where pure vitamin C is used to restore vitality to dry, sun-damaged skin ($160). Access to three on-site fitness centers is extended to spa-goers.

Where: 501 E Camino Real, Boca Raton