Depending on your approach, California is either the land of the all-natural, heal-yourself-with-introspection variety of wellness or the vanguard of high-tech optimization. The state pretty much has it all. We definitely couldn’t capture it all in our list of the 100 best spas in the world, so we created a spinoff here: eight destinations in the Golden State where you can count on coming away a little more burnished. In no particular order, our list of the best spas in California. (A quick note that a few notable entries, like Esalen and Cal-a-Vie, are on our Best Spas in the U.S. list, while Golden Door, is on our Top Ten in the World list—so you won’t find them here.) Some of these notable destinations fell off our 100 Best list, but are still well worth a visit.
Bardessono Hotel and Spa
At Bardessono Hotel and Spa, the spa comes to you. It pioneered Napa Valley’s spa-suite concept, bringing tailored spa experiences to the privacy of guests’ own rooms. Each spacious suite, with tucked-away massage tables, was thoughtfully designed to evoke your own personal spa sanctuary. The spa is sophisticated and modern, but not over the top. Call it quiet luxury, emphasis on quiet, with a warm, light color palette and decor accents made of salvaged wood and rusted steel. Dotted with 100-year-old olive trees, it feels like Tuscany through a California-ranch lens. You won’t find people posing for ’grams all over the place. Instead, the priorities at this secluded hideaway are privacy and tranquility.
Two Bunch Palms
Nestled within 77 acres of lush palm groves just 20 minutes outside of Palm Springs, this legendary desert oasis has been attracting visitors to its natural, mineral-rich hot springs for centuries. In fact, locals say the springs were originally given their name by the Indigenous Cahuilla tribe thousands of years ago. These days, Two Bunch Palms is a full-service resort offering a whole roster of modern treatments, healing workshops, and wellness experiences—what owner Erica Chang appealingly calls “uncomplicated wellness.” While there’s everything from Reiki meditation to adaptogenic body wraps on offer, taking to the waters in the thermal baths is definitely the main draw. The resort’s tucked-away location on the edge of the Coachella Valley lends it an aura of secrecy—but this isn’t the kind of place where you aren’t allowed to speak above a whisper.
Halehouse Spa at Stanly Ranch
Stanly Ranch’s Halehouse is a spa for high achievers. About an hour from San Francisco and the land of ROI and KPIs, it’s committed to a results-driven approach to well-being, with state-of-the-art technology and world-class visiting coaches, medical experts, and practitioners. It’s not just a spa—it’s a three-part, 12,000-square-foot comprehensive wellness hub. A world away from the windowless spas of yore, it manages to seamlessly bring in the outdoors: Each building in the Halehouse compound boasts stunning vistas of the property’s rolling hills (across which 135 airy cottages and guest rooms are spread), with glimpses of the broader Napa and Sonoma valleys beyond.
Hotel Bel-Air
There’s a famous story about the Hotel Bel-Air that involves all four members of the Beatles checking in separately sometime during the height of their fame without even realizing that the rest of their bandmates were there as well. Once you step foot on the 78-year-old hotel’s grounds, you can see how this could be true. The Bel-Air is spread across 12 acres, with charming little hideaways tucked between sprawling, majestic trees and all kinds of other greenery, making an excursion to the hotel’s spa feel pleasingly off-the-grid. The Bel Air’s sumptuous spa is far from your typical influencer-infested Hollywood hot spot; nor is it the kind of spa where employees avoid your eyeline or won’t greet you in the hallways.
Rancho La Puerta
This 80-year-old resort is largely considered North America’s “original wellness destination spa”—but it feels more like a magical utopian eco-village than that designation allows. Set across 4,000 acres of nature preserve, there are miles of private mountain hiking trails, dozens of fitness and art studios, several tennis and pickleball courts, three spa centers, several swimming pools, a large library, an artisan market, an organic farm, and so much more. With over 70 activities to choose from—including reformer pilates, Feldenkrais, Watsu, aerial yoga, breathwork, nutrition classes, and an ever-changing roster of personal development workshops and lectures led by visiting experts—it’s no wonder so many guests return time and again.
Spa Ojai
California’s Ojai Valley has long been known as a sacred destination for healing—or, at the very least, good vibes. And though its largest and best-known resort definitely embraces the area’s transcendent mystique, it’s decidedly more high-end than hippie. Occupying a 31,000-square-foot Spanish-style villa tucked amongst mature cypress, oak, and olive trees at the edge of the resort, the state-of-the-art Spa Village is an oasis of cream-and-white minimalism. Ojai is often referred to as an “energy vortex,” and Spa Ojai also offers a separate Spiritual Wellness menu that allows for one-on-one sessions with resident intuitives, Reiki practitioners, sound healers, and life coaches. There truly is something for everyone here—all a modern-day wellness seeker could desire.
Sense Spa at Rosewood Miramar Beach
California’s central coast has no shortage of gorgeous resorts, but Rosewood Miramar Beach offers an entirely fresh way to experience the region. Located just 15 minutes from downtown Santa Barbara in the posh beachside community of Montecito, this 153-room ocean-front hotel feels like a grand estate straight out of Cape Cod: It’s all white roses, white picket fences, and white clapboard. At the resort’s Sense Spa, which is tucked onto the second floor of the main Manor House, the sensibility is equally genteel. The indoor relaxation lounge features plush private lounge chairs surrounded by gauzy cream curtains, while outside, a sunny rooftop deck has cold plunge pools and offers sweeping views of the Santa Ynez Mountains. There are six private treatment rooms, dry saunas and steam rooms, and a full-service nail and hair salon. It all makes for a chic escape into a refined world of wellness.
The Parker Palm Springs
Located within the iconic Parker Palm Springs Hotel and designed by Jonathan Adler, PSYC (as they call the spa for short) manages to be quirky, serene, and chic all at once. Likely that’s because it’s also very serious in its approach to body treatments, facials, and massages: Each one is personalized to suit your specific needs, and a lot of them end with a bliss-inducing scalp massage. The 18,000-square-foot temple is dedicated to “full-on pampering and self-indulgence,” so it also boasts an indoor saltwater pool, eucalyptus steam rooms, saunas, hot tubs, a boutique, a fitness center, and a movement studio. And because the spa’s manifesto proudly proclaims its belief in the “American country club experience, mixed doubles, a long steam, and a stiff cocktail,” every visit starts with the option of a cool, cucumber-infused vodka shot.
