The Best Spa and Wellness Stays in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria

You won’t want to budge from the rooftop pool here: a dollop of sun-splashed turquoise lined with loungers and square white umbrellas, overlooking a golden strip of Atlantic Ocean beach. But step inside and you’ll discover this seaside stay has even more going for it. The spa, with sauna and Turkish bath, has a splendid hydrotherapy pool with windows looking out to blue aquatic views. Meanwhile, a long treatment list offers antioxidant vitamin C facials, Ayurvedic massage and even a special lavender treatment for pregnant women.

With a bubbling hot tub, soothing massage service and a fully equipped gym for burning off any holiday excesses, Exe Las Palmas has everything required for a feel-good holiday in the sun. It’s located pretty much right off the stunning Las Canteras beach, too, which means you can cultivate your tan in between spa sessions or between meals. Bright and fresh bedrooms, in crisp whites and warm woods, are relaxing places to crash after that spa treatment.

This only-in-the-Canaries property channels the essence of the surrounding ocean, from sea-themed frescoes in rooms to starfish-shaped pillows and an overarching blue-and-white colour scheme. Even the wellness roster continues the theme, with a whole range of activities, from beach yoga to stand-up paddle boarding. Staff are happy to help with any request, whether big (such as planning day trips) or small (a fruit basket delivered to your room), so you can spend more time lounging on the nearby sands of Las Canteras.

Opened in 1880, this grand dame is one of the regal old haunts of Las Palmas – think glamorous rooms with white button-back headboards, an elegant timber-lined restaurant with Michelin-worthy chefs and a marbled lobby hung with shimmering chandeliers, home to a grand piano. The impressively equipped wellness centre – adults-only, for maximum tranquillity – comes with exercise bikes, a hydrotherapy pool, a tropical shower and a trio of saunas. It’s got a glass roof so you can watch clouds floating across the blue Canarian sky as you relax.

It’s a few steps from photo-perfect Las Canteras beach, and that’s not the only reason to stay here. You’re also only a three-minute walk from Talasoterapia Las Canteras, a thalassotherapy spa with bubbling pools, as well as deep-cleansing facials, lymphatic drainage treatments and reiki sessions. After your afternoon of pampering, float back to the hotel for a snooze in your balconied room, prettied-up in lemon yellow hues and decorated with inspirational quotes. An al fresco hot tub awaits, if you’re not quite finished with spa pleasures.

The boutique vibe is tranquillity itself in this three-storey building by celebrated rationalist architect Miguel Martín-Fernández de la Torre. The hotel has just five rooms, all polished-wood floors, contemporary four-posters and pendant lights emitting a warm glow. For wellness obsessives, proximity to Cápsula Photon is the real selling point: at this wellness centre, you can rest in a futuristic egg-shaped capsule, said to boost weight loss and improve overall health. Looking for something a bit less high-tech? Massages and body wraps are also on offer.

This is a great little place to stay, just a three-minute walk from Cápsula Photon. Self-caterers save their pennies at this collection of apartments so as to afford an extra-indulgent spa treatment (or two). With expanses of lemon-yellow and Atlantic-turquoise, it oozes Canaries atmosphere – never more than when you’re enjoying a morning coffee on the sun-warmed terrace. Many of the units sleep up to four people, so it’s perfect for families, too.

What a great set-up this is: continental breakfasts served to you on a rooftop fringed with plants; cosy rooms exuding a romantic, homely vibe; a prime location by landscaped Doramas Park, with its rushing fountains and native vegetation. Everything about Casa Doramas is soothing, including its closeness to day spa Mispa Centro EIS. Come for a couples’ massage, or a solo Hawaiian-style muscle-melter – then stay for a skin-softening body wrap or a pedicure that restores your feet to a newborn’s freshness.