Best spa hotels in Edinburgh: Where to stay for luxury pools and rejuvenation

Immerse yourself in deep relaxation and experience what makes a Scottish spa more exquisite than the rest at these top-rated Edinburgh spa hotels. The spellbinding Scottish capital has plenty of sights to see, museums to discover and boutique shops to peruse. Edinburgh is probably the only city in the world where you can summit a looming extinct volcano right in the centre, explore the history of a sprawling castle complex and wander the alleyways of a medieval old town all in a single day. It’s a city made for walking with Princes Street Gardens stretching alongside the city’s main thoroughfare and the Royal Mile winding its steep way from Holyrood Palace to the Castle.

After days of pounding the pavement between ancient sights, sometimes all you want is a wee bit of time to put your aching feet up and relax. Thankfully this city has plenty of hotels with a spa on site. Edinburgh’s best spa hotels use the natural bounty of Scotland’s landscape in their scrubs, facials and body wraps and offer a range of treatments. Here are the best hotels for a spa break in and around Edinburgh.

There’s a lot to love about the Sheraton Grand. This five-star hotel on Lothian Road boasts 24-hour room service, rooms with views of the Castle and an indulgent daily breakfast. But the highlight is the One Spa, which is the biggest hotel spa in the city. A rooftop hydropool offers hydrotherapy sessions in Scotland’s cool, refreshing air and the thermal suite is there to help you warm up afterwards with saunas, steam rooms and a dry salt room. Fabulous dining experiences can accompany spa days, like themed afternoon teas, gin tastings and champagne brunches on Sundays.

Address: 1 Festival Square, Edinburgh EH3 9SR. Read more: The best hotels in Edinburgh for castle views and Old Town getaways. If you’re jetting into Edinburgh Airport, it doesn’t get more convenient than Norton House Hotel for a spa stay. Despite its close proximity to Scotland’s busiest airport, the feeling at Norton House is quiet, calm and beautifully bucolic. Once a Victorian country house, it sits within acres of gardens with dog walks and hikes on the doorstep. The spa is the perfect place to unwind after a day in the countryside where you can indulge in a massage or embrace a bucket shower by the hydrotherapy pool. The Turkish mud chamber is a particularly unique experience.

Address: Harvest Road, Newbridge EH28 8LX. Read more: Best boutique hotels in Edinburgh. The Caledonian Hotel, now part of the Hilton Curio Collection, has stood proud at the West End of Princes Street for over 100 years. It’s an Edinburgh icon, known affectionately as “The Cally” by locals. Spa days here are a real treat, often gifted at Christmas for a little New Year indulgence. Swim laps in the pool, soak in the hot tub and sweat your troubles away in the saunas and steam rooms. Facials and skin treatments use the natural minerals of Hebridean seaweed to add a distinctly Scottish touch to the experience. Afterwards, pad through the quiet, grand corridors to your sumptuous bedroom or indulge in the tasting menu at Dean Banks’ restaurant in the stunning Pompadour dining room.

Address: Princes Street, Edinburgh EH1 2AB. Read more: Uber has launched seaplane flights over an iconic Scottish loch – and they are completely free. Dalhousie stands splendidly in rose stone with turrets, and acre upon acre of manicured and wild gardens. While technically at the very limits of Edinburgh, it’s an easy bus ride or short drive into the city centre. It’s worth being out of town for the full castle experience at Dalhousie, starting with meeting the residents at the owl sanctuary within the grounds, followed by dining in the medieval-style Dungeon Restaurant and sipping a neat whisky by the crackling fire in the library bar. To top it all off, the spa is a destination in itself, offering myriad treatments in its hydrotherapy pool and Laconium Roman steam room.

Address: Bonnyrigg, Edinburgh EH19 3JB. Read more: Best family-friendly hotels in Scotland – where to stay for a warm welcome and lasting memories. If it’s luxury you seek, look no further than Gleneagles Townhouse. Formerly a bank, the grand Georgian building on St Andrews Square has been sympathetically converted into one of the most luxurious new hotels in Edinburgh. Bedrooms hark back to a bygone era with huge canopied beds and rich mahogany room dividers, while The Spence restaurant embraces Georgian splendour. The spa offers signature treatments, tried and tested for decades at the original Gleneagles Hotel in Perthshire, using Scottish products like wild sea buckthorn and seaweed to rejuvenate the mind and body.

Address: 39 St Andrew Square, Edinburgh EH2 2AD. Read more: How to spend a day in Portobello, Edinburgh’s swinging seaside suburb. It may be situated on the historic Royal Mile, but this Marriott Hotel is a vision of modernism. It’s a stone’s throw from the resplendent Holyrood Palace, and country walks are on the doorstep with Arthur’s Seat is just across the road. Rooms combine form and function with clean lines and crisp linen, and the restaurant showcases some of the best of Scotland’s natural larder in its menu.  In the spa, you’ll find a huge indoor pool, fully-equipped gym and numerous relaxing treatments like hot stone massages, facials and manicures.