Apex Medi Spa

There’s more to Thonglor than clubbing, crowded wine bistros and fancy restaurants. Situated behind Eight Thonglor in Thonglor Soi 8, the newly opened Apex Medi Spa manages to block out the city with its wooden screens and soothing water running down panes of glass. It’s warm and quiet, with just enough touches of white to look “medi” as well as “spa.” The treatments include a lot of expensive products meant to rejuvenate your cells, from gold fusion therapy to caviar masks and infrared beds. Prices start from B5,000 for facial treatments but the drain-massage treatment is B2,500 for 30 minutes, if you’re just looking to quickly relax your calves and thighs before a night out in Thonglor.
Behind Ei8ht Thonglor Complex, Thonglor Soi 8, Sukhumvit Rd., 080-500-0123. www.apexprofoundbeauty.com

Oasis Spa Sukhumvit 51

Hidden away in a bohemian house surrounded by a lush tropical garden, this is another blissfully tranquil spot in the heart of downtown Bangkok. The seven private rooms are decked out with oriental details and equipped with Jacuzzi and herbal steam baths. Get pampered with their 90-minute Northern-Thai-inspired treatment (The Voyage of Golden Lanna, B5,900).
Sukhumvit 51, 88 Sukhumvit Rd., 02-262-2122. Open daily 10am-10pm. www.oasisspa.net

So SPA

The newly-opened Sofitel So Bangkok has just unveiled its exclusive sanctuary, So SPA. Perched on the 11th floor and overlooking Bangkok’s green oasis, Lumpini Park, the spa’s design manages to draw in that leafy ambiance and translate it into the Himmapan Forest from Thai mythology thanks to a 600-sq-meter space with plenty of wood, dark colors and a soothing water feature. Its introductory signature treatment, the Serenity of Five Elements (B3,400), features 90 minutes of oil massage and herbal compresses.
11/F, Sofitel So Bangkok, 2 North Sathorn Rd., 02-624-0000. Open 10am-10pm. MRT Lumphini.

Okura Spa

Hidden away on the 25th floor of the new luxury Japanese-chain hotel, The Okura Bangkok, is the Okura Spa. Set in a contemporary oriental space, five private treatment rooms are hidden along a dimly-lit walkway. The highlight is theOkura Take Relief bamboo massage where therapists roll a warm bamboo pole over your muscles to release stress before a soak in big bathtub (B3,600).
25/F, The Okura Prestige Bangkok, Ploenchit Rd., 02-687-9000. Open daily 10am-10pm. BTS Ploenchit.

Kiriya Spa (The Lit)

There’s an immediately calming effect walking into this dim, cavern-like and voluptuously curved space designed by Vaslab. All the treatments have been inspired by Thailand’s four main regions. The Southern treatment, for example, starts with a strong, slow massage inspired by the local Nora dance and performed with hot seashells. It’s followed by another massage technique inspired by a dance, the Hooloo Vahi, which focuses on blood circulation (130 min, B3,600). Come before 2pm for 40% off all treatments.
The Lit. 36/1 Soi Kasemsan 1, 02-612-3456. Open daily 10am-10pm. BTS National Stadium.