Weddings Winter 2009 > Brides

Amore Pacific Beauty Gallery and Spa

This Soho respite specializes in facial creams with a blend of Asian ingredients, whipped up by hand at its on-site mixing bar. Brides wanting to firm up their skin pre-wedding should book a contour-lift facial ($225 for 75 minutes).

Beam Laser Spa

Andréa and Liza Young, the owners and operators of this intimate laser-hair-removal spa—there’s only one treatment room available—host brides-to-be and their entourages. Beam uses a Gentlemax Laser, an of-the-moment technology that works on all skin tones, to zap away unwanted fuzz ($150 to $600 per session).

Bliss

This peppy day spa is as popular as ever, doling out treatments like the triple-oxygen facial ($160) and carrot-and-sesame body buff ($165). Brides concerned with fine lines and wrinkles can try Bliss’s “The Youth as We Know It” facial ($185).

Caudalie Vinothérapie Spa

The Caudalie Vinotherapie Spa has helped make the Plaza a destination again. Radiance-restoring, polyphenol-rich skin-care treatments for the face and body—like the crushed Cabernet scrub, $145, and red vine barrel bath, $75, get high marks—are the perfect pre-wedding-day indulgence. As are the wine (they have an in-house sommelier) and cheese offered on site.

Chopra Center & Spa at Dream

At this Eastern-inspired midtown retreat, couples can indulge in a detoxifying mud-and-steam session ($65), full-body massages using warm herbalized oils ($195 for 80 minutes), and the Navina sensory bath with herbs and essential oils ($65). Save 10 percent by booking three or more treatments per person.

Clarins Skin Spa

The famed French spa offers a particularly luxe Wedding Beauty Program: For $625, brides get three 60-minute facials, three 60-minute body treatments, and two makeup consultations (they have a year to use them). Clarins can also accommodate private soirées of five to ten guests in its orchid-filled solarium ($75 to $150 per person).

Completely Bare

This popular spa specializes in hair removal; it’s ideal for a Brazilian wax before a beach honeymoon. Sign up for microdermabrasion ($185 a session) to give your skin a boost before the wedding.

Eden Day Spa

This expansive spot is a best bet for big bachelorette parties: The 8,000-square-foot space can host a private group of twenty for services like manicures, pedicures, and hydrating facials. As a bonus, the kitchen whips up delectable food (free for those who spend $80 or more).

Exhale

Brides come to this holistic spa for serious body makeovers. Exhale’s six-week transformation package ($2,000) focuses on nutrition and fitness. The Lift facial ($195) will make skin firmer, and a session of brow-sculpting ($120) from Eliza Petrescu of Eliza’s Eyes—their in-house brow expert—is the icing on the cake.

Faina European Day Spa

This low-key spa overseen by the meticulous Faina Shafrir has adjustable walls to host parties of up to eight (save 10 to 20 percent on groups). The “Champagne Extravaganza” for two ($229 per couple) includes a steam shower, body scrub, massage, chocolate, and Champagne, but the salon is known for its facials: There are no less than eighteen different ones on the menu.

Gansevoort Spa and Salon

This spa and salon in Hotel Gansevoort’s lower level uses about 80 percent green products and offers facials (from $70) and a to-die-for couples massage under a rooftop cabana ($180).

Gloria Cabrera Salon and Spa

This affordable, family-run spa will pamper the bride and her friends with individual services, or with its bridal shower package, which includes a massage, facial, pedicure, manicure, hairstyling, and makeup ($225 per person).

Graceful Spa

This no-frills spot’s popular deep-tissue massages start at just $40. For a gentler touch, they also offer less-intense Swedish massages, as well as traditional facials and body scrubs. Graceful Spa can host bachelorette parties of up to eight people.

Great Jones Spa

With water cures and hot-stone saunas, this serene spa is a best bet for relaxation. In the VIP room, brides and grooms can enjoy dual massages and a private Jacuzzi, as well as the Pure Fiji Coconut Sugar Glow body scrub ($150). The spa also offers cleansing colonics.

Guerlain Spa

With treatment rooms that rival the size of most New York one bedrooms, an opulent design, and a very fashionable address (a floor of the Waldorf-Astoria), the Guerlain Spa may be the most luxurious spa in Manhattan. Not surprisingly, luxury doesn’t come cheap. The extravagant Bridal Glow package—seven hours of intensive body, facial, hand, and foot therapy plus pre-consultation bridal makeup—will cost you $1,375.

Haven

This hip but unpretentious Soho spot is a great place for all the usual spa treatments, including pedicures (from $38) and facials (from $65). For brides with an entourage, the spa can accommodate groups of up to fifteen. Full-day private parties from $3,000.

J'Aime Day Spa

This minimalist spa offers a package that is anything but. The Rejuvenate includes an exfoliating honey-and-milk polish, a scalp massage, manicure, paraffin pedicure, and facial—all for $200. Wine is served with all packages (from $95).

J. Sisters International

This beauty parlor is famous for its incredibly thorough bikini waxes, but it’s also a good place for all-in-one bridal packages. Before the big day, brides can sign up for the works: manicure, pedicure, hair, makeup, and, of course, a Brazilian ($500 to $600).

La Prairie at the Ritz-Carlton Spa

The Ritz-Carlton’s decadent retreat is the place for relaxing skin treatments—and it’s also great for a girls’ get-together. Its plush, spacious sitting areas and relaxing treatment rooms are an ideal setting for the luxurious Silver Rain manicure ($80) and pedicure ($115).

Lather Spa

The Lather Spa package ($300) pampers brides with a pedicure and manicure ($25 to $60), and a facial and massage ($75 to $320). Lather can accommodate bridal parties of fifteen to twenty and offers an express aromatherapy massage lasting 30 minutes ($75).

La Vie Zen Spa

This small spa caters to brides looking for serene and exotic treatments (packages from $80). After the Green Tea pedicure ($70) or the Vichy Shower hydrotherapy wrap treatment ($150), the second-floor French garden is a perfect spot to unwind.

From the Winter 2009 New York Wedding Guide