What should you try?
With a 30-page treatment menu, the offerings here are extensive. But look a little closer and it is mainly variations on the classics: massages, facials, fitness coaching, makeup applications. I would highly recommend indulging in some skin care: Guerlain is a cosmetics company, after all, and there is a lot of expertise and thought that goes into each session. The New York spa is considered one of the two Guerlain flagships (the other being Paris) and is home to one of only two Longeviskin machines, a seven-treatment, all-in-one device for those who want to really excavate with LES, microcurrents, cryo, etc. But whatever role technology plays, an expert human eye is as central to the treatment. I was a little discouraged by my undereye circles and some flaky skin that I couldn’t seem to dispel when I arrived. “Might be dehydration,” said Marie Barthélemy, Guerlain’s director of international spas and wellness—sharing an appealing dose of honesty before she plied me with scrubs and serums.
Barthélemy treated me to a bespoke facial designed in consultation with a lengthy questionnaire and a close but gentle inspection of my skin that included exfoliation with rice powder and the gentle application with kabuki brushes of Orchidée Impériale Mousse. Sensing the harried air that wafted into the treatment room around me, Barthélemy kept both the treatments and their application fairly simple. It was time for me to breathe, relax under her expert fingertips, and perhaps prepare myself for a more meditative evening. Did I want a touch-up after I left her room? Was I headed off into the New York night for a glittering adventure? With apologies to the luminous ghosts haunting the glamorous lobby: I did not, and I was not. I was headed home to bed.
What else do we need to know?
Appealingly, and in keeping with fine-dining trends, gratuity is automatically added, eliminating the “just how much do I tip” calculation at the end of your session, a zen-busting exercise if ever there was one. The amount can always be adjusted, of course.
Who can go?
The spa is for guests aged 18 and up, and you don’t need to be staying at the hotel to book an appointment.
Booking details for Waldorf Astoria New York
Address: 301 Park Ave, New York, NY 10022
Read more from Vogue’s Global Spa Guide. Read more about the Waldorf Astoria New York at the Conde Nast Traveler Hot List.
