Expert Guide to Milan: Best Spa, Facial, Massage, and More
Welcome to Marie Claire’s Global Glow Guide, your one-stop-shop to the best beauty destinations around the world. Whether you need to find a bouncy blowout while traveling abroad or the best facial to rehab post-flight skin, we’ve got you covered.
Italy’s fashion capital has long been synonymous with glamour, but its beauty world is experiencing a quiet renaissance. Across the city, the most coveted destinations are blending spa-level care with fashion-week polish, shaping a scene that is refined, modern, and distinctly Milanese. From long-established studios where sciuras (wealthy, well-dressed women) have kept the same appointment for decades to design-forward spas favored by the fashion crowd, this is the definitive guide to the most elevated beauty experiences in Milan—a city where ritual, luxury, and style naturally converge.
Here, beauty is less about excess and more about intention. Treatments are thoughtful and rooted in consistency rather than quick fixes. For Milan women, the practices taught and experienced during these indulgences are often carried into daily life as well—whether that’s incorporating a luxe hair oil nightly post-blowout, at-home lymphatic drainage to carry on the detox days after a massage, or even taking a few extra moments in the morning to ground yourself before the day begins.
Ahead, I’ve curated the Marie Claire Glow Guide to Milan. It encompasses destinations where some of the most elegant women go for hair, nails, facials, and massages—places that inspire well-being that lasts long after leaving the fashion mecca.
Best Facial
Armani/SPA at the Armani Hotel Milano
Minimalist, architectural, and unmistakably polished, Armani/SPA feels like the purest expression of Giorgio Armani’s worldview. Set on the hotel’s eighth floor, it seems to float above the city like a calm, curated retreat where every detail is intentional and nothing feels excessive.
Treatments mirror that discipline: rebalancing massages, tension-releasing rituals, detox scrubs, and skin therapies built around tone, texture, and subtle enhancement rather than dramatic overhaul. For a perfectly Milanese finish, the 80-minute Armani/SPA Make-Up Session adds a layer of glamour — beginning with a brightening mini facial, then moving into a bespoke application using the iconic Armani Beauty range. Think luminous, second-skin textures (including the cult Luminous Silk foundation) and the kind of refined sculpting that reads polished without ever tipping into effortful. It’s where fashion people slip away when they want to disappear for an hour, reset in peace, and re-emerge looking quietly immaculate.
Anti-Aging Rejuvenating Facial: Starts at 50 minutes
Cost: Starts at $188
Dior Spa at Belmond Hotel Splendido, Portofino
Portofino has long been the weekend escape destination for Milan’s most glamorous women, and with the new Dior Spa at the Belmond Hotel Splendido, the tradition feels more intoxicating than ever. Perched high above the harbor, surrounded by terracotta terraces, lemon trees, and the ever-changing Mediterranean blues, the spa delivers couture-level wellness in a setting that feels almost impossibly cinematic. Long before Dior’s arrival, Belmond Hotel Splendido has been the retreat of choice for generations of icons: Sophia Loren, Elizabeth Taylor, and today’s style figures, including Chiara Ferragni, who returns year after year.
Dior’s presence elevates the experience even further. Treatments mirror the house’s sculptural, high-performance aesthetic—contouring body rituals, signature massages, and skincare sequences focused on lift, clarity, and luminosity. The standout is the Dior Golden Aura, beloved for leaving the skin lifted, brightened, and camera-ready in a single session—a perfect prelude to a sunlit lunch overlooking the harbor or an early-evening passeggiata through town. Days at Splendido move at a luxurious, unhurried rhythm. Guests swim in the infinity pool that seems to spill directly into the Mediterranean, sip cocktails on sun-drenched terraces, and dine at the romantic rooftop restaurant, watching the boats drift by below. As a beauty-led extension to a Milan itinerary, nothing feels more iconic and more effortlessly Italian.
Dior Golden Aura facial: 90 minutes
Cost: $612
Best Massage
Club 10 at Hotel Principe di Savoia
Part of the Dorchester Collection (the same group as Hôtel Plaza Athénée in Paris and The Beverly Hills Hotel), Hotel Principe di Savoia is home to Club 10, a long-standing favorite among fashion editors, stylists, and frequent travelers looking for a reliably effective reset in the city. Set on the upper floors with sweeping views over Milan, Club 10 offers a heated indoor pool, fitness area, sauna, steam room, and a suite of treatments designed to deliver visible results. Cryotherapy, lymphatic drainage, contouring facials, and targeted deep-tissue massages are performed with technical skill and minimal downtime, making it an easy stop between appointments or ahead of events.
The atmosphere is polished and classic, with a touch of old-world European elegance that feels increasingly rare in modern spas. Treatments are delivered with precision, the service is discreet, and everything runs on the kind of efficiency seasoned travelers appreciate. For a reliable, well-executed spa experience in a heritage luxury setting, Club 10 remains a smart choice.
Osmotic Bliss Massage: 50 minutes
Cost: $182
The Spa at Four Seasons Hotel Milano
Set inside a former 15th-century convent in the heart of the Quadrilatero, the Four Seasons Milano Spa remains one of the city’s most quietly luxurious wellness retreats—a serene counterpoint to Milan’s fast pace. Vaulted stone ceilings, warm light, and the signature indoor pool create an atmosphere of calm that feels worlds away from the surrounding fashion district.
As is the st andard with Four Seasons spas globally, the Milan outpost is trusted for its consistency and care. Treatments are restorative rather than theatrical: sculpting facials, intuitive lymphatic work, hot-stone and tension-melting massages, and targeted rituals that revive skin and energy after long flights, market appointments, or days spent moving between showrooms.
Regulars value the balance of discretion and expertise—on any given day, you might spot Italian It Girls like The Attico duo, Giorgia Tordini and Gilda Ambrosio. Service unfolds seamlessly, therapists are skilled without being intrusive, and the results—lifted cheekbones, softened tension, brighter eyes—feel polished yet natural. It’s why editors and well-traveled guests return again and again: they know they’ll receive a thoughtful, precise reset inside one of the city’s most dependable and elegant sanctuaries.
Rebalancing Massage: 50 to 80 minutes
Cost: $223 – $282
Best Spa
Bulgari Hotel Milano
The city’s most luxurious beauty experience sits behind a leafy courtyard in Brera, at Milan’s most iconic and enduringly chic address: Bulgari Hotel Milano. It’s long been the default check-in for editors and supermodels during fashion week, the instinctive rendezvous point for designers at aperitivo hour, and the unofficial social sanctuary of the city’s well-heeled set. And now, it stands at the epicenter of Milan’s modern wellness scene, home to a state-of-the-art fitness club, an elevated spa programme, and a reimagined hair and beauty salon that together form one of the city’s most coveted beauty destinations.
Rooms are engineered for radiance with complimentary gym merch, a yoga mat, a foam roller, and a full Augustinus Bader kit. This extravagant amenity lineup feels like a pre-arrival beauty prescription. Once you’ve settled, slip into a robe and descend into the subterranean spa, a world of green-and-gold mosaic, lamplit water, and quiet serenity. The hammam, vitality pool, Swedish sauna, and treatment suites are all designed to restore body and mind in equal measure, with therapies that skew precise and performance-oriented: LED sessions, restorative massage, and signature Bader protocols that counter jet lag and sculpt contours. The revamped Hair & Beauty Salon has become a fashion week stronghold thanks to editorial-level blowouts, Oribe glossing rituals, and elevated color work. Even Niko Romito’s dining programme now leans wellness-forward, with fresh juices, seasonal produce, and a nourishing broth menu.
For anyone looking to experience Milan through its most polished, stylistically assured lens, where beauty, cuisine, and atmosphere align at the highest level, Bulgari remains the address that defines the city at its best.
‘Oja’ Signature Surrender Ritual: 110 minutes
Cost: $376
The Longevity Suite, Milano
For those who treat beauty as more than skin-deep, The Longevity Suite represents a new frontier in Milan: part clinic, part luxury spa, part high-tech reset station. With centers in Brera, Porta Nuova, and Sempione, it has quickly become a favorite among locals and international travelers seeking long-term vitality as much as immediate glow. The menu leans future-forward: full-body cryotherapy, photobiomodulation, hyperbaric-style oxygen treatments, regenerative medicine, IV therapy, and multi-step “Longevity Experiences” designed to detox, reboot, or re-energize. For those living fast between flights, deadlines, and events, the appeal is clear: an accelerated path to recovery and sustained wellbeing, guided by specialists and medical experts.
Treatments focus less on quick fixes and more on recalibrating the systems that underpin energy, skin clarity, and resilience. Protocols address inflammation, cellular regeneration, and metabolic balance, while holistic programmes draw inspiration from Blue Zones principles to support deeper, longer-lasting vitality. Whether you need a glow-ready boost before takeoff or a full-body reset to sustain balance between cities and deadlines, The Longevity Suite delivers some of the most innovative treatments in town.
Eternal Youth TMR: Time varies
Cost: Price available upon request
Borgo Santo Pietro, Tuscany
Just outside Siena, Borgo Santo Pietro is a 13th-century villa where Milan fashion insiders go for an off-grid wellness retreat where you can still enjoy a glass of Chianti, homemade gelato, and excellent pasta. The estate blends rustic Tuscan charm with Scandi minimalism, thanks to its Danish founders with a fashion-world background, creating a retreat that is effortlessly curated, stylish, and intimate.
Beauty here grows from the land itself. The spa’s Seed to Skin beauty line transforms lavender, rose, chamomile, calendula, and verbena, harvested steps from the treatment rooms, into oils, balms, and infusions used across massages, hydrotherapy dips, and aromatic facials. Guests can also enjoy sound baths or wander gardens where the estate grows its own produce, makes lemon balm tea, and sources virtually everything on the menu. Suites open onto rose gardens that feel as if they’ve been plucked from a vintage Dolce & Gabbana campaign, blending nature, art, and rustic luxury.
Days at Borgo Santo Pietro unfold at an unhurried rhythm: swimming in the pool, strolling the fragrant gardens, or savoring seasonal, farm-to-table cuisine. It’s a wellness retreat in the truest sense—luxurious, stylish, and quietly transformative—offering a rare off-grid glow that lingers long after returning to Milan.
The Nature’s Bounty Head-to-Toe Treatment: 120 minutes
Cost: $412
Best Blowout
Aldo Coppola
Aldo Coppola is more than a salon—it’s a Milanese beauty institution. For decades, the Coppola family has shaped the visual language of Italian glamour, becoming synonymous with the glossy, architectural hair that defined the supermodel era. That history reads like a fashion archive: throughout the ’90s and 2000s, Coppola artists worked on legendary shoots and runways, styling figures like Naomi Campbell, Carla Bruni, and Monica Bellucci, cementing the salon’s global pedigree.
The flagship on Via Manzoni captures that heritage in its most distilled form: dramatic red interiors, immaculate lighting, and an atmosphere that feels quietly charged. That elite clientele remains visible today, with models arriving straight from the airport, actresses preparing for premieres, and impeccably groomed Milanese regulars whose loyalty spans generations.
The technical execution matches the pedigree. Color work is exceptional, from luminous blondes to espresso brunettes, and seamlessly blended highlights that look inherently Italian. Cuts are sculptural yet soft, engineered to move beautifully from day to night. And the blowouts? Smooth, glossy, and refined without feeling overworked—an ideal first stop if you are making the trip across the Atlantic.
Blowout: 60 minutes
Cost: Price varies by stylist
Best Manicure + Pedicure
La Rinascente Beauty Hall
Bright, refined, and effortlessly efficient, La Rinascente is one of Milan’s great lifestyle institutions. This historic landmark, which has stood proudly near the Duomo since 1917, is where fashion, beauty, and luxury converge. Makeup artists here intuitively understand the city’s signature aesthetic: satin-finish skin, soft sculpting, sculpted brows, and impeccably blended neutrals that translate seamlessly from natural light to a candlelit dinner.
The floor is a who’s-who of global beauty: Chanel, Dior, Armani Beauty, La Mer, Tom Ford, YSL Beauté, and Byredo, complemented by heritage Italian icons such as Acqua di Parma and Santa Maria Novella (the storied apothecary that was founded in the 15th century and is still producing its classic scents today).
Fashion insiders stop by between castings and fittings for quick complexion polish; stylists perfect a smokey eye before events; and impeccably groomed Milanese locals drift in to replenish staple products or signature scents. Blow-dry refreshes, expert brow shaping, and fast-but-flawless makeup services make this a dependable hub for elevated grooming — a one-stop beauty haven that mirrors the city’s taste for discretion and perfection. Pro Tip: After your refresh, head up to the seventh-floor terrace bar for an aperitivo with an unparalleled view of the Duomo spires.
Builder Gel manicure: Time varies
Cost: $71
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