Best Spas in Taiwan: Discover Unique Wellness Experiences Including Hot Springs, Japanese-Inspired Treatments, and More
Taipei, Taiwan. [Photo credit: Lisanto]
A small island nation in East Asia located approximately 100 miles off the coast of southeastern China, Taiwan has a unique geography with lush forests, beaches, and a bustling capital city.. Also known as the Republic of China, Taiwan is home to many historic sites and attractions including the National Palace Museum, Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall, Taipei Zoo, one of the world’s tallest buildings, and eight national parks, among others.
Every year the Lantern Festival in Taiwan takes place on the 15th day of the Lunar New Year festival, undoubtedly the most important holiday in Asia. In 2025, the Year of the Snake, the Lunar New Year kicked off January 29, concluding the Lantern Festival on February 12. Sky lanterns with messages are set off into the night sky. The city reverberates with firecrackers and parades.
The Lunar New Year is also a time for a refresh and rejuvenation. Traditionally, it’s a time to shed parts of your old self you would like to rid and revamp for the new self you aspire to be. Think of it as spring cleaning for the soul. (Spring cleaning the house is a Lunar New Year tradition that not everyone loves.) Spa culture with a self-care cleanse is intrinsic in the in the rejuvenation rituals that has been important for centuries in Taiwan.
Keep on reading to discover our top picks for the best spas in Taipei and other cities in Taiwan that’ll prepare you for the Year of the Snake. Need to book a flight to Taiwan? Discover the best flight deals when booking your next adventure.
Asia Pacific Hotel — Beitou Spa
No. 31, Youya Road, Beitou District, Taipei City, Taiwan 112, (+886) 2-2898-3088
In Taiwan, Japanese influences are prevalent in the spa culture, partly due to the 50 years that Japan ruled Taiwan until 1945. A lasting legacy is a love for hot springs. Less than an hour north of Taipei’s city center is Beitou, dotted with both public and private bathhouses with natural hot spring water pumped in for therapeutic purposes.
Asia Pacific Hotel is one of the few lodges with a private onsen or hot spring bathtub in the hotel room itself, if you don’t want to partake in public bathhouses in the nude. White sulfur spring water is piped in from the Dan-Feng Mountain outside the resort.
Treatment offerings change with the season to cater to guests’ needs. Hot tea and essential oil towels are part of every spa ritual in their chic spa. While deep relaxation and stress relief back massages are on the menu, the spa is also currently offering a Korean exfoliation experience, a popular technique to scrub dead skin to replenish moisture and improve blood circulation.
The massages are best done after a hot spring bath in the hotel’s bathhouse with several rectangular tubs of various temperatures from icy cold to steaming hot. An outdoor bath has two waterfall spouts that utilizes water therapy to loosen knots.
Caesar Spa at Caesar Park Kenting
6 Kenting Road, Hengchun Town, Pingtung County, 94644; (+886) 8-886-1888
At the southernmost tip of Taiwan, between the equator and Tropic of Cancer, Caesar Park Kenting is a resort-style hotel in Kenting that hosts a range of amenities. They have classic rooms, as well as villas with floor-to-ceiling windows, dedicated butler team, outdoor heated massage pools, and private outdoor bathing pools.
In the aromatherapy spa, natural ingredients like flowers, fruits, and spices are used to formulate oils and lotions to optimize the body treatments. One signature treatment is the Eastern Five Elements Meridians Massage, focusing on acupuncture points, artery blockages, and of course, the 12 meridians or essential points in the body to balance the yin and yang in the body for optimal physical and emotional well-being.
Other options include the Arctic Salt Purification Package, using Alaska’s lake mud packed with minerals to detox the skin, or the Herbal Incense Sticks Massage, which incorporates rolling organic herbs into a pack and massaging them into the skin to enhance circulation.
SOCIE Spa at Shangri-La Far Eastern, Taipei
No. 20, Section 2, Dunhua S Rd, Da’an District, Taipei City, Taiwan 10675, (+886) 2-2378-8888
Shangri-La Far Eastern, Taipei is an elegant hotel in the heart of Taiwan’s capital city. Walk through the bustling lobby, past the Marco Polo lounge with afternoon tea service, and head to the elevators to whisk you 40 floors above the lobby. The doors open to the rooftop floor with breathtaking panoramic views of Taipei. One of the highest skyscrapers in the world, the regal, jade-hued Taipei 101, prominently reigns the skyline, along with Elephant Mountain silhouetting the background.
Alongside the highest rooftop pool in all of Taipei, the luxurious SOCIE Spa offers a Japanese-style treatment oasis. Spa rooms have views of Taipei 101. Using the British spa product line, ESPA, the spa menu combines Asian and European techniques. The spa journey incorporates time for a relaxing shower or meditation, treatment, tea recess, and after-spa consultation.
The 90-minute Shangri-La Signature line includes a body wrap followed by an aromatherapy massage with options like detoxifier, muscle relaxer, immune booster, and jet-lag reviver. The Bamboo Joint Release Massage starts with swinging and swaying the body to relax any tension in the body. Using warm bamboo, the masseuse uses trained hand techniques to dig deep into joint tension.
Facials range from anti-aging to whitening with the Diamond White Miracle using Swiss Bright facial products treatments.
The Grand Hotel
No. 1, Section 4, Zhongshan N Rd, Zhongshan District, Taipei City, 10427, (+886) 2-2886-8888
On the hilltop is the historic Grand Hotel with its Chinese palatial architecture decked out with a steeped ornate roof and red columns. It also houses a secret tunnel tour with stairs and a slide that served as an escape route to nearby buildings. Also called the Dragon Palace, the sweeping staircase in the lobby serves as a popular backdrop for films.
The Yuan Shan Club is adjacent to the hotel with spa amenities for guests and club members. There’s a private wellness space with a hot water pool, cold water pool, steam room and sauna. The women’s area has a micro bubble bath while the male section has a cold therapy room. An Olympic-size swimming pool, tennis court, and state-of-the-art gym with views of the city are part of the urban sanctuary.
Valmont Spa at Fleur de Chine Hotel — Sun Moon Lake
No. 23, Zhongzheng Rd., Yuchi Township, Nantou County 55546; (+886) 4-9285-6788
Fleur de Chine Hotel is a European-themed hotel that sits near Sun Moon Lake, a picturesque alpine lake in Taiwan’s Central Mountain Range where several indigenous cultures called home.
In keeping with the European Alps theme, the hotel’s Valmont Spa pipes in sounds of the Swiss Alps forest and exclusive uses Swiss spa products. The butterfly massage technique (combination of pressing, rubbing, and circular motions) is implemented in body treatments like Glacier Revival or Glory Nature.
Add-ons include the regenerating collagen mask, meridien tapping treatment for the back, and a Totally Bubbly Facial, a 30-minute ASMR sensory experience that’ll invigorate complexions for a youthful glow.
Wellspring Spa at Silks Place Taroko
97253, Taiwan, Hualien County, Xiulin Township, (+886) 3-869-1155
Nestled in the magical Taroko National Park with mind-blowing gorges, suspension bridges, and mountain hikes, Silks Place Taroko is the only luxury five-star hotel within the protected park. A stay in this premier resort makes guests feel immersed in a wild habitat that’s been virtually untouched in centuries. Pro tip: Make sure to book this hotel far in advance because rooms sell out fast.
Wellspring Spa is outfitted with amenities like a large teak wood bath with a enormous window looking out on the moss and lush bushes jutting out of various elevations in the gorges. Indonesian techniques are implemented in tea-scented, jet lag relief, or herb compress massages.
Guests can even book a massage in the rooftop outdoor treatment area by the pool, surrounded by dramatic canyons. Make sure to dip into the world-class pools surrounded by dramatic cliffs.
[Photos courtesy of spas and resorts]
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Helen I. Hwang is an award-winning journalist, author, and mechanical engineer. Her works have appeared in The New York Times for Kids, Eater San Diego, People Magazine, Parents.com, Trip Advisor, Huffington Post, Arthur Frommer's Budget Travel Magazine,TravelSavvy.com, and other publications. She has also written a book, titled All Grown Up: Please Touch Museum and Its Move to Memorial Hall, for the Please Touch Museum, a children's museum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In addition, Helen worked as a researcher for the Peabody Award-winning NPR radio program, Fresh Air with Terry Gross. Over the years, she's lived on three continents and traveled to more than 40 countries. She currently lives in San Diego, CA, the 16th place she's called home. More about her can be found at helenihwang.com.