The best facials in London: pre- and post-holiday treatments
A specialist pre-holiday facial is a great way to bring out natural radiance as well as soothe and hydrate tired skin, ahead of a relaxing break. From pampering facials to technological treatments that leave no blackhead alone, we've visited super-facialists all over the city in our hunt for the most effective options.
The Deep Dive at Pre- salons
Best for: Post-holiday skin rejuvenation
This is not a serene, oh-so-serious spa space with chiming music and clinical whites – the female-founded Pre- on a pretty stretch of Upper Street in Islington is a down-to-earth, brightly coloured space that’s far from intimidating. Owner Mimi Gaston-Kennedy worked in beauty PR for years, before taking the plunge to apply her inside-out knowledge of the industry to her own space. Pre- opened in summer 2021, just as the beauty world was finding its feet once more following successive closures. This is a fun, youthful spot that’s not trying too hard – deep-green panelling, coral staircases and golden arched windows are bang on trend, and the woman-owned rosé and coffee from female collective Girls Who Grind Coffee are thoughtful touches that keep things rooted.
The Deep Dive facial is the treatment to book if you’re after a full skin MOT. Experienced facialists will chat to you about your concerns and take a look at the skin under LED lighting, talking you through any problem areas spotted. Next, a deep cleaning and lactic-acid peel shed any dead or dry skin, leaving the skin plump and peachy. After a mask (ours was a clay mask that cleansed our pores), there’s a lymphatic-drainage face massage and, if you’re in need and up for it, some blackhead popping that would make Dr Pimple Popper jealous. Finally, the Deep Dive includes what the team term ‘Premium Level modalities’ – either diamond-tip microdermabrasion that reduces fine lines, LED light therapy that stimulates collagen and elastin or oxygen-blast technology that detoxifies the skin.
Need to know: The Deep Dive Facial, 60 minutes, £95.
Insider tip: Rather than lying on a spa bed in a darkened room, you’ll be sitting in a cosseting chair in the bright, peppy main room - which sounds like it shouldn’t be as relaxing, but it is. By Sarah James
Pre-, 325 Upper Street, London N1 2XQ, 0207 288 8778, presalons.com
The Prager Hydrogen Facial at The Prager Clinic
Best for: Post-holiday skin rejuvenation
Sometimes it's worth looking beyond the salons and spas for more clinical spaces to really kickstart your skincare. That’s not to say that a morning spent at Dr Prager’s, on Beauchamp Place, feels any less pampering, with its tasteful sea grass, monochrome styling and zen quartz sculptures. While most come in for a serious restructuring or a round of injectables, you can just as easily book a lovely, hard-working, results-driven facial. The best time to visit is after you get back from a trip, be it a sunshine jaunt involving aeroplanes and foreign currency, or a long weekend on the coast in Pembrokeshire, Norfolk or Devon. Rather than waxing lyrical about Botox, Prager looks to hydrogen as his new favourite tool of the moment.
Throughout the salon there are bubbling hydrogen-infused water bottles to drink from as a precursor to the Hydrogen Facial, which uses the same super-charged hydrogenated water to flush out and deep clean skin in a surprisingly effective way. For anyone with a sun-cream-clogged face, this gentle polishing is just the ticket. The hydro machine starts bubbling away and a mini vacuum handpiece is worked over the face, jet washing and extracting dirt, lifting dead skin cells, stubborn blackheads and a week’s worth of SPF 50 from pores. At the same time, the antioxidant properties of the hydrogen are pushed directly into the dermis – it's incredibly hydrating as well as helping to boost cell renewal and encourage rejuvenation (crucial after time spent in the sun). Having your face suckered is weirdly relaxing, and you can choose to add on some light therapy treatment to stimulate collagen production, nuke any spot-inducing bacteria and reduce inflammation. Plus no one will mind if you have a snooze under the LEDs and pretend you are back at the beach.
Need to know: The Prager Hydrogen Facial, 45 minutes, £125.
Insider tip: Don’t expect tinkling spa music and a cocooning darkened room, but do know this is a proper see-the-results-straight-away kind of treatment that will see you bouncing out with a glow. By Issy von Simson
The Prager Clinic, 52 Beauchamp Place, London SW3 1NY, 44 20 3198 3098, drmichaelprager.com
Steven JoyceSuper Advanced Facial at KX Spa
**Best for:**Getting your skin ready to see people again
Unless you’re a member it’s unlikely you’ll have been into KX, the south Kensington club/gym/spa that feels like it’s wearing a permanent pair of mirrored sunglasses. But book a treatment and you can skip the membership fees and pass straight through the hallowed doors to get access to the great spa downstairs. Glossy Lycra-clad men and women buzz between rocket yoga sessions and Cardio Tramp in their lunch breaks, grabbing a yerba-mate energy shot from the restaurant en route. This is not a pad-about-in-your-dressing-gown kind of place but a secret hideout to tap into a more hardcore level of skin treatments than you might expect to find.
The four new Super Advanced Facials in 2021 have been designed by the in-house therapists, picking and choosing the most hard-working combinations of various machines and gadgets, the best physical techniques they have at their fingertips and of course results-driven products. The Anti-Ageing facial delivers not only right there and then, but also for weeks afterwards. LED lights and nano needling get top billing, and it’s a great start for anyone who isn’t quite there on committing to Botox but definitely needs significantly more than a pampering cleanse and a relaxing face pack. Take a deep breath and don’t expect to dozily nod off. There is pain involved (those needles). The tingling discomfort is impossible to ignore, but the results afterwards are peachy enough that all is forgotten and forgiven.
Need to know: All of the Super Advanced Facials are 85 minutes long: Anti-Ageing, £295; Hydrating, £299; Clarifying, £275; Brightening, £275.
Insider tip: It’s dark enough as you leave to get away with a shiny pink face, but definitely don’t make plans to go out for 24 hours. By Issy von Simson
151 Draycott Avenue, London SW3 3AL, +44 20 7584 5333, kxlife.co.uk
Pietro Simone Italian Gold Facial at Harrods Beauty Suites
Best for: A perfectly spoiling facial for those who think nothing of doing their weekly shop in the food hall above
Here is a man who, prior to the pandemic, couldn’t keep still. You would have thought that his two clinics in New York and London would have kept him busy, the fortnight here, fortnight there schedule enough to play havoc with even the most grounded person’s circadian rhythm. But that didn’t take into account the hotels – while not at The Greenwich Hotel in New York’s Lower East Side or Meadowood in Napa, or even Verdura in Sicily, Italian-born Simone has had the chance to work out the finer details of the next concoctions for his skincare line. This is neatly matched with a residency at the new Beauty Concierge centre on the lower ground floor in Harrods, a kind of curvy, smooth, space station of a wellness hub where the contemporary starkness is softened by endless folds of blond wood. Here Simone pushes his Italian Gold Facial, a mixture of gold leaf and gold powder applied with a keen eye, and a rigorous dry-massage technique, borrowing from osteopathy, that would give FaceGym a run for its money. On top of that, there are serums, a little LED therapy, a lot of pore tightening and a fascinating interlude with strips of cotton and silk, not unlike threading, that lifts off the layers of dead skin. There’s a certain sadistic pleasure to it all, half discomfort, half tingle – depending on how much retinol or acid he applies. But the end result is a glowy rosiness, the buzz of blood circulating round a tired face, and a conviction that another session might just be needed.
**Need to know:**Italian Gold Facial, 90 minutes, £475.
**Insider tip:**Simone can be tricky to pin down, but if you miss him at Harrods, you can always make an appointment at his new private clinic in the Flemings Mayfair hotel instead. Issy von Simson
To book visit pietrosimone.com. Harrods Beauty Suites, Lower Ground Floor, Harrods, 87-135 Brompton Road, London SW1X 7XL
Adeela Crown Crowning Glowry at The Dorchester Spa
Best for: Skin that feels thoroughly cleansed and rejuvenated
Standing at one of London’s most coveted addresses on Park Lane, The Dorchester is the gold standard when it comes to old-fashioned luxury. Down the gilded staircase beneath the 1930s ballroom-style dining area, the spa is known for using everything from caviar algae to organic golden millet oil. The space can feel a little small – rooms seemed to be Tetris-slotted together, and there’s no pool – but the excellent treatments more than make up for it. The other bonus of having a smaller space is that it doesn’t naturally fit large groups, keeping it a serene place to spend the day.
These days the average Londoner isn’t impressed by the brand of a product or length of the treatment list – it’s all about the facialist and, perhaps more importantly, their celebrity regulars. Numerous Google searches might propel claims of the best beauty buys to get Gwyneth Paltrow’s glowing skin, but those in the know look for therapists used to signing NDAs. Ever one to let its clientele in on the secret, The Dorchester has brought a piece of Hollywood to its already five-star spa with the new residency of touted skin specialist Adeela Crown. With her unique blend of science-led formulas and ancient practices (her signature ‘skin dance’ face massage was inspired by her Himalayan/Persian upbringing), she focuses on results-driven but non-surgical skincare using bespoke formulas to target individual needs. Before the treatment she talks through your skin concerns and current routine, and will suggest techniques and ingredients that are used in the facial and can be continued at home. She calls these ‘tweakments’ – one of her many little phrases that has come from years of perfecting her work. During the Crowning Glowry, eight different skin technologies are applied using a variety of methods, such as massage and oxygen facial, each to hydrate, sculpt and brighten the complexion. Masks are mixed during the treatment with fresh, raw ingredients, made to measure, and afterwards, skin feels thoroughly cleansed and rejuvenated. Best of all – the results last for days.
Need to know: The Adeela Crown Crowning Glowry costs from £450 for 90mins. Appointments available on Thursdays, Fridays and the first and second Saturday of each month.
Insider tip
Arrive early so you can make the most of the steam room and relaxation area before your treatment. By Charlotte DaveyTreatments are available at The Dorchester; adeelacrown.com
Dr Barbara Sturm Clarifying Facial at ESPA Life at the Corinthia Hotel
Best for: skin prone to blemishes and breakouts
Dr Barbara Sturm’s (slightly scary) vampire facial was made famous on social media, and she’s responsible for the flawless faces of celebrities including Victoria Beckham and Irina Shayk. But in her own time the German scientist has a natural look, barely wearing any make-up at all. Less about the famous micro-needling technique (though it can be added if desired), her Clarifying Facial was formulated for blemish-prone skin, to directly improve the skin’s barrier, reducing discomfort and alleviating sensitivity. Fine lines are also reduced as a by-product of the intense moisturising treatment which ends with a couple of vegan Skin Food supplement capsules that work with the superfood ingredient purslane to promote anti-ageing and skin renewal from the inside. Although there’s a set format, therapists may go off-piste once they’ve examined your skin and its individual needs.
Take-home product: Anti-pollution drops to protect skin against ageing environmental aggressors while also supplying skin with moisture.
Top tip: Make the most of having access to a Barbara Sturm-trained therapist and ask all those niggling questions that have built up over time.
Instant results: Instantly clearer skin due to the removal of harmful bacteria and a more even skin tone.
Need to know: £250 without micro-needling (75 mins) or £340 with (90 mins); Whitehall Place, Westminster, London SW1A 2BD (+44 20 7321 3050, espalifeatcorinthia.com)
By Tabitha JoyceDr. Barbara Sturm treatments are also available at Wellness at The Murray, Hong Kong; niccolohotels.com
Bespoke Facial at Gazelli House, South Kensington
Best for: A mindful experience
What we say: Rather than getting you to wade through the wellness jargon on a treatment menu as long as your arm, Gazelli House doesn’t have one. Instead, this glossy South Kensington pied-à-terre founded by Azerbaijani genetic scientist Dr Zarifa Hamzayeva takes a thoroughly bespoke, entirely holistic approach to skincare. A full 20 minutes of each appointment is devoted to a deep dive into your personal life: in the safe space of one of the gorgeous floral-tiled treatment rooms, cosseted under a thick heated blanket, you’re asked about your diet, how often you exercise, how stressed you are, how happy you feel. And as you unfurl, your therapist will diagnose exactly what your skin needs to bring it back to peak peppiness. It might be a blast of radio-frequency to tighten, stimulate collagen and depuff; an oxygen infusion to deeply hydrate while targeting persistent acne; or a round of microdermabrasion to exfoliate and repair sun-damaged skin. And if it's gut health that's at the root of your problem, that’ll be addressed too – a gentle abdominal massage helps shift stubborn build-ups of toxins, in turn speeding up the flow of oxygen around the body and restoring the skin’s glow. Masks and peels are packed with Gazelli’s signature White Oil, found exclusively in the Azerbaijani spa town of Naftalan – it’s been clinically proven to speed up the rate of skin-cell regrowth and help the skin absorb more nutrients. You’ll see a difference after just one treatment, but follow-up sessions are encouraged so you can really track the improvement.
Take-home product: The White Oil Ultra Nourishing Saviour Mask is a winter skin hero – pop a layer of the heavy-duty moisturiser on before bed or a long-haul flight, then tissue it off when you wake up – you’ll have a bright-eyed, dewy complexion that lasts all day.
Top tip: Linger a while after your treatment. Gazelli House is designed to look and feel like a home, so the sitting room is filled with crushed-velvet sofas, jigsaw puzzles and pots of spiced ginger tea, and up in the Sky Parlour, you’ll find a little library with drop-in meditation sessions and regular wellness talks and masterclasses open to all.
Instant results: Deeply hydrated, clear skin – but the main takeaway is the advice you get from your therapist, who's full of suggestions for tiny lifestyle tweaks that'll go a long way to help revive your skin.
Need to know: £185 for 90 minutes; Gazelli House, 174 Walton Street, London SW3 2JL (+44 20 7581 4355; gazelli.com)
By Teddy Wolstenholme
Facial Remodelage at Martine de Richeville, Kensington
Best for: A toned complexion
What we say: There are no complicated lotions or potions at this facial. The focus instead is on the power of massage to tone, slim and smooth out the face. For years Martine de Richeville and her body remodelage technique, based on eurythmic massage and traditional Chinese medicine, has been the not-so-well-kept secret behind the enviably svelte figures of many Parisian women. The fundamentals of the technique have since been developed for the face and brought over to a smart new clinic in Kensington by Martine’s son, Julien. After a brief cleanse, the skin is stroked, pinched and rolled in a series of strong but measured movements designed to re-oxygenate and release the build up of toxins. It’s often very pleasant – when tension is released from places as unexpected as the top of the skull, for example, or when you can actually feel the bags under the eyes being drained – but is on occasion painful, too. This is when stubborn tensions and fat deposits, or ‘energy blockages’, are being worked on – and it’s worth bearing with it. The end result is an invigorated and redefined visage (‘Were my cheekbones always this pronounced?’) with a smooth complexion that’s surprisingly not at all red for all that squeezing.
Take-home product: There aren’t any. Instead, ask for advice on how to recreate that bright-eyed feeling by draining under the eyes at home – we were advised to do it daily.
Top tip: Brush your teeth beforehand. The massage extends inside the mouth.
Instant results: Fresh, plumped-up skin that a day or two later is clearer than it’s been for months.
Need to know: £160 for a single 45-minute session; £1,450 for a block of 10 sessions
Address: Martine de Richeville, 11 Elvaston Place, London SW7 5QG (+44 20 3976 6446, martinedericheville.com)
By Olivia Holborow
Awaken Organic Facial at Bamford Haybarn, Brompton Cross
Best for: A true afternoon treat
What we say: For those without the time to schlep to Gloucestershire's Daylesford Farm, the new flagship store on the border of South Kensington and Chelsea brings Carole Bamford’s artisan skincare line within reach. While Haybarn treatments have long been available at The Berkeley Hotel, and lunches of brightly coloured organic salads served up at Daylesford’s Pimlico, Marylebone and Notting Hill outposts, this is the first time Londoners have access to the whole Bamford bazaar in one place. The Haybarn Spa is a beautiful white-washed space, right on the corner of Draycott Avenue, with treatment rooms, a yoga studio and a boutique selling Bamford’s ethical clothing line and products.The Awaken facial is designed to stimulate circulation and energise your skin. Once you are wrapped up tight in heated fluffy white towels, a warm stone is placed on your stomach to restore balance. After the opening cleanse, ultra-fine volcanic exfoliants and fruit enzymes are massaged into the skin to remove dead cells, while a steamer adds moisture to open your pores. A light serum is applied all over the face as a trade-off as hot and cold jade stones stimulate circulation and drain the lymphatic system. Next up, the therapist uses facial reflexology to add a skin-balancing tonic containing prebiotics and microalgae to even out the skin’s pH and microbiome. At this point, your skin already feels supple and restored. Next up, a resurfacing mask is applied, before a deep neck, shoulder and head massage to leave you uncrunched and soothed. An airy serum is the final touch, to be kept on for hours after the treatment.
Take-home product: The triple-action eye cream, a magical blend of rosehip, nut oils and bio-active atlas cedar extract, which is applied using a ceramic cooling applicator to help reduce puffy skin and dark circles.
Top tip: Spend a full afternoon here. You’ll want to jump from room to room and treatment to treatment all day.
Instant results: Bright-eyed and revived complexion.
Need to know: £130 for 60 minutes;
Address: Bamford Haybarn Brompton Cross, 104 Draycott Avenue, Chelsea, London SW3 3AE (+44 20 7259 4980; bamford.com)
By Katharine Sohn
Lymphatic Rose Crystal Facial at Cloud Twelve
Best for: A holistic experience
What we say: If you’re one of the 35,000 people that bought a jade roller last year, then this will come as no surprise – crystals are a big trend right now. Incorporating mindfulness into your beauty routine is now considered as important as eating the right food and getting enough sleep, and though most Western medicine considers crystal healing to be a pseudoscience, the solid minerals have long been utilised for their therapeutic capabilities.
The newly opened Notting Hill members-club Cloud Twelve shares this view; its founder, Jenya Emets, spent 12 years in Japan and is keen to translate ideals of wellness and relaxation as a lifestyle, rather than segmented appointments, by maintaining balance throughout all areas of your life.At the beginning of the treatment, the therapist will discuss your skin type, beauty routine and diet, adjusting your facial accordingly. Antioxidant-rich masks are applied to nourish the skin, and acupressure is used to stimulate the tissue, awakening all elements of your complexion. Cooled rose quartz is swept across the face like a paintbrush to invigorate the lymphatic system, boost circulation, relax muscles and reduce redness. You can also opt for a quartz treatment bed for a truly 360-degree experience.
Take-home product: The Organic Pharmacy’s Enzyme Peel with Vitamin C and Papaya – until recently a ‘salon-only’ product, this is an amazing gel mask to use at home. Full of natural antioxidants, it simultaneously cleanses, calms and hydrates, while still being suitable for sensitive skin. £49.95 for 60ml
Top tip: Upgrade your treatment to the Dolomites quartz bed to promote a deeper state of relaxation. £15 to upgrade.
Instant results: A softer, more even skin tone, your face feels plump and energised.
**Need to know:**£100 for 60 minutes; £140 for 90 minutes
Address: Cloud Twelve, 2-5 Colville Mews, London, W11 2DA (+44 20 3301 1012; cloudtwelve.co.uk)
By Charlotte Davey
Orveda Facial at Harvey Nichols
Best for: Both the girls and the boys
What we say: We all know about the importance of gut health but what happens when you apply the same principles to your skin? It seems the obvious next step in the process of looking after ourselves from top to bottom and inside out. Set up by Sue Y. Nabi, ex-global president of Lancôme, Orveda is a unisex, current, relevant brand, whose core ingredients include kombucha, prebiotics and Antarctic marine enzymes. It’s a new look at skincare that’s pretty unique at the moment. The products are totally vegan with no allergens and definitely no retinol, which means no tingling and no stripping, just gentle effective hydration and targeting of fine lines (refreshingly the brand is adamantly not marketed as anti-ageing). Currently only available at Harvey Nichols in Knightsbridge, the facial takes place in a clean-lined, industrial-chic treatment room, a calm and soothing dark cocoon just off the frilly pink confection of the beauty hall. Inside all is quiet and cosseting, with thick white towels, low-level hypnotic music and these rather extraordinary products applied with a series of fascinating tools – Kabuki brushes, silicone pads, and surgical-grade cotton wool pads (all designed to be the most effective but least irritating mode of application). What makes Orveda especially interesting is the high concentration of the bio-fermented active ingredients – eye creams that are 15 times more effective than anything else that’s currently on the market and skin masks that seemingly iron out wrinkles. Having them so expertly and relaxingly applied before you buy is the best advert imaginable.
Take-home product: The Healing Sap, its hero product with a cult following, is a kind of magic wand for all skin woes – hydrating, anti-fatigue, brightening, reducing pore size, the list goes on. £125
Top tip: The cost of the facial is redeemable against a purchase so don’t be put off by the steep price. Once you’ve bought a bottle of The Healing Sap, the facial is suddenly very good value indeed.
Instant results: Calm, clear skin, not rosy from aggravation or slick from an over-application of products.
Need to know: £100 for 30 minutes; £140 for 40 minutes; £180 for an hour; Harvey Nichols, 109-125 Knightsbridge, Belgravia, London SW1X 7RJ. Book directly by emailing concierge@orveda.com
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