The Best Spas in New York for Weekend Getaways

Mohonk Mountain House (New Paltz)

Mohonk Mountain House is a historical treasure that dates back to 1869 when a modest inn was built on the small mountaintop near Lake Mohonk in New Paltz, New York, which is less than two hours away from New York City.

Today the grand, sprawling 265-room Victorian hotel is still surrounded by thousands of acres of forest with 85 miles of hiking trails at its door. Rooms are small but 124 of them have wood-burning fireplaces. Also included in your room rate, you'll be treated to meals in a splendid dining room and exercises classes at the resort's gym.

While you're at the Mohonk House, enjoy tennis, golf, lake swimming, boating, ice skating, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, and children's programs—depending on the season. Year-round, you can also enjoy the 30,000 square-foot Victorian style spa, which has 16 treatment rooms, a couples room with fireplace, and a co-ed solarium.

The Emerson Resort & Spa (Mt. Tremper)

Set on the Esopus Creek in the northern Catskills of Mt. Tremper, New York, The Emerson is an elegant, family-friendly inn—you can even bring your dog. 

The spa, redone in 2016, offers traditional massage therapies and facials along with a fitness studio. There's fine dining, excellent shopping, and the world's largest kaleidoscope also on-site, but don't expect traditional resort amenities like golf. 

Buttermilk Falls Inn & Spa (Milton)

The Buttermilk Falls Inn & Spa is a charming bed and breakfast on 75 acres in prime orchard country in the Hudson Valley. Located near New Paltz on the western side of the Hudson River, it's just two hours from New York City, which makes it a great getaway.  

The on-site Henry's Restaurant features food from the inn's organic garden and beehives. The modern-looking spa is interesting, utilizing solar and geothermal energy to heat its sauna, steam room, and mineral pool.

The Copperhood Inn & Spa (Shandaken)

The Copperhood Inn & Spa is an intimate retreat in the Catskills that has developed a following for its customized weight-loss, detox, juice-fast, and raw food programs, which range from three days to a month.

Not far from Emerson geographically, it's more modest in style—don't expect a luxurious atmosphere. However, it does have healthy food, yoga classes, hiking, and a modest but well-outfitted spa with six treatment rooms (including a wet room with Vichy shower, Scotch hose, and hydrotherapy tub). It also has a sauna, hot tub, steam room, 60-foot indoor pool, and full gym.

Gurney's Inn & Spa (Montauk)

With a fabulous beachfront location way out on Long Island, Gurney's is a Montauk institution. It's also the closest thing America has to a thalassotherapy spa.  

Gurney's uses real seawater in a modern hydrotherapy tub (most spas just add powdered algae to tap water), and it has an indoor seawater pool with as little chlorine as possible. Gurney's can also help you design a customized thalassotherapy program to help with detoxification and weight loss. 

Gurney's public space is 1950s-era and the spa is dated, but the setting is five-star and rooms have been nicely redone in contemporary beach style. They all face the ocean, with private decks for sunning yourself. It has 146 rooms, suites, and beachfront cottages.

Gideon Putnam Resort & Spa (Saratoga Springs)

One of the great 19th century resort towns because of its mineral waters, Saratoga Springs is still a vibrant historic city with great restaurants and shopping. Summer is peak season here because of thoroughbred racing and performances by the New York City Ballet and The Philadelphia Orchestra.

The Georgian Revival style Gideon Putnam Resort & Spa is in the Saratoga Spa State Park and has more than 20 suites and 120 guest rooms. It's right next to the Roosevelt Baths & Spa, a truly historic spa that offers heated mineral water bathing. The naturally effervescent water is mixed with tap water, but you can ask for one that is unmixed, and the massages are excellent.

Sagamore Resort & Spa (Bolton Landing)

This white clapboard classic dates to 1883, when an inn was first built on a private 70-acre island on Lake George, a historic vacation destination in the southern Adirondacks 70 miles north of Albany. 

A seasonal, family-friendly resort with a championship golf course, The Sagamore has splendid views of the mountains and a modest spa and salon with a full range of treatments.  Enjoy indoor and outdoor pools, a private beach, and jogger's trails as well nearby hiking, biking, white water rafting, and horseback riding. The historic hotel has 137 rooms and suites while the lodges have another 224 rooms.

Mirror Lake Inn Resort & Spa (Lake Placid)

Set in the heart of the Adirondacks about 180 miles south of Montreal, the Mirror Lake Inn Resort & Spa is Lake Placid's finest hotel. The clubby 131-room white clapboard and green-shuttered resort has a private beachfront on its seven acres overlooking Mirror Lake on one side and mountain peaks on the other. 

It's a year-round destination, with swimming, complimentary canoes and kayaks, hiking, and winter sports that include dogsled rides on the frozen lake. The plush spa is done up in marble and mahogany, with fireplace, whirlpools, and steam rooms.

Whiteface Lodge (Lake Placid)

Whiteface Lodge has a great camp feeling that has proven to be popular with weddings, groups, and families. The accommodations range from junior suites to one, two, and three-bedroom suites, all 94 of which are equipped with kitchens, dining room tables, washer-dryers, bathrooms with jet-tubs, and outdoor porches.

Additionally, a couple looking for a romantic getaway or group of spa-loving girls wanting to share a bonding experience can seek refuge in the 8,000 square-foot Adirondack-style spa on the lower floors of the resort. In summer, take a yoga class on the shores of Lake Placid or hike the many nearby trails. In winter, snowshoe or hit the slopes. 

Mirbeau Inn & Spa (Skaneateles)

Mirbeau Inn & Spa is a charming 34-room inn on the northern tip of Lake Skaneateles in New York's fabled Finger Lakes, which is about 20 miles west of Syracuse. 

Designed to resemble Monet's garden, the inn has warm, yellow buildings and a pond with a green bridge at its center. Expect some berets and cafe music, but it's a lovely place from which to explore the historic town and nearby wineries.

Make day trips to Seneca Falls (home to feminism) or to the charming town of Aurora. Designed by Sylvia Sepielli, the spa is just gorgeous, with fireplaces in most of the 14 treatment rooms. It also has lots of exercise classes and a great steakhouse and wine list.

Skana, The Spa at Turning Stone Resort & Casino (Verona)

The Oneida tribe owns this major casino resort on 3,400 acres in upstate New York's scenic Mohawk Valley, 35 miles east of Syracuse. Called the Leatherstocking region in James Fenimore Cooper's 1826 novel, "Last of the Mohicans," the surrounding area is rich in cultural history. 

Skana, the spa, is named after the Oneida word for "peace." The resort has a full range of accommodations, ranging from an RV park (from mid-April to October) to luxury accommodations. Skana is located in the most upscale choice of the all-suite Lodge at Turning Stone Resort. 

The 33,000 square-foot spa and salon is a tribute to Oneida architecture and has 12 treatment rooms. The more affordable Ahsi Day Spa is in the 19-floor Tower Building, along with The Fitness Club and casino.