Cary Grant. Heddy Lamar. Clark Gable, Carole Lombard. Those silver-screen stars knew a thing or two about beauty — and repose. So, in their footsteps I check into one of heyday-Hollywood’s favorite hideaways, El Encanto, A Belmond Hotel, known for, among other delights, its facials by Linda Ross, esthetician to the stars. This retreat, perched atop a hill in a residential enclave in Santa Barbara, captivating with Pacific Ocean vistas, has also welcomed more modern glitterati — Sharon Stone, Barbara Streisand, Gwen Stefani, to name a few— not to mention all the beauties secretly ushered into the property in a whisper, nestled away in solitude and privacy with no inclination to Instagram the details of their stay.
I’m enjoying the stand-alone bungalows, the romantic history, the gastronomy and the hotel’s new Botanica Afternoon Tea Experience, an event that ups the woo-woo ante with “astro botanical infusions”—bespoke blended tea with aromatic herbs and adaptogens customized to your star sign and paired with chef-made bites. But, I came for the facial.
Apropos to the location, I want to awaken my inner old-school movie star with a results-driven treatment by Linda Ross, Hollywood’s most coveted esthetician for pre-gala, “red carpet worthy skin,” uniquely available here in Santa Barbara. Though facials by Ross at her peerless Los Angeles clinic can be procured by referral only, a number of upscale resort spas around the world carry her house-made products and have staff trained by Ross herself.
At El Encanto, I test out Ross’ new Colostrum Facial performed with MicroCurrent Gloves, exclusive to the hideaway’s swanky spa. A tweak on Ross’ already-famous, glow-giving (and effective) Colostrum Mask facial, which also uses healing, food-grade colostrum (from grass-fed, hormone and antibiotic-free cows), this facial multiplies the results thanks to the massage and micro current additions. For true face-changing delight, the spa team will coordinate Ross’ schedule with your’s to ensure that she’s in residence at El Encanto during your stay to perform her extraordinary face treatment at your convenience.
Why a Facial
Face time at a spa takes on a whole new meaning. A good facial brings your inner beauty to the outside. It can rejuvenate the skin, promote circulation, detoxify the pores, lift, tone, de-puff, and brighten. Most of all, a facial reduces stress — all over the body. (Take that bodywork loyalists!) Research shows that facials activate the pressure points on your face, which connect to various body systems including the organs. That’s why after a facial people not only glow, but feel like they’ve had a massage, too. Lucky for travelers, some of the world’s best spas can be found in hotels and resorts. From a game-changing, three-hour facial that brims with sturgeon DNA to a treatment that utilizes a concoction of white algae and white wine, these face-forward rituals rule.
El Encanto, a Belmond Hotel, California
This garden-ensconced, bungalow-peppered retreat on a promontory overlooking the Pacific Ocean and charming Santa Barbara’s downtown was the “it” romantic bolthole for the silver screen heyday crowd — and their favorite escape. It remains just as seductive today. Restore yourself around its pool and within its sanctuary-like spa, where the Signature Linda Ross Facial stands out as its best-selling treatment. Ross, an esthetician to the stars, never extracts and tells, but her clients include well-known film stars, music-industry icons and more. With a referral-only studio in Beverly Hills, Ross shares her house-made products and treatment techniques with only a handful of world-class spas, including El Encanto, where she has personally trained each esthetician.
Kimpton Seafire Resort + Spa, Cayman Islands
On storied Seven Mile Beach on Grand Cayman’s western shore, this snazzy, LEED® Silver certified hotel faces Paul Gauguin blue waters. Its white coral sand beach offers repose aplenty. But within the stunning, 8,500-square-foot Spa at Seafire, adorned with flourishes such as a chandelier hung with glittering sea glass and wooden bits gathered from Caymanian beaches, another kind of reset can be found. The spa features a co-ed indoor-outdoor tropical garden retreat with a Jacuzzi, waterfall, grand soaking tub, and the island’s finest hammam. Sign up for the signature Coconut Facial, an ultra-hydrating, skin-plumping, thirst-quenching ritual. It comprises a double coconut oil cleanse, revitalizing papaya and pineapple enzyme exfoliation, a coconut cream mask, and Seafire’s Signature tropical coconut herbal facial steam. That’s beauty, island style.
Lake Austin Spa Resort, Texas
A beacon of wellness on the shores of Lake Austin, this award-winning spa retreat vaunts 16 facials on its immense treatment menu. But I’ve come for just one, its newest and most jaw-dropping addition: The Regal by Valmont, exclusive to this spa and created in collaboration with Valmont, the revered Swiss skincare line. This pricy facial — a ritual that deploys two cleanings, an enzyme peel, five varied masks (one a collagen that covers even the eye and mouth), four types of massage (including Japanese Kobido, a 540-year-old-technique), HydraFacial machine work, LED Light therapy, and a variety of Valmont creams (replete with Alpine water and sturgeon DNA) — is touted to be the most expensive facial in the world. It costs a pretty penny. But, it works. The effects last for days — at least a week. And, it’s not just my face that benefits, my body looks better, too. Go figure. Prime for pre-big-event TLC, The Regal reigns.
Carneros Resort and Spa, California
Rooted into the vineyards of Napa and the wine county’s agrarian history, Carneros Resort and Spa feels like a village built amongst the grape rows. Its varied, suite-sized personal farmhouses ooze romance. Beside the pool, with vineyard views, Spa at Carneros harnesses nature’s cures via the anti-aging Rose Quartz Reversive Facial. Special lymphatic drainage massage techniques performed with dual Rose Quartz Gua Sha (a Chinese tool known to promote circulation) leads to contoured, plumped, smoother visages. It’s an ideal antidote to fatigued skin.
Hotel Effie Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort, Florida
Overlooking Miramar Beach, striking Hotel Effie stands out as the Emerald Coast’s newest boutique hotel in Northwest Florida, an area known for its uncanny, powdered sugar-textured sand. At the Spa Lilliana, facial lovers can enjoy the Deep Sea Firming Facial, an age-fighting treatment with radiant results. Employing the antioxidant and healing attributes of white algae, white tea, white wine, and copper peptides (blended with Hyaluronic Acid, Vitamin C, and probiotics), this potent facial brightens dark spots, releases facial tension, and stimulates collagen production.
The Dorchester, London
On Park Lane overlooking Hyde Park, the elegant Dorchester has enticed glitterati into its legendary halls for nearly a century. With so many celebrity guests The Spa stays well honed in the tools of the trade. Their multi-stepped The Red Carpet facial achieves hydration, smoothness, and tightening with Dr. Uliana Gout’s signature London Aesthetic Medicine techniques. From mesotherapy infusion that delivers hyaluronic acid and peptides to radio frequency and red LED, the various levels add up to winning results.
Velaa Private Island, Maldives
Indulge in a little bit of Swiss Alpine ingenuity in the middle of the far-flung Indian Ocean at Velaa Private Island, a recluse lover’s oasis in the restorative Maldives. Tear yourself away from your over-water suite long enough to have your complexion redone on a cellular level according to Swiss science dating back to 1955. For the Maldives Million Dollar Man Facial, spa therapists use Swiss Dr. Burgener’s techniques and products, including Bamboo Clarifying Exfoliating Scrub, to deeply cleanse the skin. A coating of green caviar combined with antioxidant-rich gold trace elements follows, intensified by reparative ultrasound waves.
The Retreat, Costa Rica
Roosted on a highly vibrational mountain, The Retreat Costa Rica incorporates nature’s power with the teachings of Dr. Shaveta Jasra, an Ayurvedic doctor and naturopath whose holistic methodology complements that of The Retreat. Discover ancient remedies in the Vida Mia Spa, which offers treatments based on the four elements: earth, water, air, and fire. Yield to the Royal Facial, a silver and gold modality that uses Silver White Kayolin, infused with Helichrysum, for a gentle and effective removal of toxins. An enriching gold mask follows to boost the skin’s own healing process. For the grand finale, the therapist waves a Kansa copper wand over the face, a step that visibly lifts and tightens the skin.
Grand Velas, Riviera Maya
Built into the wildlife-rife mangrove jungles along the Riviera Maya, upmarket Grand Velas puts a tony spin on the concept of all inclusive. Its immense SE Spa at Grand Velas, built to evoke the natural features and overall zen of a Mayan cenote, offers guests various indigenously inspired treatments. Its Mayan Jade Facial pays homage to the regional bygone tradition of carving deity masks and ritual artifacts from jade, a gem they believed blessed whatever it touched. In that spirit, the therapist executes massage with a jade roller for anti-aging effects, including: toxin removal, reduced puffiness, improved skin elasticity, wrinkle smoothing, and eradication of sinus pressure.
Featured image courtesy of Kimpton Seafire Resort + Spa
