Hanoi's Sofitel Legend Metropole Hotel Unveils Luxury Spa

Four months after its soft debut, Le Spa du Metropole has fully opened to hotel guests, to locals and expatriate residents alike, and to other travelers who want to experience the country's most iconic hotel even if he or she isn't staying there.

"2010 is the Year of the Spa for the Metropole," said Kai Speth, the hotel's general manager. "We waited 108 years before opening a spa. With an incubation that long, we knew we had an obligation to make it worth the wait."

Like the hotel itself, Le Spa trades on the hotel's stature as one of the venerable grand dames of Asian hospitality. Its seven treatment rooms evoke Old World elegance and the spirits of such former guests as Charlie Chaplin, Graham Greene and Somerset Maugham.

With floors of dark hardwood, gilt-framed mirrors, paneled doors and double-slipper tubs, Le Spa is a vibrant echo of the hotel’s well-established charm.

"There are certain expectations and traditions that must be honored at the Metropole," said Speth. "Part of the allure to this spa is the allure of the hotel itself, and the delight that comes from being in that space, and having a treatment at the Hotel Metropole Hanoi."

Housed in a wing of the old hotel that abuts the interior courtyard, Le Spa takes in 400 square meters comprised of two treatment rooms, two themed spa suites for couples and three themed individual suites: the Vietnam Suite, the Retro Suite and Thailand Suite. As well, a separate treatment room is dedicated to foot reflexology.

Beyond the treatment rooms, the spa's wet areas feature a Hammam, a Middle Eastern sauna /cold water treatment that was first popularized during the Victorian era, and a Finnish sauna that heats up to 80C.

The spa's product line is anchored by Clarins, a line of French skin-care products, and complemented by Ytsara, a high-end spa product line from Thailand focused on body care treatments. Laurent Severac, a renowned French perfumer, is the spa's tertiary line.

The spa's menu opens with a suite of wet bath treatments and segues to a la carte spa journeys. Several of the spa's treatments are singular to Hanoi's urban situation and its storied appeal as a shopping destination.

After walking the '36 Streets' of the city's Old Quarter, Le Spa lures the weary with an 'After Shopping Leg Reviver.' Its 'Jetlag Recovery Massage' employs a Kansu bowl to ease muscle tension. Le Spa tempts guests with 'aromantic' treatments for two followed by dinner, and with baths and chocolates that accompany luxurious baths.

With the new year, the spa is also the beneficiary of a new manager, Arie Sunia, an Indonesian from Bali who began her career in Bali and who later managed the spa at Le Meridien in Siem Reap.

For more information or reservations: Sofitel Legend Metropole Hotel