The unexpected is one of the bonuses of reviewing. And so it was at the Strelitzia Spa at Patong’s Grand Tropicana Hotel.

Strelitzia Spa itself remains, nevertheless, unexpected; there’s no doubt that some of the best brains in spa design were brought in to get it right. On an upper floor of the hotel, you could be forgiven for imagining yourself outside in a shady tropical garden. Clever use of terracotta-coloured walls of natural, unpainted plaster, black slate, stones, tropical plants in abundance and other ‘outside’ materials, together with concealed and diffused lighting, create the effect. But steering clear of the single disadvantage of any outside pursuit in the tropics, Strelitzia Spa is, of course, beautifully airconditioned.

At Strelitzia Spa, if you opt for one of the spa packages, your first port of call after a classic Phuket spa reception – browsing the ‘menu’, selecting your preferred essential oil, a gentle but stimulating foot bath and scrub – is your own private, luxuriously appointed treatment room. Here you undress and shower in the room’s ‘garden’, then don the soft voluminous robe supplied, ready to head for the steam room, led by your personal therapist who takes care of you from the moment you arrive.

Don’t worry about losing track of time. After 10 minutes, your therapist appears to ask if you’re ready to move on to the heated jacuzzi. Once there, again left to yourself, you luxuriate in a whirlpool bath that has the jets tuned perfectly, chipping away gently at those knotted muscles. A polite tap on the door means it’s time for the main event. In my case, a two hour package called Sensory Indulgence, which includes a Mangosteen Cream Scrub, followed by the Grand Tropicana Massage.
Back in the treatment room, another garden shower then into the body scrub, performed with rhythmic strokes, neither too firm nor too soft. Drifting pleasantly, an hour passed; “Please relax for 10 minutes said my charming therapist, allow the cream to work into your skin.” I did. After showering off the mangosteen cream, my skin felt as though it belonged to someone else; someone appreciably younger. Not a bad start!

The Grand Tropicana Massage is something I’m surprised has not been developed before. Combining the best (for me that means the least painful) features of traditional Thai massage with the flowing movements of Swedish massage and the essential oils of aromatherapy, this is without doubt one of the best, most invigorating yet relaxing treatments I have experienced.

Great design, superb functionality, highly trained and delightful therapists, imaginative treatments. Strelitzia Spa is among the best. Located just across from the Holiday Inn hotel, it’s within easy reach of everyone staying in Patong and well worth the journey for those further afield. This one is destined to be a Phuket favourite.