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Welcome to the second iteration of Vogue’s global spa guide, an index of the 100 best spas in the world, built from the expertise of our global editors and trusted contributors. There is a lot to choose from in the world of wellness, and no matter how far you’re planning to travel—from a subway ride to a trans-Atlantic flight—we want to make sure it’s worth the journey. Whatever your path, let us be your guide.
Why go here?
A mere two-hour drive from midtown Manhattan, the Inness resort in Accord, New York, feels more remote than it is, nestled into a particularly painterly spot between the Catskill and Shawangunk Mountains. The awe-inspiring scenery is one of the attractions of the resort’s recently opened spa, a serene 7,000-square-foot retreat with floor-to-ceiling windows offering a panoramic view of the landscape from its hammam-style bathhouse. (There are also outdoor amenities, such as a saltwater pool, available for use in warmer weather.) The aesthetic is stark and luxe yet somehow welcoming; collaborating with design firm Post Company, property founder Taavo Somer strikes the happy medium between elevated minimalism and a friendly sense of ease. Here, they work hand in hand.
What’s the vibe?
If you ever went to summer camp, Inness will give you flashbacks. Turn off the main road, follow the winding drive up the hill to the greenhouse-style structure that serves as reception, and once you’ve arrived, it’s as though you’ve checked out of real life, temporarily trading it in for something more communal and rustic. It’s easy to imagine circling around a campfire singing folk songs and telling ghost stories. But don’t be fooled: No one’s roughing it here. Campus lodging comprises 28 cabin suites boasting cathedral ceilings, Frette linens, flat-screen TVs, fabulous showers, and—for nippy nights—woodburning stoves. (The wood is pre-chopped.) There is also a large Colonial farmhouse with 12 single rooms, as well as a downstairs hangout space where you can chill over morning coffee, play billiards or board games, and perhaps make a new friend and set up a date to play golf on the nine-hole Inness course, or tennis on the Inness courts (rackets are on loan at reception.) Everything is a five-minute-or-so walk along the resort’s dirt trails, and just outside its perimeter lie some of upstate New York’s loveliest hiking trails. If you prefer, you can call for one of the resort’s off-road vehicles to ferry you where you need to go on campus grounds—a real boon if the weather is acting up, or if you’ve lingered over dinner at the Inness farm-to-table restaurant and doubt your capacity to guide yourself back to your cabin by the light of the stars.
The history?
Taavo Somer has a track record as a tastemaker: In 2004, he opened the now-iconic Lower East Side restaurant Freemans, helping set in motion a decade-long hipster trend toward the pastoral (think buffalo check and reclaimed wood and taxidermy). Eventually, Somer traded in the countrified for the actual countryside, relocating upstate and then considering how to put his design, architecture, and hospitality talents to use in this new locale. Inness, conceived as a sort of laid-back country club serving the community near Somer’s home, was an answer to that question. “We knew a bunch of different families, but unless you had a party to go to at someone’s house, the only way you’d see them is if you bumped into them at the grocery store. I wanted to create a real gathering place year-round—somewhere that, if you’re up here by yourself, you can pop in and spend time.” Resort guests commingle with Inness members who visit regularly to dine or play or hang out, and now they also come to make use of the well-equipped fitness facility that takes up about half of the spa building. Long planned but delayed by COVID, the spa finally opened to the public in November 2024, with a still-evolving menu of services devised by Sanali McFadden, former director of spa and wellness at Aman New York.
What should you try?
The treatments at Inness are designed, primarily, to coax you into a state of zen. The facials will leave you glowing, but don’t expect any microneedling (ouch) or angry acid peels. The emphasis is on nourishing, with ample application of luxurious product (the classic Biologique Recherche, or Luzern, an IYKYK clean beauty brand). Massages can be customized based on need or preference, or you can opt for a signature service like the Inness Himalayan Salt Stone massage or its Ayurveda-inspired Abhyanga—a favorite of Sri Lanka native McFadden. Scent is a seductive feature in all these treatments, with light complementary aromatherapy woven in. The latest addition to the service menu is acupuncture, and according to McFadden, an outdoor cold plunge pool and barrel sauna will be installed at the spa this summer, enhancing the lure of its bathhouse—where a whole day can be whiled away bopping from steam room to tranquility pool to sauna to cozy conversation nook, and back again. In a way, the treatments are a just a bonus.
How environmentally friendly is it?
Named for George Inness, one of America’s foremost landscape painters, Inness takes its environment seriously, on several levels. The barn-like spa exterior is flanked by heritage apple trees rescued from a nearby land-clearing operation, a parking lot orchard appended to Miranda Brooks’s overall landscape design for the resort. Perhaps apples from those trees will wind up in a dish at the Inness restaurant, which aims to source its food as locally as possible. Inside the spa, all the heating and cooling—the pool, the sauna, the steam room, etc.—relies on geothermal energy, pulled from six 150-foot-deep wells.
What else do we need to know?
If you are planning a stay at Inness, the cabins can serve as a home away from home: The cozy sofa can easily seat four adults watching sports and downing Inness house beer, and it’s deep enough to sleep on overnight; the mini kitchen is kitted out with Fellow electric kettles, Kilogram tea, and Intelligentsia coffee, as well as a handful of plates, mugs, utensils, etc. With a little planning, you can have breakfast in the room. You can also mosey over to the farmhouse for morning coffee in the kitchen, or head up the hill to the restaurant for a more complete repast. You’ll be happy to return to the restaurant for lunch and dinner. There’s plenty of variety in the small menu, with lunchtime salads, sandwiches, and grain bowls giving way to dinner’s gourmet fare, with standouts such as charcoal roasted leeks dappled with trout roe (to start) and tender Snowdance Farm roast chicken. Throw in a bourbon cocktail to start (like the Slumbering Bees, with lemon, honey, apricot, and cardamom bitters) and some featherlight Basque cheesecake to finish, and you’ll understand why the Inness restaurant has become a destination for diners all over the Hudson Valley.
Who can go?
Inness members and overnight guests at the resort may use the bathhouse and fitness facility at all times when the spa is open. Movement classes and treatments are likewise available to members and overnight guests at all times, upon reservation. Those who wish to come for the day will have limited access to the bathhouse, and can only book treatments from Monday to Thursday.
Booking details for The Spa at INNESS Resort
Address: 10 Banks St, Accord, NY 12404
Read more from Vogue’s Global Spa Guide.
