Whether indoors or outdoors, these dream hotel bathrooms offer a soak you won’t forget
Beautiful bathtubs, ridiculous rain showers and loos with views - these 8 dazzlingly decadent hotel bathrooms are the stuff that travel bucket lists are made from...
At Madikwe Hills Game Reserve in South Africa you can soak and safari at the same time
Positioned in one of the largest game reserves in the country, this 5-star South African lodge has plenty to offer, aside from ticking off the Big 5. Namely, the stunning Honeymoon Suite.
Positioned high on a hill overlooking the African plains - where giraffes, elephants and lions abound - its secluded, outdoor clawfoot bath is the perfect place to retire following an afternoon game drive. As the sun goes down, candles will be lit and you can enjoy a soak under a fiery African skies. If you’re very lucky, your bathing session may be timed to correspond to that of the wild elephants in the waterhole below.
The Penthouse Suite in the George V hotel, Paris, is the most expensive in the city
If you’re feeling flush - very flush - then the Penthouse Suite in one of Paris’ most famous hotels, the George V, might just be the ticket. However, at $30,000 per night (yes, really!) the private terraces offering sweeping views across the City of Light are guaranteed to astound, but it’s the bathroom that really impresses.
Floor-to-ceiling marble, extra-large walk-in shower, steam room and sauna and an impressive infinity bath (almost a mini pool) with underwater jets and a relaxing chromotherapy (colour therapy) system, so that you can match the colour of the water to your mood.
At Japanese ryokan, Gora Kadan, outdoor bathrooms come with one hell of a view
At Gora Kadan - quite possibly the most luxurious ryokan (a traditional Japanese inn) in the country - the former retreat of the Imperial family has been turned into a spa-lovers dream.
Managed by high end hotel and restaurant organisation, Relais & Chateaux, here, natural hot springs (known as ‘onsen’) are channeled into some of the most spectacular private bathrooms on earth. Mineral-infused waters feed oversized granite tubs or cedar baths (both of which can be pre-filled via your attentive room attendant) sitting on picturesque terraces amidst traditional Japanese gardens of cherry and camellia trees.
The Cavalier Waldorf Astoria Penthouse in Rome includes a tub overlooking the Eternal City
At the Cavalier’s Penthouse bathroom, you’re guaranteed a hefty dose of La Dolce Vita.
Swarovski crystal bathroom fixtures, roomy triple shower with aromatherapy mist and a hydro-massage bath, which comes with a flatscreen TV, but then when your tub overlooks St Peter’s Basilica and there’s twinkling fibre optic ‘stars’ overhead, who wants to watch tele?
On your private roof terrace - with al fresco jacuzzi - swap the fake stars for real ones, while you take in views across the Eternal City. Unsurprisingly, the place has garnered an A-list following.
Julia Roberts lived here for a month while filming Eat, Pray, Love and both John Travolta and Celine Dion have rested their heads here, but with a Hollywood pay packet, they can afford the $18,000 per night price tag.
For the ultimate bathroom check into the Royal Penthouse London's Corinthia Hotel
Set in one of London’s grandest Victorian buildings, the Corinthia is at the top of the British capital’s 5-star hotel pecking order. Attracting the likes of Johnny Depp and George Clooney. And when it comes to bathrooms, the one in its Royal Penthouse suite is appropriately A-list.
Regarded as the best digs in the capital, this 5,000-square-foot haven, is set over two floors and comes with a built-in massage room, private lift, walk-in wine cellar and roof terrace. However, the piece de resistance is the master bathroom with freestanding two-metre stone bath, large walk-in shower and enclosed gas fire. You can continue the pampering at the in-house, four-floor spa, which comprises hydrotherapy pool, crystal steam room, stainless steel pool, amphitheatre sauna and nine-metre stainless steel swimming pool.
One of only three Ritz-Carlton Reserves in the world, Mandapa is special - very special.
25 gorgeous private villas are nestled within rolling rice paddies close to Bali's mighty Ayung River and each is kitted out with everything that a luxury hotel connoisseur could demand: heated infinity pool (the ones in the one bedroom villas are a whopping 30-square-metres), plush daybeds and an extravagant bathroom.
Relax under the tropical outdoor shower or soak in the deep, room-for-two bathtub, which either overlooks treetops or lush greenery, and lather up with the complimentary range of handmade, organic, local toiletries. If you’re feeling especially lazy - or especially indulgent - you can even call your personal butler to run it for you.
Bath time bliss: at Six Senses Laamu, Maldives, a glass-bottom bath comes as standard
Who needs a glass-bottom boat when you have a glass-bottom bath? At Six Senses Laamu resort in the Maldives, you can enjoy a soak whilst enjoying an aquatic display of fish, stingrays and other marine life below you.
Positioned at the end of wooden jetties far away from the main island, the stylish Water Villas boast private decks and uninterrupted ocean, sunrise and sunset vistas. Pre or post-bath, you can continue your water worship by taking a swim in the private pool, frolicking under the outdoor rain shower or - given that you have direct access to the ocean - jump in for a salty dip or snorkel, before relaxing in your overwater hammock. Bliss.
Get a taste of James Bond’s life - minus the life threatening part - at the ultra-luxurious GoldenEye. A collection of exclusive villas and suites in Jamaica’s Oracabessa Bay, at the centre of which lies Bond creator, Ian Fleming’s, former cottage.
It’s here where the author penned all 14 of his 007 novels and these days the three bedroom accommodation is attracting a suitably A-list roster of guests, with the likes of Beyonce and Jay-Z checking in to take advantage of its private beach and pool, personal butler and spacious garden bathroom.
Set in a tropical wilderness, the outdoor shower and deep, claw-foot, cast-iron tub is the stuff of fantasy. Lie back with a martini in hand (shaken, not stirred, of course) and take it all in. Bond girl not included!