The best spas and bathhouses in NYC in 2026 are AIRE Ancient Baths in Tribeca for candlelit thermal pools, Bathhouse in Williamsburg for hot and cold plunges and saunas, the Russian & Turkish Baths for an old-school East Village schvitz, and QC NY on Governors Island for outdoor pools with skyline views. Shibui Spa and The Peninsula Spa are the luxury hotel picks.
Candlelit thermal baths in a restored 1883 textile factory.
AIRE's subterranean baths — warm, hot, cold and salt-water pools and a steam room — are lit by hundreds of candles under brick arches, with massage add-ons.
Good to know: Book a weekday session for the quietest experience.
88 Franklin St, New York, NY 10013
A modern bathhouse with saunas, steam and plunge pools.
Bathhouse, in a former soda factory, has hot and cold pools, a Finnish sauna, steam room and massage, plus a restaurant; a second location is in Flatiron.
Good to know: Alternate the sauna and cold plunge a few rounds.
103 N 10th St, Brooklyn, NY 11249
An 1892 East Village schvitz, gloriously old-school.
The Russian & Turkish Baths on East 10th Street have a famously hot Russian room, steam, a cold pool and a café serving borscht — a New York institution.
Good to know: Try a platza (oak-leaf) treatment for the full experience.
268 E 10th St, New York, NY 10009
Outdoor thermal pools with views of the Manhattan skyline.
QC NY, on Governors Island, has outdoor heated pools, saunas and steam rooms in restored officers' quarters, looking straight at Lower Manhattan.
Good to know: Take the ferry from the Battery Maritime Building; allow a full day.
112 Andes Rd, New York, NY 10004
A tranquil Japanese-style spa with a candlelit pool.
Shibui Spa, inside The Greenwich Hotel, has a lantern-lit pool beneath a reassembled 250-year-old Japanese farmhouse, with Japanese-inspired treatments.
Good to know: Treatments include access to the pool.
377 Greenwich St, New York, NY 10013
A luxury spa with a glass-roofed rooftop pool.
The Peninsula's spa occupies the top floors of the hotel, with treatment rooms, a fitness center and a heated pool beneath a glass roof.
Good to know: Book a treatment to use the pool and relaxation areas.
700 5th Ave, New York, NY 10019
Yes for AIRE, Bathhouse and QC NY, which sell timed sessions that fill up on weekends. The Russian & Turkish Baths take walk-ins.
A swimsuit is required at most. Towels, robes and sandals are usually provided — check each spa's policy.