This spa is located in the shadows of Bali's venerated sea temple Tanah Lot and in keeping with the sacred role that water plays In our lives, it concentrates a large portion of its treatments on aqua-therapy.There is no more decadent place to immerse yourself in the beautifying and rejuvenating ritual of bathing than here amid the Balinese stone carvings that separate jacuzzi spots from plunge pools and outdoor showers.

A tropical spa treatment can be a spiritual awakening in itself. At Nirwana Spa, located in the shadows of one of Bali's most famous temples, the mood is further intensified.The setting, coupled with the ever-present sea breeze, is enough to send you so far away that ifs hard to return to the real world.

Nirwana Spa specializes in water and seaweed treat- ments, which have a strong purifying effect on mind and body

The marine-style treatments follow the French favour for seaweed masks and wraps, including a hot algae rub-down, with their attendant claims for slimming and detoxifying. The one and a half hour Tanah Lot Ocean combination of massage, sea salt scrub and fragrant bath can be taken in an outdoor bale which overlooks the temple itself This is perched on a little rocky islet off the beach with its own particular striking aura whether delicately lit by the dawn sky or starkly outlined at twilight The temple Is linked to a 16th-century Majapahit priest who suggested to local villagers that this was a sacred spot.

The Nirwana Spa enjoys some of the spiritual peace emanating fromTanah Lot. Its airy reception looks out on an ornamental pool and further out over large, landscaped grounds. Le Meredien enjoys a far more tranquil location than the plethora of hotels just a few miles down the coast in the tourist stretch of Legian and Kuta. While the hotel is large, the spa is simple, clean and uncluttered, offering just the right send-off for the tropical scrubs, massages and water treatments it provides. More precisely, it has a relaxation room that really does its job, simply decorated and suspended over the pool to further add to the sublime ambience.