A lavish Urban Spa in the heart of London’s West End, Sanderson offers a retreat from the bustle of the city into a world of fantasy and wellbeing. The landmarked 50s building has been transformed by Philippe Starck into a surreal Cocteau-like dream world, epitomizing a new luxury that is smart, pared down, and tempered with a healthy dose of wit and irony. With the absence of normal walls and a floor-to-ceiling glass facade that diffuses natural light through flowing layers of ethereal sheer curtains, Sanderson’s indoor/outdoor lobby is a layered and sophisticated environment that is totally original. Surrounding an extraordinary landmark Courtyard Garden designed by Philip Hicks, Starcks visionary style mixes baroque and modern, juxtaposing Salvador Dalis curvaceous red lips sofa with classic 60s mosaics and hand-carved African furniture with an oversized Louis XV armoire. The result blends wit, magic and surprise in an elegant balancing act of extravagance and pure simplicity.

Sanderson has 150 guestrooms, all with custom-designed silver-leaf sleigh beds set at an angle in the middle of the room. Beds are fitted with 450-thread-count, silver-and-white Egyptian cotton sheets and draped with soft pashminas. Dreamscapes are painted on the ceilings above the beds. Bon mots by French philosopher Voltaire are woven into wool rugs. All rooms have DVD players and wide-screen TVs within green-glass boxes. Guests have access to a DVD library of 1,500 titles (surcharge). Some rooms offer panoramic London views; others overlook the courtyard garden. Glass-walled bathrooms can be revealed or concealed by swaths of drapes with the touch of a button. The 10,000 square-foot agua spa in London provides pampering, spiritual relief, and tranquility to all who enter. Dazzling arrays of rejuvenating treatments combining the best of ancient and modern techniques are offered. With its miles of diaphanous white curtains, 14 all-white treatment rooms, chill-out zone and meditation beds, agua has a peaceful, dreamy and almost cloud-like ambiance. Suka, the restaurant offers modern authentic Malaysian cuisine prepared with European sensibility. Created by acclaimed New York chef Zak Pelaccio, Sukas menu of fresh British and Malaysian produce marries French cooking techniques with the intensity and spectrum of Southeast Asian flavors.