Indian luxury hotel group The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts has opened an ESPA spa at The Leela Palace Chennai with panoramic views of the Bay of Bengal.

The 16,000sq ft (1,500sq m) ESPA serves visitors of the hotel’s 326-guestrooms, offering a two separate thermal zones – one each for men and women – comprising vitality pools, lounge beds, body jets, glass mosaic steamrooms, rain showers, relaxation areas and a circular oak wood sauna.

The 12-treatment room ESPA has been designed by Jeffrey Wilkes, of Design Wilkes, and Madhu Nair of The Leela. All rooms come equipped with beds, private showers and a curated music menu for personal selection. A private spa suite features a living area and a glass sliding door opens out onto its own terrace overlooking gardens.

Within the spa area there are also sleep pods, more relaxation areas and tea lounges. A fitness studio and swimming pool accompanies the spa.

“With this opening we have expanded our partnership with ESPA to the fifth city in India and we are excited about introducing our guests to a world-class experience in Chennai,” said Madhu Nair, director of design and operations at The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts.

ESPA-trained therapists will carry out a range of treatments including Balinese massage, hot stone and the Leela Facial, which comprises a marma-points massage and warm herb-filled poultices to tone and firm the skin.

The hotel also features a hair salon by Warren Tricomi from New York.



The 11-storey hotel itself was originally designed by architects Smallwood, Reynolds, Stewart, Stewart & Associates – located close to the central business district and local attractions of Chennai.

The property offers a wide array of dining venues, including a signature Indian restaurant Jamavar, authentic Chinese cuisine at China XO, world cuisines at the all-day venue SPECTRA and many more.