2 Best Hotels in Escondido, North County and Around

Considered by many to be the world's best destination spa, the venerable Golden Door takes you on a journey of tranquility, transformation, and self-realization during a seven-night stay. After passing through the ornate brass doors, you’re guided through the 600-acre property, which is set in a serene canyon with citrus groves and 25 miles of hiking trails. The grounds, fashioned after Japan’s Kyoto Garden Ryokan, are scattered with koi ponds, meditation gardens, pagoda-like fitness studios, and tech-free rooms with Shoji sliding doors and private decks that encourage time to unplug and recenter. Daily massages, beauty and spa treatments, informative lectures, fitness classes, healthy cuisine, and coaching with a personal trainer are included in the week-long stay. Despite the hefty price tag, there’s no pretentiousness about the place, as guests ditch jewelry, makeup, and fancy clothes to focus on health and healing; workout attire and silk Yakuta dinner robes are provided.

At this destination spa—celebrities like Julia Roberts and Oprah Winfrey escape here for some serious R&R—you’ll feel like you’ve died and gone to a pampering Provençal village heaven. Classic French style prevails in the opulent lounge areas and private villas, which have marble baths, Frette linens, antique furnishings, and 200-year-old reclaimed wood floors. Villa balconies open onto hillsides blanketed in lavender, where a stone chapel—brought over from Dijon and dating back to 1615—is used for meditation and weddings. Every prix-fixe three-course dinner is a fine-dining experience in an ornate setting (crystal chandeliers, velvet chairs, and a 14th-century fireplace from France). Included in the daily rate are healthy meals, spa treatments, transportation around San Diego, and fitness classes, although many guests upgrade to personal trainers and oxygen facials that plump out wrinkles. After a morning hike, classes are offered every hour, including Pilates, yoga, spin, crystal sound baths, and aqua aerobics in the Olympic-size pool. Guests also have access to clay tennis courts, beach volleyball, pickleball courts, a bathhouse, and a state-of-the-art fitness center. Cal-a-Vie is the only destination spa in the world with a private, 18-hole golf course. For retail therapy, guests can purchase private-label Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot wines grown on Cal-a-Vie’s vineyards, or they can shop at the spa’s fashion boutique and antiques store.