Refuge
27300 Rancho San Carlos Road, Carmel (831) 620-7360, refuge.com
There are many ways to define bliss. The best ice cream cone on a warm afternoon. A rippling stream through a landscape unmarred by the human touch. Even a cocktail by a crackling fire. And yet, all of these fall short once you’ve visited Refuge. More than relaxing massages and pools with thermal jets, Refuge encourages a treatment cycle that leads you through warmth and chill, through waterfalls and serenity to a state of bliss like you’ve never experienced before. And then you return to the crushing routine that sent you there in the first place. But at least you have Refuge to fall back on. Rinse and repeat.