Mother's Day, which arrives a fortnight today, has long been all about mums putting their feet up and being indulged. But, we all know that what many mothers want is not just breakfast in bed, but a whole relaxing day in a fluffy goonie and slippers – in other words, a spa package. But which spa to plump for? And should you choose the algae wrap, the hot paraffin experience, or some gentle ear candling?

We’ve put together our list of 13 coolest spas, so you can choose just where to treat your mum, yourself, or anyone else in need of a proper unwind.

1 Stobo Castle, Peebles

The fact this spa is located in a castle that has its own helipad speaks volumes about the kind of luxury experience it offers. Last year, this Borders-based hotel was crowned best destination spa at the Good Spa Guide awards.

The range of treatments is extensive, including the Neom collection which uses aromatherapy to enhance treatments. The ozone-treated swimming pool is a dream and looks out through giant windows on to the hillside beyond.

But if a bit more privacy is what you want, there’s always a lounge in the private hot tubs, away from it all. Even the ladies' loos have their own special technological experience.

Spa Day packages start with the £115 Relaxing Spa Day, which includes water massage, express facial and lunch.

2 Auchrannie Resort, Brodick, Arran

Arran’s top-notch Auchrannie Resort has an indulgence for everyone – even offering a Princess Package in the spa for children. With two swimming pools, a games hall and an adventure activity programme, there is also plenty to distract the kids.

Treatments revolve around Espa products and Ishga, a range made from Scottish seaweed harvested in the Outer Hebrides. Stay if you can in one of the woodland lodges, where you can relax in your own wood-fired hot tub while taking in a view of the glen.

Packages include Island Escape, offering two 25-minute treatments at £95, and Island Retreat – £150 for two 50-minute treatments selected from a range including full body massage, algae wrap, luxury manicure or pedicure, and signature facial.

3 Dunkeld House Hotel, Dunkeld

Set in 280 acres of private grounds in Perthshire, on the banks of the river Tay, Dunkeld House is all about the relaxation with its sauna, steam room, whirlpool bath and heated indoor pool surrounded by views over the Craigvinean Hills.

The spa specialises in treatments using products by the Scottish organic seaweed skincare brand, Ishga. Special offer during March is the Made For Life Mindful Moments treatment, priced at £60 for 55 minutes of “nurturing meditation” combined with “foot ritual, head, neck and shoulder massage, and back massage”.

4 Principal Blythswood Square Hotel, Glasgow

Spa of the year at The Look Awards 2018, the Principal Blythswood Square Hotel is the destination spa in Glasgow. In the basement of one of Scotland’s most swish hotels it is a hidden gem, complete with hydrotherapy pool, sauna and crystal steam room.

If there’s a treatment you want, it’s likely you can get it here – from hot stone massages to revitalising body scrubs, and with names to make you swoon even before you’ve got your robe and slippers on. Among them are Ila Pearl and Jasmine Amethyst Wrap, Ila Rose Bliss Bath or Twilight Thermal Experience. Plus the whole look of the place is to die for – black tiles, white spaces, chill relaxation areas.

This is for those who can only chill out in the trendiest, most style-forward of environments.

5 Pure, Apex Hotel, ​Edinburgh

Right in the centre of Edinburgh, on the edge of the Old Town, Pure spa has a joint in the Apex hotel, and while it’s not huge, it’s got everything you might want for a bit of indulgence while enjoying the delights of the capital. It specialises in Elemis anti-ageing facials, as well as heat therapies, massages and scrubs.

It's one of a growing chain of Pure spas to be found across the UK.

6 200 SVS, Glasgow

You don’t get much more stylish than this Art Deco spa on St Vincent Street, right in the heart of Glasgow. It’s the perfect pamper stop-off on a city day out.

Treatments are based around Elemis products, aromatherapy and Opi and Shellac manicure.

Here you can also try Hopi ear candling or get some party strip lashes done to get you set for a night out on the town.

7 Stables spa, Isle of Eriska

On a small, private island at the mouth of Loch Creran, attached to a Scottish baronial-style house, is the Stables spa, complete with 17-metre swimming pool, reached by a path through the spa garden. If what you want is proper indulgence then book one of the one-bedroom spa suites and Hilltop Reserve villas with their own hot tubs. The spa offers, it says, “five treatment rooms, three to connect you to the natural land, plants and wood, and two connecting you to the cleansing sea and tranquil shores that surrounds you”.

Spa day packages include the Rasul Experience – £80 to sit in your own private mud chamber – and the Discover Eriska Spa Package, which includes two 60-minute treatments and afternoon tea for £140.

8 Portavadie, Loch Fyne

The Portavadie development has transformed this not-so-easy-to-reach spot on Loch Fyne into a top destination – and the star of it all is the spa, which not only offers a hydro pool, sauna, steam room and a bunch of treatments, but also a stunning heated outdoor infinity pool, the largest in Scotland, that looks out over the loch.

The views are part of the thrill even in the sauna and relaxation space, where floor-to-ceiling windows look out on it all – you might possibly catch sight of a seal or an otter as you relax. Portavadie has even earned a Green Tourism Gold Award for its use of renewable energies throughout the resort. Day packages include the Harmony Retreat at £98, which includes an Ishga or Decleor treatment.

9 New Lanark Hotel, New Lanark village

Originally an 18th-century cotton mill and placed right in the middle of the New Lanark World Heritage site, the New Lanark Hotel offers a spa day that is like chilling in a piece of history. The New Lanark Health and Fitness Club includes a swimming pool, Jacuzzi, steam room, sauna and a health and fitness studio, plus beauty rooms for guests to enjoy a range of customised treatments including candle massage, aromatherapy massage, waxing treatments, manicures and pedicures.

Spa day packages available at £57.50, and residential spa packages from £69 per person, including dinner, bed and breakfast and use of the spa.

10 One Spa, Sheraton Grand, Edinburgh

If you thought city spas were small and bijou, think again. One Spa is a huge, therapeutic sprawl of 19 treatment rooms, a 19-metre pool, relaxation area, steam rooms, saunas and rooftop hydrotherapy pool. All of this on the edge of the city centre, overlooking Edinburgh Castle. It even offers, through the Now By One Spa, express experiences targeting the time-poor, stressed-out urbanite. But the best way to experience it is on a long day package, darting from sauna to pool to chill-out area.

The Revival Spa Day (available throughout March), for instance, includes a body massage and facial, plus use of spa for £150.

11 Knock Castle spa, Crieff

In the town of Crieff in rural Perthshire, Knock Castle is a boutique hotel, quirky enough to have its own grand piano in the hallway and offering its own distinct luxury spa experience. Among its pleasures is its heated swimming pool, surrounded by large windows which look out on to the gardens around. But there is also the steam room, the sauna and The Egg, a stress-busting chamber, which was developed by an Aberdeen firm. Inside this eight feet-tall pod, you lie on a contoured massage bed and thus begins a multisensory treatment of lighting, sounds and aromatherapy.

Knock Castle also offers a range of treatments, including the Chocolate Experience – a 90-minute massage and paraffin wax treatment, at £85.

12 Fletcher’s Cottage at Archerfield House, Dirleton

Described as one of the best UK spa breaks by Vogue magazine, Fletcher’s Cottage Spa at Archerfield House in Dirleton is all about the natural, Scandi vibe. There may be no infinity pool in this chilled haven, but it more than compensates with its hygge feel and location.

The cottage overlooks an idyllic walled garden, a log burner glows in the relaxation room, and there's a salt steam room and aroma sauna. Individual treatments include the Signature Treatment, combining massage and stretching, for £120.

13 Old Course Hotel, St Andrews

The big claim to fame of the Old Course, spa-wise, is that it hosts the only Kohler Waters Spa outside the United States. What this means is that the waters in all these bathing experiences are natural, mineral-rich waters. It’s going back to the old idea of the spa as salus per aquum – “health through water” – and giving it that modern, luxury kick.

Here there are wet treatment rooms, showers featuring Kohler “Real Rain”, a hydrotherapy pool and a cold plunge pool.

Of course, it’s not all about the water – there is also an astounding array of other treatments here including peat or seaweed body wraps, a volcanic scrub ritual, a wide range of massages and Margaret Dabbs product manicures.

Day packages start from £140, which includes a facial or back massage and a light snack lunch. Round of golf? Nah, just chill in this pool a bit longer.

I Should Cocoa: The Treatment Test

Vicky Allan tries the Chocolate Experience at Knock Castle Spa

Mother’s Day, which arrives a fortnight today, has long been all about mums putting their feet up and being indulged. But we all know that what many mothers want is not just breakfast in bed, but a whole relaxing day in a fluffy goonie and slippers – in other words, a spa package. But which spa to plump for? And should you choose the algae wrap, the hot paraffin experience, or some gentle ear candling?

We’ve put together our list of 13 coolest spas, so you can choose just where to treat your mum, yourself, or anyone else in need of a proper unwind.

And remember, if you want the chance to win one of SIX amazing luxury pamper breaks, just turn to Page 40 and enter our fantastic competition.