USP The ultimate in cosmetic bling - a facial infused with 24-carat gold developed by Swiss skincare company La Prairie – the perfect antidote to a hard day's shopping in New York.

AMBIENCE The Ritz-Carlton Central Park exudes classic opulence and its spa is as elegant as its townhouse home.

Fresh cucumber for tired eyes sits next to wet face towels in the changing room and La Prairie products are free to use after a shower or a visit to the steam room. My locker had a small silver box to leave my jewellery in.

There are six treatment rooms and the relaxation room is intimate and old school with two large armchairs and a chaise lounge type recliner. You can choose the music during your treatment from a case of CDs from classical to New Age. I chose a classical relaxation CD, which I didn’t like, but there was no problem in changing it to something more floaty and calming.

EXPERIENCE I’m about as far removed from a skincare junkie as you can get, but even I know La Prairie make the most coveted products on the planet. La Prairie’s Cellular Treatments claim to slow down the signs of ageing and keep your skin as young as possible. At $350 (£175) for a pot of their Skin Caviar Luxe Cream it’s more like sincare than skincare, so I was expecting nothing less than leaving the spa looking like a Bond girl candidate.

The Ritz-Carlton’s signature spa treatment is the indulgent Caviar Firming Facial that actually contains real caviar. Honestly. I was having the Pure Gold Radiance Facial with 24-carat gold. Yes. Really. And so it was confirmed, I had officially entered another world.

I lay down on a heated massage table with a foot spa at its base and soaked my feet for ten minutes. The Pure Gold Radiance Facial incorporates a foot massage, hands, arms, neck, shoulders and décolletage.

I joked with my therapist Carolina about having a facial containing 24-carat gold and asked her if many clients come expecting nothing less than crystals in their face creams. She informed me that the Refining Microdermabrasion Facial does in fact contain a blend of liquid and quartz crystals. Of course it does. Silly me.

The noisy footbath lasted ten minutes and majoram oil was massaged into my feet for its soothing and relaxing qualities. Carolina then put electrically heated mittens that looked like ice cream cones on my hands and feet; these acted like a mask and helped the essential oil seep into the skin. There was no way I could escape now, not that I wanted to.

While the booties were on Carolina started extracting the impurities from my face using a tiny lancet to cut a little hole in my skin where white heads had taken residence so she could squeeze them out with her fingers.

She applied an energising mask made from fruit extracts, which would improve my circulation. The mask made me look like a blue-faced trick or treater (if only I’d brought my camera) and this was followed by a toner containing apple and a hydrating eye cream that replenished lost oxygen. Then I had another mask and a pot pourri of luxurious creams were applied one after the other.

Finally she massaged the 24-carat gold serum into my face. The gold is supposed to give you an extra glow, which it does and I felt more than able to face my long journey back to reality in Blighty.

The whole extravagance was followed by a complimentary glass of champagne in the relaxation room. As I left I was given a Personal Priority Skincare booklet indicating the products that would be best for my anti-ageing regime.

FOOD Two ladies had ordered food to be delivered to the relaxation room after their massages. If you prefer not to intrude on others chill-out time the newly opened BLT Market attached to the ground floor of the hotel serves breakfast, lunch, brunch and dinner. With its contemporary bistro setting, French chef Laurent Tourondel focuses his seasonal menu on fresh produce available from local farmers’ markets with dishes such as Heirloom tomato & watermelon salad with Vidalia onion and Westfield sheep's milk cheese and Rigatoni with summer squash and Esposito sausage.

IN-CROWD Sybarites with a healthy bank balance. When one hundred world leaders descended on Manhattan for the UN General Assembly, the Ritz was a hotel of choice.

WALLET WATCH Pure Gold Radiance Facial and Caviar Firming Facial $275 – 90 minutes. Refining Microdermabrasion Facial $275 – 60 minutes.

British Airways Holidays offer a four-night break to the 5* Ritz Carlton-Central Park, New York from £1,602 per person based on departures during October 2007. The price includes return BA flights from Heathrow (which start from £298) with accommodation-only from £1,304 per person. For reservations visit ba.com or call British Airways Holidays on 0870 243 3406.

NEED TO KNOW La Prairie at the Ritz-Carlton Central Park, 50 Central Park South, New York, NY 10019 ([001] 212 308 9100; www.ritzcarlton.com)

For more than 200 independent spa reviews worldwide: timesonline.co.uk/goodspaguide

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