Wish You Were Here

Illoiha

Ebisu,
Tokyo, 81-3-5423-1618,
illoiha.com

Photo: Illoiha Omotesando

Climbers can rediscover their inner child at Tokyo’s Illoiha gym, where the Nendo-designed climbing wall replaces the usual holds with picture frames and odd pieces of baroque furniture. (You can even get a leg up on a faux mounted deer head.) Everything is painted white, so don’t be surprised if you feel like you’ve passed through the looking glass.

The Third Space

13 Sherwood St.,
London, 44-20-7439-6333,
thethirdspace.com

This is a gym you’ll never want to leave. And with a Ping-Pong table on a glass floor above the ozone-treated pool, a three-storey-high sky-lit climbing wall, a hypoxic workout chamber that simulates high-altitude conditions, a laundry service and an organic supermarket, you may never need to.

Les Bains des Docks

Quai de la Réunion,
Le Havre, 33-2-3279-2955,
vert-marine.com/le-havre

Photo: Guy Isaac

Architect Jean Nouvel took inspiration from the ancient Roman baths when creating this 5,000-square-metre water world. Part of a revitalization project in Le Havre, France, it’s a labyrinth of pristine pools set in white glass tiles (with the exception of the primary colours in the children’s area) that will make other public pools blush.

Get Fit City Club

Via Falcone 5,
Milan, 39-02-944-350-63

If this club were anywhere else but in Milan, architect Matteo Nunziati’s Swarovski-crystal-studded sauna ceiling might feel a little excessive. (Okay, it still does.) Luckily, the more understated low-lying pools, backlit mosaic benches and scented rosewood create a serene retreat from the crowded downtown streets.

The Sports Club/LA

1835 Sepulveda Blvd.,
Los Angeles, 310-473-1447,
thesportsclubla.com

It may look like Les Deux nightclub on the outside (think silver pillars and purple lights), but on the inside, it’s pure Staples Center. Channel Kobe Bryant on the NBA regulation-size basketball court, Michael Phelps in the junior Olympic-size pool or Pete Sampras on the paddle tennis court.