Image: The vaulted ceilings within the spa

A new 800sq m (8,611sq ft) urban spa created within a former 15th century convent has been unveiled at Italy's Four Seasons Hotel Milano after nearly 10 years in development.

Designed by Patricia Urquiola, the long-awaited Four Seasons Hotel Milan Spa features 200-year-old vaulted ceilings and has been developed at a cost of EUR6m (US$7.3m, £4.7m).

Hotel owner Gruppo Statuto has funded the development of the spa, which is initially open to hotel guests. It will also be available to non-residents from later this year.

Spa facilities include seven treatment rooms, a swimming pool, a Turkish bath and a Scottish shower, as well as a Technogym-equipped fitness studio, a signature hair spa and a sauna.

Treatments offered by the Four Seasons Hotel Milan Spa use products from La Prairie and Sodashi, while Rossano Ferretti - creator of the Methodo cut - oversees the hair spa.

A spokesperson for the hotel said: "Renowned designer Patricia Urquiola has created a relaxing and luxurious atmosphere removed from the noise of the city.

"Through a combination of warm colours and design techniques such as serigraphy, the spa creates a relaxing environment for guests."

Click here for more details about the newly-unveiled Four Seasons Hotel Milan Spa.

To read more about how Four Seasons is planning to open 50 new hotels - all with spas - by the end of 2015, see Spa Business 2010 Issue 4, p20

To read the current issue of Spa Business magazine, visit: www.spabusiness.com/magazine