ON A SCALE of one to ten, how stressed do you feel?" asked my therapist as I sat in a darkened room in St Ives.

Having just crawled from Penzance in holiday season traffic after three long morning meetings, squeezed into the last space in the Island car park and run through the streets in the pelting rain, I wasn't at my most relaxed.

"Six?" I replied, through slightly gritted (or was it grinding?) teeth. Actually, it felt more like a 10, but I couldn't say that in St Ives, where the rest of the world has come to relax.

Still, it was pretty hard to feel stressed for long.

In the inner sanctum of the Sail Lofts Ocean Spa, you can soon forget where you are altogether. On a rainy day, particularly a wet and windy work day, I imagine there are few more relaxing places to be.

I had been taken into the single treatment room, at the back of a converted shop on Fish Street opposite the Sloop. From the outside, it looked so small that it would have been easy to miss, particularly in a rainstorm, but the space has been painstakingly transformed inside to create the ultimate sanctuary from the madding crowds in the streets.

A preliminary health check and I was left alone to get ready for the treatment – known as the Ocean Spa signature. Every treatment at the spa uses a range of natural massage oils, balms and moisturisers using plant extracts and developed by local company Spiezia Organics, based on The Lizard.

The collaboration is perfect – it means the products are 100% organic, environmentally-friendly and have fewer miles to travel. It suits the ethos of a company trying to provide luxury for customers while creating a minimal environmental impact.

For anyone who has never had a massage, the Ocean Spa makes it easy for you. At every stage I was told what was happening, asked whether the pressure was too soft or hard, given a choice of my preferred room temperature and even given specially formulated products to suit my skin type. My treatment involved a little of everything – a head to toe massage, a mini-facial and, most importantly, hot stones. Being massaged with smooth, warm round pebbles was an experience in itself that I would thoroughly recommend to anyone, stressed or not.

The spa, of course, caters for locals and holidaymakers alike, offering everything from a manicure or pedicure to a facial, reiki head massage, waxing or full body treatment. It even offers a new hour-long Surfers' Massage, designed especially for those whose muscles have taken a pounding from the waves.

The treatment room is beautifully styled yet comfortable, with gentle whale music and lemongrass aromas transporting you to exotic bliss. I'd soon forgotten the traffic, the piles of work on my desk and even the rain pouring down the street outside. On a scale of one to ten, I think my stress levels had dropped to zero. Not bad for an hour's work.

The Signature treatment lasts 60 minutes and costs £50. Other treatments start from £25 for 30 minutes.

For details, call the Sail Lofts Ocean Spa on Fish Street, St Ives, on 01736 448545 or drop in for a full list of treatments.