FOTAGENIC!

An idyllic setting, and you’ll get a sweet, sweet massage

IT had been a blustery few days in the runup to our arrival at Fota Island Resort in Cork but it all settled beautifully as we exited the N25 motorway.

Approximately two minutes later, we were guiding the car through the imposing gates of Fota Island Resort.

Immediately, the rush of suburban and motorway traffic disappears as the signs force you to slow down to 10kmph.

We bumped gently over the ramps as the tarmac road snaked through a small piece of enchanting woodland complete with bluebells carpeting its floor in the dappled sunlight.

‘This is a good start,’ I commented to my wife beside me, who was busy clapping her hands in excitement.

Fota Island Resort is big on golf. There are three championship standard golf course configurations on site here and Fota has been host to number of top events over the years, including the Irish Open on three occasions. I’ve had a mild allergy to golf for most of my adult life but even though this is a cracking spot if you want to smack a small white ball around a huge lawn for hours on end, you’re not made feel strange if you don’t want to.

Not at all, in fact. The welcome was as professional and relaxed as you would expect in Munster. The large open reception area sets the tone perfectly for the mixture of large spaces with cosy corners, with impressive use made of bog oak and cut stone.

We were delighted to have been given an end room with a spacious balcony offering views over the Lee Estuary. It was perfect for the bottle of wine we got from the hotel along with a little picnic that we had prepared/bought at a German discount supermarket en route.

Fota Island Resort sits on vast grounds covering some 780 acres with lots more accommodation available in the self-catering lodges on site.

Apart from the aforementioned golfing facilities, the complex has lovely signposted walks through a variety of landscapes.

From the balcony outside, I stood and surveyed the lands around me dressed in fluffy robe and slippers.

Even though you’re very close to the busy N25 motorway, and to Cork city itself, you can’t see or hear much evidence of it and the monkey whoops filtering through the trees from nearby Fota Wildlife Park lend a deliciously exotic air to proceedings.

Later on, we went down for drinks in the Amber Lounge, where an Italian pianist provided

tuneful ambience while we socialised.

From talking to residents, we got the impression that it’s a very popular place in this neck of the woods for couples getting away from it all.

One lady who lived less than 20km from the hotel told us how she comes here once every three months to relax, take some treatments and generally chill out.

She and her husband were examples of working parents rearing a young family with the usual pressures of the modern Irish family on their shoulders. Modern Ireland certainly needs its shoulders massaged every once in a while.

The following morning after the sumptuous buffet breakfast, we explored our surroundings a bit

more, opting for a walk through the bluebells and then down to the eye-catching lakeside club house. If you’re up for more athletic activity, the hotel offers a range of adventure-style activities too.

We arrived back in time for my ‘birthday treatment’ (I was celebrating a significant birthday).

I’ve always had a slight aversion to spa treatments: I used to find it a bit unsettling being led by a stranger into a dark place with alternative music playing and being ordered to relax. Maybe it’s me who has changed but this time, it was different.

I was going for a chocolate massage which, on the face of it, seems like a huge waste of chocolate. ‘No,’ my masseuse assured me. “Chocolate is very enriching

for the skin. You will notice how soft and smooth it will be afterwards.”

She then offered me a little bowl of chocolate drops to show me that she would be using real edible chocolate, mixed with oil.

AFTER eating three little chocolate drops, I closed my eyes and she went to work, smoothing out all my knotted muscles and neck aches until I emerged one whole hour later feeling like I’d been re-born into a new, more pleasant world.

I had a quick look in the mirror, expecting to look like someone who’d just been in a mudwrestling match but, true to her word, my masseuse had left me in the same state of cleanliness as when I’d arrived. I was led to a relaxation area where I rounded off the whole experience with a chocolate mousse and some fruit drink.

With my skin glowing with the kind of softness last experienced at my own birth 50 years previously, we spent the afternoon in the Amber Lounge watching live

rugby and enjoying the wonderful atmosphere with a highly varied crowd including locals, wedding party guests, couples, families and executive groups.

The bar restaurant offers some great affordable options – particularly their home-made pizzas. The clubhouse – a short walk away from the hotel – is another great option, particularly for lunch with its convivial atmosphere and lovely location overlooking a lake and golf course.

If you want to really top the experience, however, it’s well worth including a dinner at the Cove Restaurant.

From the hotel’s early days, this was a place where high Michelin-star standards were targeted and their commitment to a great dining experience is still evident in the superb service on offer.

All in all, it’s an ideal place to chill out. The five-star service at Fota is as professional as it is unassuming. The unfussy focus on each and every customer means that it’s accessible for all, whether you’re golfing, eating, drinking, walking or getting covered in chocolate.