‘Swim in solitude in a sleek spa pool’
We could all do with some pampering – but if you find the thought of sharing facilities less than relaxing, some spas are available for exclusive use. Jane Knight goes it alone
If you are hankering for the spa after months of lockdown but are hesitant about sharing, take heart: this spring and summer you can be pampered in private at a number of hotels. And while special spa suites and exclusive spa use may sound expensive, sometimes just booking a room for the night or a treatment will get you the place to yourself.
THE EASTBURY HOTEL, Sherborne, Dorset
With its turf roof and round door, the cute spa at the bottom of the Eastbury’s walled garden has a definite hobbithouse feel to it. Inside, you will find the usual sauna and steam rooms, plus a hydrotherapy tub and mini gym. Book a massage or facial in one of the two treatment rooms and you can have the place to yourself on a complimentary basis, otherwise there is a charge of £25 per person for an hour’s use. Better still, the 26-bedroom hotel has a number of rooms with private entrances, including garden suites with terraces and fire pits and a cottage sleeping six. Doubles from £206, including breakfast; from May 17 (01935 813131; theeastburyhotel.co.uk).
THE HARPER, Langham, Norfolk
There is already quite a buzz about the Harper, which is due to open its doors for the first time in May, in the barn
once used by Langham Glass. Not only does it have 32 rooms done out in a muted palette with oak floors, original art, modern four posters and big bathrooms, but its boutique spa will be available on a private basis. You only get 45-minute slots to enjoy the lightinfused pool plus the hot tub (the sauna and steam room will remain closed for now) but this is complimentary – which means you can spend your money on the very reasonably priced treatments instead (55 minutes for £60).
Doubles from £175, including breakfast (01328 805000; theharper.co.uk).
GAINSBOROUGH BATH SPA, Bath
There is no need to join the hoi polloi when you take the waters at Bath: you can have the city’s Grade I-listed openair Cross Bath – with its spring and poolside fountain – all to yourself. The historic bath is reserved exclusively for guests who book the Gainsborough Bath Spa’s elegant three-bedroom townhouse. The sumptuously decorated house has three bedrooms, one with a canopied bed and silver roll-top bath, as well as a kitchen, though you can order meals from the hotel restaurant if you don’t fancy cooking. The only downside is you can’t have in-room treatments – you have to go to the main spa instead. From £765 a night for five; already openfor individual households (01225 358888; thegainsboroughbathspa.co.uk).
FISTRAL BEACH HOTEL, Newquay, Cornwall
Swim in solitude in this Cornish hotel’s sleek spa pool, dipping in and out of the otherwise empty sauna, steam room and hot tub. The £50 charge for an hour’s private spa use in the evening after dinner in the hotel restaurant includes a glass of prosecco for you and your partner. Overlooking the beach, the adults-only hotel has sublime views from many of its coastal-hued rooms. If you try surfing, there’s a massage to help with any aches and pains on the treatment menu of scrubs and rubs. Doubles from £120 a night, including breakfast and dinner; from May 17 (01637 856195; fistralbeachhotel.co.uk).
FINN LOUGH, Enniskillen, Co Fermanagh
Get back to nature in the forest spa at Finn Lough Resort, on the banks of Lough Erne, where guests can follow a private two-hour spa trail through a series of cabins, each offering different treatments. The Elements trail incorporates seven waterside stops, including a floating cabin, open-air hot tub, and both traditional and aromatherapy Finnish saunas, plus a plunge into the lough’s waters. For more tranquillity, book one of the Stargazing Forest Domes, in which you can lie back on a four-poster bed in the giant bubble and look up at the night sky – there is even a telescope to help you spot the constellations. The resort, which is home to cottages and lodges, also has a restaurant. Doubles from £265, including breakfast; Elements Trail £85pp; already reopened (0286 838 0360; finnlough.com).
LINKS HOUSE, Dornoch, Highlands
By the first tee of the Royal Dornoch Golf Club, this country-house hotel with 15 tartan-adorned rooms doesn’t actually have a spa – but that hasn’t stopped it from offering a special relaxation package. It has teamed up with the boutique Aspen Spa – a 15-minute trundle in the hotel’s people carrier down the road – to give up to six guests exclusive use of the premises for a day. For £1,000, everyone can enjoy a 30-minute Aromatherapy Associates massage or facial, with the rest of the time divided between the relaxation lounge, sauna, or outdoor hot tub. Lunch is included – as is a welcome drink. Doubles from £225, including breakfast; already reopened (01862 810279; linkshousedornoch.com).
LIFEHOUSE SPA, Thorpe-le-Soken, Essex
The candlelit Hidden Sanctuary is a totally private area in Essex’s Lifehouse Spa where two guests can take a threehour relaxation journey. Start with a top-to-toe body scrub and nourishing hair treatment before moving to the private pool, with waterfall, followed by a 50-minute massage for you both. Refreshments are included in the price of £139 per person. Although the spa proper is due to open with the hotel’s 89 modern rooms on May 17, the Hidden Sanctuary spa will probably not be operational until a month later. Doubles from £239; see above for dates (01255 860050; lifehouse.co.uk).
ROCKLIFFE HALL, Darlington, Durham
It’s a steep £400 to book out the Spa Garden here for two hours, especially as the normal capacity of 16 is limited to six individuals or two households until June 21. But the price does include a glass of prosecco each, plus soft drinks and snacks, a 10-minute welcoming hand massage and sanitisation ritual, and a separate half-hour “forest bathing” guided walk through the estate, learning how trees can instil a sense of calm. Back at the Spa Garden, wallow in the infinity-edged hydrotherapy pool, relax on the heated tepidarium beds, and stimulate your circulation in the “experience” showers before warming up in the glassfronted sauna. The hotel has self-catering options as well as rooms blending classical and contemporary. Doubles from £225, including breakfast; from May 17 with sauna (01325 729999; rockliffehall.com).
THE DEVONSHIRE ARMS HOTEL, Bolton Abbey, Yorkshire
The spa at the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire’s 30,000-acre Bolton Abbey estate is limited to just two households, so you will need to book into the antique-filled hotel with friends to bag it for yourselves. Set in a converted barn, it’s pretty atmospheric, with a pool beneath a beamed ceiling plus thermal cabins and hot tub. Complimentary time slots are limited to 45 minutes. If you want longer, opt for a Secret Spa bell tent, where you can sit by the log burner with views of the surrounding dales and enjoy lunch or afternoon tea in between therapies. A day’s hire with a meal gives you 2.5 hours of spa access, including a 45-minute treatment, and costs from £170 for two. Doubles from £228 including breakfast; from May 17 with thermal cabins (01756 718111; thedevonshirearms.co.uk).
THE SPA AT BEDFORD LODGE Newmarket, Suffolk
Go in a group of six to the self-contained Mews at Bedford Lodge, and enjoy an evening’s exclusive use of the spa. Flit between thermal areas, the hydrotherapy pool, the relaxation room and the rooftop hot tub, where you can sip a complimentary glass of prosecco. A therapist is on hand if you fancy an ESPA treatment (at extra cost). Then return to the three-bedroom Mews for a threecourse meal in its private dining area. One night in the Mews for six £1,650, including breakfast, 3.5-hours’ private spa use and dinner; from May 17 (01638 663175; bedfordlodgehotel.co.uk).
Travel within the UK is currently subject to restrictions. See Page 2.