The best spa hotels in the UK, from city boltholes to countryside wellness retreats
The best spa hotels in the UK, from city boltholes to countryside wellness retreats
Ianthe Butt and Emilie LaviniaThu, April 30, 2026 at 2:30 AM UTC
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Spend a bit of ‘me’ time this spring at these top spa hotels (The Scarlet)
There’s nothing quite like a spa break to help the body and mind recover. Whether you’re looking for an ultra-modern stay offering longevity-focused treatments, or a more traditional stint in a bubbling hydrotherapy pool followed by a deep tissue massage, the UK has plenty of stunning spa hotels to choose from.
Spas have come a long way in recent years. No longer simply offering a singular jacuzzi and a lap pool, wellness spaces are now equipped with the latest tech that focuses as much on relaxing the body as it does rapid healing. Think hyperbaric chambers, vitamin IV drips, and infrared saunas.
Of course, there’s still a place for relaxation hubs offering lavender-scented thermal suites and relaxing facials. Plus, at the best spa hotels you’ll find fine dining options, healthy spreads and local and seasonal produce on offer – some hotels even have a Michelin star or two.
From blow-the-budget country house breaks to eco-friendly finds and slick urban retreats, our wellbeing and travel experts have rounded up the best UK spa hotels. Get ready to don a fluffy robe, relax and reboot.
The best spa hotels in the UKAt a glance -
Best eco-friendly spa hotel: The Scarlet hotel
Best modern spa hotel: Rudding Park hotel
Best spa hotel for couples: Chewton Glen hotel
Best spa hotel for golfers: Galgorm Spa and Golf Resort hotel
1. Dormy House Hotel and SpaThe Cotswolds
This boutique hotel has a candlelit indoor infinity pool and hydrotherapy hot tub (Dormy House Hotel & Spa)
If cosy is what you crave, Dormy House is the place for you. This handsome 17th-century farmhouse-turned-39-room-boutique-hotel just outside Broadway village sits inside the 400-acre Farncombe Estate. Its a lesson in Cotswolds conviviality, with flagstone-floored lounges where sofas are draped in blankets by log fires, inviting guests to kick off their wellies and stop for a cuppa. It makes for a lovely spot to retreat to after yomps to Broadway Tower.
At the House Spa, there’s a candlelit indoor infinity pool, a hydrotherapy hot tub, a gym, thermal suite, salt steam room and experience shower, which mimics being caught in a rainforest downpour in the loveliest way.
A raft of treatments using Temple Spa and Proverb products range from a sugar buff scrub and warm oil massage combo to body massages. Also on offer are mani-pedis, flotation tank experiences and therapist-free “wave touch” massages – a lie-on waterbed with choose-your-own-strength jets.
As well as a spa cafe with sun terrace, there’s the slow-food Back Garden restaurant. For slumbering, bedrooms blend Scandi-style interiors with wooden beams, floral fabric walls and glinting roll-top bathtubs. Ianthe Butt
Address: Willersey Hill, Broadway WR12 7LF
Price: From £465
Read more: Best spa hotels in the Lake District for outdoor saunas and forest views
2. The Gainsborough Bath Spa hotelBath
Gainsborough‘s spa is directly fed by Bath’s mineral-rich spring water (The Gainsborough Bath Spa)
As famed for its honey-hued Georgian buildings as the ancient thermal waters it was founded on, Bath makes for a brilliant wellness break. The place to bed down is the Gainsborough Bath Spa, which has 99 bedrooms with monochrome palettes, and is the only hotel with a spa directly fed by Bath’s mineral-rich spring water. A handful of spa bedrooms even have the thermal water piped straight into roll-top bathtubs, while for blowout group getaways, there’s a four-floor Georgian townhouse set adjacent to the main hotel.
The Spa Village’s centrepiece is a dramatic mosaic-tiled thermal pool set underneath a glass atrium and surrounded by Romanesque columns. Offering a more boutique experience than the city’s popular Thermae Baths, the Gainsborough Spa also has two smaller soaking pools, an ice alcove and a relaxation terrace, which form an invigorating self-guided bathing circuit. For unknotting, choose from treatments such as an aromatherapy essential oil or thermal candle massage, or plump for a rejuvenating Hungarian mud detox. IB
Address: Beau St, Bath BA1 1QY
Price: From £160
Read our full review of the Gainsborough Bath Spa hotel
3. Lime Wood hotelNew Forest, Hampshire
The three-level Herb House spa nails serenity (Lime Wood)
Set in the New Forest National Park, where wild ponies meander through woodland and violet-tinged heather scrub, Lime Wood is the ultimate rural retreat. The 13th-century lodge turned country house hotel with glorious grounds has lounges with roaring fires, an Italian restaurant helmed by Angela Hartnett and Luke Holder, and 33 rooms with botanical artwork and antique furniture.
The calming, three-level Herb House spa nails serenity, with a 16-metre indoor lap pool (floor-to-ceiling glass windows mean front crawl comes with a side of dappled sunlight and forest views), two hydropools, an outdoor hot pool set underneath olive trees and 10 treatment rooms.
The spa menu includes massages using seaweed-infused VOYA or Bamford products, reflexology sessions and OPI mani-pedis. Plus, Lime Wood is the first spa in Britain to offer Ground Wellbeing treatments, created by wellness expert Peigin Crowley. This series of rituals targets the likes of anxiety and hormone change, combining gua sha, breathwork, cold-stone therapy and lymphatic drainage.
Personal trainers are on hand in the Technogym to ramp up fitness regimes, there are energetic aqua resistance sessions in the pool, plus pilates and yoga in the herb-filled rooftop garden. Afterwards, there’s healthy grub – freshly pressed greens, ginger juices and seasonal soups – on offer at spa restaurant Raw and Cured. IB
Address: Beaulieu Rd, Lyndhurst SO43 7FZ
Price: From £445
Read more: Best spa hotels in Edinburgh – where to stay for luxury rooms and rejuvenation
4. Galgorm Resort hotelBallymena, County Antrim
This dog-friendly hotel offers everything from Scandi-style bedrooms to rustic cabins (Galgorm)
Surrounded by 450 acres of parkland by the tranquil River Maine, 40 minutes from Belfast, the atmosphere at the 125-room Galgorm Resort is refreshingly relaxed (it has a 500-strong gin library for one thing). Accommodation ranges from business-style bedrooms to Scandi-style cottages and rustic log cabins, which are dog-friendly. There are four restaurants, including laidback AA Rosette-awarded Italian joint Fratelli and Gillies Grill, which hosts rousing live music each night.
The property’s award-winning Spa Village is one of Europe’s largest thermal spas, with a whopping six acres in which to bliss out, including a trio of gardens (alpine, walled and riverside) and a raft of facilities, including an indoor infinity hydrotherapy pool, riverside hot tubs, an indoor pool, snow cabin, salt room, aroma grotto and herb caldarium. Massages use Elemis, Image or CBD-infused OTO products, plus there’s an only-available-at Galgorm iDome Detox Therapy – a touchless treatment that uses colour and plasma therapy to rejuvenate skin.
For post-relaxation fuel, order pho and virgin watermelon lemonades at timber-dome restaurant Elements. It’s a good pick for golfers as there’s a par-72 championship course on the grounds of the nearby Galgorm Castle Estate, a six-hole pitch and putt, and a golf academy. IB
Address: 136 Fenaghy Rd, Ballymena BT42 1EA
Price: From £250
5. The Scarlet hotelCornwall
This seaside hotel is a breath of fresh air (The Scarlet)
Adult-only Scarlet, with its cliffside setting above Mawgan Porth’s butterscotch sands, eco-architecture and wonderful spa, is a breath of fresh air for the soul. The 37 rooms – decked out with pale wooden floorboards, decorated in mossy green and dusky blues inspired by wildflowers and sea mosses – each have a sea view, be it full-facing or from an upper-level sitting room.
Popular with couples, the spa is heavy on wild-at-heart romance, with blue-on-blue seascape panoramas from the indoor pool, outdoor natural pool (a bracing, freshwater number, filtered by a living reed bed system) and a clifftop barrel cedar wood sauna. Chose from ayurvedic treatments and four-hour “journeys” (solo, couples, pregnancy), which feature hot herb and oat-filled poultice massages and Tula facials. Hands-on DIY hammam experiences for two, which involve slathering one another with mineral mud and an aromatic scrub atop a heated ceramic bed, are a hoot, and leave skin silky-smooth.
Afterwards, laze in slumber-inducing hanging canvas pods, do outdoor yoga and tai chi, or head out surfing. A visit to the restaurant is a must – it’s overseen by chef Jack Clayton, known for his focus on sustainable, responsibly sourced cuisine. Pick from seven-course fine dining menus or afternoon cream teas. IB
Address: The Scarlet Hotel, Tredragon Rd, Mawgan Porth, Newquay TR8 4DQ
Price: From £230
Read more: Best hotels in Cornwall for beach breaks, walking retreats and sea views
6. Rudding Park hotelHarrogate
With two golf courses, 300 acres of gardens and a cinema, there’s so much more to do than just relax at Rudding Park (Rudding Park)
Historic Rudding Park, a quick drive from former spa town Harrogate, will suit spa junkies looking for a retreat with a modern, unstuffy vibe. The Georgian Hall-turned-90-room-hotel has comfortable rooms with colour pop touches, 300 acres of gardens, a cinema, two golf courses and Horto cafe, serving seasonal dishes.
It’s the innovative spa, fed in part by natural spring waters, that’s the real masterstroke. Alongside an indoor pool, juniper log sauna, rasul (for mud masks and scrubs), nail studio and gym, there are audio meditation pods, an AV relaxation room and Mandala colour therapy zone. Outside, on the shrub-filled rooftop, there’s even more: a hydrotherapy pool, steam room, a tranquillity space with heated Evo loungers, glass-fronted sauna with astonishing panoramas of the Yorkshire countryside, sunlight therapy room and oxygen pod.
Treatments run the gamut from Natura Bisse facials to hot stone massages, and spa rates include a daily Aufguss session – 15-minute sauna rituals where an Aufguss master uses water, essential oils and clever towel movements to circulate the heat to lift endorphins. The property also caters for those with accessibility needs, with level access across the spa, a pool lift for indoor and hydro pools, and an adapted treatment room and accessible shower-changing room. IB
Address: Rudding Ln, Follifoot, Harrogate HG3 1JH
Price: From £322
7. Chewton Glen hotelNew Forest
If you can’t choose between all the treatments on offer, book a slot and your Chewton Glen therapist will craft something bespoke (Chewton Glen)
In 1990, long before it became de rigueur, Chewton Glen was one of the first country house hotels to create a purpose-built spa, and it has been winning accolades ever since. The straight-out-of-Austen hotel sits in 130 acres of grounds on the fringe of the New Forest National Park, and many ingredients used at the Dining Room come from the kitchen garden. Rooms range from traditional, with mallard-print cushions, mahogany furniture and rose colour palettes, to high-in-the-canopy tree house suites with balcony hot tubs.
The 1,350 square metre spa has a 17-metre Roman-style indoor lap pool, a hydrotherapy pool, outdoor whirlpool and cold drench showers. On the spa menu are Mii gel mani-pedis and oil massages. Can’t decide? Book a slot and the therapist will craft something bespoke. Also on offer are brand new body rituals using CBD brand OTO products, which are tailored to ramp up energy levels or rebalance, as required.
Junior spa treatments, a nine-hole par three golf course, a dance and fitness studio, tennis courts, and a cookery school by Chef Gerard Molloy make Chewton a good family pick. IB
Address: Chewton Glen Hotel & Spa, Christchurch Rd, New Milton BH25 6QS
Price: From £360
Read more: I visited a spa inside a 500,000-year-old cave in Bermuda. Here’s what I learnt
8. South Lodge hotelWest Sussex
The Botanica restaurant serves up delicious plant-based food (South Lodge)
Want a spa break with an added hit of horticulture? The ivy-covered, buttermilk-stone Jacobean country pile South Lodge in West Sussex has it covered, with 93 acres of beech and oak woodland, rhododendron-filled ornamental gardens and breathtaking South Downs panoramas. The old-world main house – all ornate peacock ceiling carvings, dark wood panelling and 18th-century oil portraits – also has excellent restaurants Camellia and The Pass, overseen by Ben Wilkinson. Suites are relaxing spaces with velvet throws, fireplaces, bold striped wallpaper and mosaic-tiled bathrooms.
However, real serenity can be found at the 4,087 square metre, green oak-clad, meadow-roofed spa, which blends into the South Downs scenery beautifully. There’s plenty to keep swimmers happy, with a trio of dipping spots: an indoor infinity pool, an outdoor hydrotherapy number, and a back-to-nature 18-metre wild swimming pond.
Unwind-in-an-instant body massages use bespoke products and take place in nature-inspired treatment rooms. There’s also a beauty bar for mani-pedis, a spin studio and gym, and plant-based food on offer at the Botanica restaurant. IB
Address: Brighton Rd, Lower Beeding, Crabtree, Horsham RH13 6PS
Price: From £1,080
9. Beaverbrook Hotel and SpaSurrey
Beaverbrook has rooms full of abstract art and antiques (Beaverbrook Hotel & Spa)
Not many spas are akin to immersive art, but that’s exactly the case at Beaverbrook’s Coach House Health Club and Spa. Offering a zeitgeist-y foil to the 19th-century Victorian mansion and its sprawling Surrey Hills grounds, the spa’s vivid stained-glass ceiling, designed by artist Brian Clarke, makes you feel as though you’re wrapped up in a rainbow. Wellness here focuses on the power of nature, with a roster including tailored, hyperbaric oxygen therapy, IV vitamin infusions, Therapi facials and osteopathy, as well as a calendar of experiences ranging from winter signatures to full moon ceremonies.
The pretty indoor pool is a delight – with a design that looks as though there are flowers bobbing on the water’s surface. Plus, there’s a splash pool, Coach House Spa, thermal suite, gym, and relaxation room.
Spoiling spa aside, Beaverbrook is all polished razzle-dazzle – in keeping with the spirit of its former owner, press baron Lord Beaverbrook, who was renowned for his Gatsby-esque parties. Some of the bedrooms, decked out with abstract art prints and antiques, are named after Lord Beaverbrook’s pals, including Rudyard Kipling and Elizabeth Taylor. Evenings can be spent in the cinema, feasting on sushi at the Japanese Grill or enjoying rustic Mediterranean at the Garden House, before lemon, ginger ale and peach Spitfire Collins cocktails at Art Deco-style Sir Frank’s Bar. IB
Address: Reigate Rd, Leatherhead KT22 8QX
Price: From £630
Read more: Europe’s best thermal spa destinations
10. Corinthia hotelLondon
The five-star hotel sits by the river and is home to a stunning spa (Corinthia)
Moments from the Thames, and a hop, skip and a jump from Trafalgar Square, this five-star hotel has an unrivalled riverside setting, and is home to ESPA Life at Corinthia. Spread across four floors, the 3,300 square meter spa is all high-drama Game of Thrones sultriness. Curved, gold corridors and a marble staircase descend to a thermal floor, where midnight black Italian marble rubs up against a vitality pool lit by a flickering fireplace. As well as a mosaic-tiled steam room, ice fountain and nine-metre stainless steel swimming pool – embedded with golden lights that create swooshing patterns as you swim – there’s a roomy glass-walled sauna soundtracked by classical music. Even the changing rooms are a thing of beauty – the women’s have heated marble loungers, a sauna and steam room; the men’s a sauna and tepidarium.
The range of expert-led treatments – performed in 17 pods – is second to none. ESPA therapies, reflexology and Traditional Chinese Medicine treatments are just a handful of what’s on offer. The cutting-edge gym has small group personal training sessions, and a Daniel Galvin Hair Salon ensures locks look as good as the swish surrounds. A partnership with The London Regenerative Institute means you can book consultations with regenerative medicine practitioners for the likes of oxygen therapies and aesthetic treatments in a dedicated Lab Room.
As for the rest of the hotel? Expect a wow-factor glass dome ceiling and Baccarat chandelier, two occasion restaurants – Kerridge’s Bar and Grill, and European-style brasserie The Northall – sexy cocktail bar Velvet, and bedrooms that channel smart London residences, with leather furniture and Calacatta marble bathrooms. IB
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Address: Corinthia Hotel, 10 Whitehall Pl, London SW1A 2BD
Price: From £608
11. Titanic Spa hotelHuddersfield
With single-use plastics banned and energy-efficient appliances, this spa is one of the greener options (Titanic Spa)
For a pampering getaway rooted in sustainability smarts, this eco-spa in the Pennines is the one to book. Housed inside a beautifully restored 20th-century textile mill in Huddersfield, it’s powered by solar photovoltaic roof panels and uses its own natural borehole for water. Single-use plastic is banned, appliances are energy-efficient, and Titanic is working towards becoming carbon neutral too.
The well-equipped spa has a 15-metre indoor pool, given a gentle glow by blush rose lighting, as well as a heat and ice circuit, including herbal infusion and aromatherapy rooms, crystal steam bath, sauna, foot baths, ice room, plunge pool and experience showers – plus a sunken hot tub on the patio for outdoor soaks. While this isn’t a boutique experience (the spa can get quite busy), treatments – ranging from Decleor and Elemis facials and massages to reflexology, reiki and hopi ear candling – are spoiling, and there’s a beanbag-filled relaxation lounge to retreat to afterwards.
Aparthotel-style accommodation – 33 contemporary one or two-bed apartments (sleeping up to six with additional sofa beds) with kitchen-dining rooms – in the Titanic’s former mill makes self-catering a breeze.
That said, there’s good grub on offer, with dishes at The Titanic Bistro – such as cumin spiced sweet potato and dal – made using seasonal, locally sourced organic or Fairtrade ingredients. It’s hard to beat Titanic in terms of value for money. Three-hour twilight packages start from £55pp. IB
Address: Titanic Spa, Low Westwood Ln, Linthwaite, Huddersfield HD7 5UN
Price: Contact hotel
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12. Fairmont Windsor Park hotelWindsor
The courtyard hydro vitality pool is lovely during the sunny months (Fairmont Windsor Park)
This ritzy countryside crashpad meets 2,500 square metre spa opened in late 2021 and swiftly established itself as top of the list for many spa-goers. While the property’s Jacobean-style exterior is in keeping with its English countryside locale, with 40 acres of gardens next to Windsor Park, interiors at Fairmont are more-is-more opulent. Think mirrored corridors, a triple-height atrium, striking bar with a sunbeam ceiling pattern and a fine dining restaurant, 1215, adorned with hand-painted forest murals.
The spa has more of a sanctuary feel, with silvery floral mosaic walls, a 20-metre indoor pool lined by waterside loungers, and tucked-back daybeds to curl up in. At one end, a Japanese Ashiyu foot ritual bath sits in a bower of everlasting cherry blossom, while outside there’s a courtyard hydro vitality pool – lovely during sunnier months. Guests can also enjoy a Himalayan salt room and thermal suite with Finnish sauna, a steam room, ice fountain, hot tub and a relaxation room kitted out with Aeyla weighted blankets to snuggle under.
Other flashpoints include a six-person hammam, sports massage therapy, gym with reformer pilates studio, padel and tennis courts, and a cryotherapy chamber. IB
Address: Bishopsgate Rd, Englefield Green, Windsor TW20 0YL
Price: From £425
13. Pennyhill Park Hotel and SpaSurrey
After a good soak, enjoy a Michelin-starred restaurant experience (Pennyhill Park Hotel & Spa)
Another Surrey spa hotspot with oodles of facilities is long-established Pennyhill Park. Ringed by 120 acres of parkland, with a whopping 4,181 square metre spa to explore, spa-ing here is a laid-back, all-day affair. As for swims, there’s a pic ’n’ mix of dipping possibilities – from an elegant 25-metre indoor pool in the columned ballroom, which has music piped underwater, to an 18-metre outdoor pool and indoor-outdoor hydrotherapy pool, next to a trio of outdoor Canadian-style hot tubs.
Another highlight is the fragrant thermal circuit, a mix of saunas, steam rooms and the like at varying temperatures, including a fig and vanilla-scented laconium, rose steam room and a Thai basil and eucalyptus-infused herbal sauna to warm. There are also drench buckets, an ice igloo, bracing plunge pool and a bubbling foot spa. Despite there being 21 therapy rooms, it’s best to book ahead, as treatments are in demand, from Natura Bisse’s famed diamond energy facials to the pro-sleep ritual using warm oil applied in gentle brushstrokes.
On the whole, the property’s 124 individually styled bedrooms are contemporary and colourful. The most plush have their own spa touches – a private cedar hot tub on the terrace, sunken Roman-style shower or copper roll-top tub. Pennyhill is also a strong choice for foodie guests, thanks to Michelin-starred Latymer restaurant, where Steve Smith magics up inventive, modern fine dining in historic, oak-beamed surrounds. IB
Address: Pennyhill Park, London Rd, Bagshot GU19 5EU
Price: From £435
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14. Calcot and Spa hotelCotswolds
The wood fire and outdoor hot tub are a must, whatever the season (Calcot and Spa)
A haven for the wellness crowd, Calcot and Spa is replete with two buildings dedicated to fitness, recovery and relaxation. The spa and the Grain Store bookend the impressive Cotswolds manor house, fronted by a croquet lawn and leafy avenues to roll through on rented bikes. The classic country house hotel has cosy nooks, green terraces and an excellent cafe, restaurant and bar in which to while away the hours, but you’d be remiss to swerve the spa and fitness centre as these facilities are perhaps most deserving of the awards the venue has won.
The spa building houses a large heated pool, a traditional sauna and steam room, three beautiful relaxation rooms and individual treatment rooms. These encircle a bright cafe with lofty ceilings and huge windows that look out at the star of the show – an outdoor hot tub banked by lavender and hydrangea bushes with a log fire offering the comforting scent of woodsmoke. There’s also a cosy library area offering views of the grounds in which to relax. Treatments are tailored to your individual needs – ideal for working out stressed muscles or topically treating skin concerns with a range of products from Comfort Zone and Caci.
In contrast to the hyper-modern facilities, the rooms are refreshingly rustic. Exposed beams and farmhouse-style furniture provide a classic Cotswolds vibe to settle into. Designated family areas and individual cottage-style suites ensure total privacy and peace and quiet.
The Grain Store – a huge barn kitted out with dance, fitness and spin studios, a gym and cafe – is possibly the best hotel gym in the UK. With a giant gym floor lined with top-of-the-range Technogym machines and personal trainers on hand to offer assistance, fitness enthusiasts will not be disappointed. Classes here range from pilates to boxfit and sound healing. Emilie Lavinia
Address: Gloucestershire, Tetbury GL8 8YJ
Price: From £303
15. Careys Manor hotelNew Forest
Go rambling and enjoy a world-class Thai massage at Careys Manor (Careys Manor)
If a ramble through an idyllic national park followed by a trip to a tepidarium sounds like your idea of a good time, Careys Manor is the place for you. The 18th-century New Forest manor house boasts a great deal of character, complete with Victorian wood panelling and open fireplaces. Though be advised that many of the rooms and suites are housed in a modern annexe. Regardless, the rooms are comfortable and decked out to complement the hotel’s country heritage aesthetic. Many look out onto private gardens with individual terraces and booking a specialist package will see you greeted with a gift box of wellness products from the likes of Dirtea and Scentered in your room.
The SenSpa is laid out across two floors with an abundance of therapeutic rooms to suit all tastes. Guests can move between the herbal sauna, laconicum and tepidarium to a crystal steam room and sensory showers that mimic tropical rain and thunderstorms. Swimming pools and hydropools are banked by relaxation areas and treatment rooms – in which the best Thai massage to be found outside of Thailand can be booked at the spa reception. The gym is small but well-equipped with a variety of machines and a separate fitness studio offers a bright space for yoga classes.
Though you could spend days enjoying all the spa has to offer, the surrounding woodland populated by wild ponies and winding trails, is too good to be missed. The concierge team can help with wellington boots, picnics, walking maps and advice on the best walking routes.
Beautiful dining areas – including a Thai restaurant, French brasserie and the Cambium restaurant serving locally-sourced fare – and an impressive breakfast spread, provide an opportunity to refuel. Though of course, there is the option of a cream tea in the gardens between meals. EL
Address: Lyndhurst Road, Brockenhurst SO42 7RH
Price: From £172
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16. Sopwell House hotelHertfordshire
The Cottonmill Spa is a regular haunt for famous faces (Sopwell House)
Set in 12 acres of grounds, Sopwell House marries the classic features of an imposing Georgian manor with its spa’s ultra-modern architecture and facilities. The interiors blend understated British country house charm with hints of modern design, leaning on warm upholstery with lounge spaces that invite lingering over coffee or afternoon tea.
Just in time for the hotel’s 40th anniversary, the Cottonmill Spa has recently been refurbished and expanded. It boasts an indoor pool, and multiple steam and sauna rooms offering aromatherapy and views out onto a beautiful garden. There are also vitality and hydrotherapy pools, and outdoor hot tubs. Not all parts of the spa are accessible to all guests, but the swimming pool, jacuzzi, steam room and sauna are.
There’s an impressive treatment menu of advanced skincare and body treatments, from restorative massages to rebalancing facials, plus plenty of spaces to relax afterwards and sip on cucumber-infused water while looking out at beautiful gardens.
The gym is small but very well equipped with state-of-the-art Technogym equipment, and is a hit with visiting football teams – one of the Sopwell’s corridors is lined with the shirts of players who frequent the hotel.
For food and drink, guests can visit the brasserie, the Octagon bar and Omboo – an opulent pan-Asian restaurant. Breakfast is a fabulous serve-yourself spread with a range of healthy, continental and fully-loaded options. The spa also houses the Pantry offering light lunches and drinks for those enjoying a spa day without the overnight stay.
Until mid November, guests can book Ruby packages to chime with the hotel’s anniversary, with the starting offer including an overnight stay with breakfast and access to the Cottonmill Spa, plus a 60-minute treatment. There’s also a nostalgic limited-edition menu at the cocktail bar to help you to celebrate the milestone. EL
Address: Sopwell House, Cottonmill Ln, St Albans AL1 2HQ
Price: From £329
Read our full review of Sopwell House
17. The Quay HotelNorth Wales
Watch incredible sunsets over the estuary after a soothing massage (The Quay Hotel)
Perched within an estuary of the Irish sea, The Quay hotel and spa embraces the wilder aspects of wellness, bearing witness to coastal winds and golden sunsets. The Welsh coastline offers beaches and hills for those keen to hit their 10,000 steps and the nearby marina provides a vista of bobbing boats and the soothing sound of lapping waves.
The spa is small but well equipped with a high-tech infrared sauna, steam room and Himalayan salt room, along with footbaths, relaxation areas and a hydropool – the ideal recovery method after a long walk. Treatments, which are carried out in a separate wing, range from personalised massages to soothing facials with Oskia products. The gym is also very good, housed in the main hotel building with plenty of fitness machines and PTs on hand to help with your workout.
The hotel itself has spacious, modern rooms and suites with large windows and balconies offering views of the estuary and marina. The decor is pared-back and comfortable with considered touches. Blue hues are a nod to the nautical, and the stone-toned bathrooms are minimalist.
The Cove bar and Ebb and Flow restaurant are also in keeping with The Quay’s seaside theme, serving up local flavours via an award-winning chef. You’ll also find Welsh ales on the drinks menu and an impressive wine list. Mornings are brightened by views of the historic Conwy Castle while enjoying a well-stocked buffet and a la carte breakfast menu. EL
Address: Deganwy Quay, Deganwy, Conwy LL31 9DJ
Price: From £134
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18. Seaham Hall hotelDurham
Historic halls play host to opulent rooms and a first-rate spa at Seaham Hall (Seaham Hall)
A manor house steeped in history, Seaham Hall houses eclectic rooms that have played host to the likes of Lord Byron before becoming wards for a military hospital and later, a secret whiskey dispensary. Today the Georgian manor house is the epitome of luxury, surrounded by grounds that meet the sea on the north east coast. Suites and the hotel’s self-contained lodges are plush, comfortable and offer every amenity – including super king beds, a pillow menu and private hot tubs with views of the North Sea.
The Serenity Spa houses a 20-metre pool, hammam, hydrotherapy and plunge pools and relaxation areas. There’s also a range of therapy rooms ranging from a salt sauna to an eucalyptus steam room. An ambient walkway over indoor ponds leads the way from the main hotel to pools and treatment rooms where an Ishga seaweed wrap or hot stone massage comes highly recommended. If the weather permits, the outdoor infinity hydropool and food terrace are worth spending a little time in.
Fitness fans will be pleased to hear that the Seaham Hall gym is expansive, offering a range of machines. There’s also a fitness studio with Technogym spin bikes and a host of classes to book, from HIIT to body pump.
If you’re more interested in food than fitness, you’ll eat well. The menu in The Dining Room is seasonal and locally sourced, inspired by what the North East has to offer, including beautiful views of the gardens. There’s also an alternative restaurant, Ozone, serving pan-Asian fare and excellent cocktails. EL
Address: Hall, Lord Byrons Walk, Seaham SR7 7AG
Price: Contact hotel
19. Down Hall hotelBishops Stortford
Down Hall is a classic country house hotel with a focus on wellbeing (Down Hall)
Down Hall is a quintessential country house surrounded by 110 acres of wooded grounds. The Eden spa sits to the side of the hotel itself, housing treatment rooms, a hydrotherapy pool, sauna, steam rooms and relaxation areas. It’s well-equipped but not enormous, lending it an air of exclusivity. Inside the hotel you’ll also find a gym replete with hi-tech machines and kit, along with another sauna. Down Hall also offers a programme of wellness activities like weekend retreats and classes, so a sound bath or yoga session within the painted halls comes highly recommended.
The beautiful interiors are true to the building’s classical heritage with nods to more modern farmhouse-style decor. The bedrooms, of which there are 98, range in size from colourful suites to cute twins, all with modern bathrooms and amenities. Don’t miss a spin around the woodland area to refresh the lungs.
The garden room restaurant boasts two AA rosettes and offers meals from the kitchen garden, ideal for those with an interest in seasonal and locally-grown food. And of course, guests can indulge in a classic afternoon tea if all that yoga, fresh air and hydrotherapy feels a little too wholesome for one day. EL
Address: Matching Rd, Hatfield Heath, Bishop's Stortford CM22 7AS
Price: From £142
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The hotels featured in this list have been carefully selected by The Independent's expert travel writers, each with a deep knowledge of the topics they cover. When picking the hotels to include, our contributors consider their own experience staying in the hotels and evaluate location, facilities, service and all the other details that make for an exceptional stay for all types of traveller.
Source: “AOL Breaking”
