Everyone needs a little pampering every now and again, and I’m a spa girl through and through. Sometimes it’s a day trip or an all-too-brief appointment with the beautician, and sometimes when I’m feeling flush I love to indulge myself with a little stay in the countryside.
I was interested to see what the £10 spa deals from lastminute.com were like, as my previous spa-hopping experience has shown me that the price you pay often has no relation to the standard of service you receive. So I bought vouchers for myself and a friend next time the offer came up, and we booked in to use a spa in Sutton.
The deal included use of the spa facilities and a choice of short treatments, including a mini facial, a back massage, a manicure or a mini pedicure. My top tip for a day like this would be to book your treatments for the late afternoon when you call the spa – the last thing you want to do is soak off the massage oil, nail polish or expensive moisturiser and eye cream by getting into the pool or jacuzzi afterwards, or sweat it off in the gym or steam room.
The spa and gym turned out to be part of a large hotel chain, and when we arrived the place looked fairly generic and anonymous. Having said that, the spa itself was excellent once we’d found it: clean and fresh with friendly and polite staff. The gym was on the small side but had everything you could want if you were hoping to burn off a few extra calories with some aerobic activity, so we got stuck in to the exercise for a couple of hours. The indoor pool was attractive and we enjoyed a swim, a soak in the hot tub and some poolside lounging around. So far so good, but the real revelation was meeting the therapists after lunch – both of them turned out to be well trained and skilled people who used quality beauty products including Dermalogica and Essie.
My friend opted for the back-of-body massage and said it was one of the best they’ve had in years, high praise indeed. The pair of us floated off home feeling fabulous, and agreed that we’d both go again at the drop of a fluffy towel.
