Cotswold House Hotel

While Kevin was busy experiencing the sights, sounds and spas of Tokyo during the annual Leading Hotels of the World Conference (SpaFinder has the pleasure of being invited to this impressive get together every year as a strategic partner of Leading Spas of the World), I decided to take some time off  to visit a spa nearer to home.  The new Temple Spa at the Cotswold House Hotel in Chipping Camden was just the ticket.  If you haven’t heard of Temple Spa yet, I think you will soon.  The concept is simple – your body is a sacred place and a spa is where you can look after it and safeguard it from the stresses and strains of daily life.  The products and treatments all conjure up a Mediterranean spirit, designed to take you on a holiday wherever you might be.  The spa at the Cotswold house did just that as I basked in the warmth of the Turkish hammam and laid poolside (indoors, of course! it’s winter in England!).  I opted for an hour “Vespers – Drift Away” massage and truly did drift away to another world.  It’s been a long time since I’ve been able to happily doze off during a treatment…it was delightful.

The spa had all the makings of a perfect setting for a girl’s spa day, which is just what it was.  I met four other friends at the spa and all resoundingly approved of their treatments, with one caveat: the facialist was apparently selling products through an entire 30-minute session while also trying to upsell on the time (“30 minutes just isn’t enough!”).  The good news was my friend loved the products and the results so it cancelled out any annoyance.  But it just goes to show that it’s all about the therapist and the way they interact with you that makes a real difference in how you feel about a spa.

Other places to find Temple Spa treatments and products in the UK include Alexander House Hotel and Rowhill Grange Hotel.