The best spa breaks for couples in the UK
An insider's guide to the most romantic spa breaks for couples in the UK, featuring the top places to stay for massages, couples' spa suites, hot tubs, hammams, saunas, steam rooms and swimming pools, along with Michelin-starred restaurants and luxurious rooms, in locations including the New Forest, Cornwall, Yorkshire, London, Bath, Lake District, Cotswolds, Scotland and Ireland.
Swinton Park
Ripon, Yorkshire, England
8Telegraph expert rating
You’ll need a whole weekend to do justice to the multi-million-pound spa in this staggering country pile once owned by a Bradfordian mill owner. Come in summer for the outdoor sauna fire pit. The dipping pond is fabulous on sunny days – though relaxation beds topped with heated canopies, and furnished with sheepskin rugs and gloves allow guests to enjoy these spaces in winter too. An 18-metre lap pool, smaller hydrotherapy pool, and nature-scented and salt steam rooms provide further pampering. Opt for a 60-minute therapy in one of the couple suites. Highly recommended is the Elemis Garden of England Rose Restore Wrap with poppy seeds; the deep tissue massages also hit the spot. Read expert review From £160 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
• The best places and cities to visit in England
Lime Wood
New Forest, Hampshire, England
9Telegraph expert rating
The sybaritic Herb House Spa – airy, encased in glass and surrounded by greenery – is perfect for a weekend spa break for two. There are private bathrooms with deep copper baths in the changing rooms, sensuous swimming, hydrotherapy and steam pools, and a beautiful rooftop garden, all with sylvan views. Couples can enjoy a private session in the mud house followed by a 90-minute full-body massage and a 30-minute facial with organic, oil-rich Pai skincare products. Guests then unwind in a romantic relaxation suite for two, complete with bath tub and steam room. A nutritious lunch in Raw & Cured concludes the experience. Read expert review From £345 per night Check availability Rates provided by Mr & Mrs Smith
• The best hotels in the south of England
The Gainsborough Bath Spa
Bath, Somerset, England
9Telegraph expert rating
This is the only hotel in Britain to have access to natural thermal waters. Couples can enjoy a one-hour Swedish-style massage with neroli water, rosemary and pine essences, and lavender-infused towels in a private room for two. The wellness centre is staggering, complete with fourth-century original Roman mosaics, three thermal pools, a sauna and steam room. Guests are encouraged to partake in the 'Bath House Circuit', spending around an hour soaking in the three pools of varying temperatures, rubbing the body with crushed lavender ice and having a sauna. Dinner here is a must: German chef Johann Lafer’s 'dining without borders' philosophy sees him combine locally-sourced foods with Asian flavours. Read expert review From £200 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
• The best hotels for spa breaks in Europe
Gilpin Hotel & Lake House
Lake Windermere, Lake District, England
9Telegraph expert rating
How about a private spa for two? The five cedar lodges at Gilpin Lodge have their own personal en-suite spas with outdoor saunas, a hydrotherapy hot tub hemmed in by Eden-like walled gardens, a steam room, stone bath, crackling fires and views of the Lake District moors. Try a hot stone massage in the early evening, as the mists roll in. This is a warm, relaxing place: Everyone smiles, everyone says hello — yet it’s not overbearing. Fishing, shooting, horse riding, mountain biking, paintballing and treasure hunts can be organised on-site. In the evenings, expect fine dining with white linen but zero pretentiousness. Read expert review From £245 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
• The best Cotswolds spa hotels
Isle of Eriska Hotel
Scotland
8Telegraph expert rating
Book one of the spa suites in this Scottish Baronial mansion on a private island accessible by a bridge, amid glorious scenery in the west highlands. These rooms have their own hot tubs and private gardens looking out to sea. The spa is set in the property’s old stables, and offers ishga and ESPA treatments. Throughout the Big House, the trappings of Victorian wealth and privilege pervade drawing rooms filled with deep sofas, fireplaces and books in the imposing granite and red sandstone. The Michelin-starred restaurant, which offers fish, game and vegetarian dishes made from the finest local produce, and eight-course tasting menus is popular for romantic celebratory dinners. Read expert review From £170 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
• The best country house hotels in Britain
Dormy House
Broadway, Cotswolds, England
9Telegraph expert rating
Dormy House is complete treat of a hotel with very stylish and deeply relaxing décor, terrific food and impeccable service. Its state-of-the-art spa has also won armloads of awards. The private suite for couples is adjoined to the rassoul mud room, so guest can book a hot mineral mud bathing session before or after a treatment for two. Spa facilities include a lavender sauna, salt-infusion steam room, infinity pool and more. The Pure Massage facials are said to have a better effect than Botox. Rose Cottage is the best room in the house for romantics and has its own hot tub. The Garden Room offers an exquisite tasting menu featuring the likes of Tamworth pig with sage and onion ice cream. Read expert review From £265 per night Check availability Rates provided by Mr & Mrs Smith
• The world's most romantic hotels
Brimstone
Lake District, Cumbria, England
9Telegraph expert rating
Standing boldly among the conifers and pines, Brimstone is intentionally reminiscent of a large ski chalet, constructed using beautiful blue-grey Lakeland stone. It has a Bubble Private Spa for two, complete with heat and steam cabin and spa bath. Treatments on offer include a Full Body Bubble Cleansing with hot perfumed bubbles and the Ghassala Cocoon with healing volcanic clay. From the glowing, glass-fronted stove (lit to be toasty just as you arrive and replete with log stack) to the double shower, enormous spa bath and bi-fold doors opening out to Lakeland views – it’s impossible to find fault with bedrooms. Dinner at The Stove, which specialises in smoked meats, is a treat. Read expert review From £350 per night
• The best hotels for wedding venues in Britain
Four Seasons Hotel London at Park Lane
Hyde Park, London, England
8Telegraph expert rating
No spa in London can rival the views from this rooftop fixture, which overlooks the copper beeches of Hyde Park. The skyline vistas from the 10th-floor Sky Suite for couples, with its floor-to-ceiling windows, is quite a backdrop to an aromatherapy scrub for two or an Eastern Elements Ritual. Packages can also include champagne, fresh fruit and lunch. The sauna, which has a window, boasts particularly magnificent vistas, and there's a vitality pool. It's quite an experience to book in overnight here. The blaring red colour scheme and flaunting furnishings are an intriguing lesson in décor designed to titillate the super rich, while service is brilliantly fine-tuned. Read expert review From £527 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
• The most romantic hotels in London
The Scarlet
Mawgan Porth, England
9Telegraph expert rating
Imagine taking in views of the Atlantic while enjoying a scented bath in the clifftop hot tub, glass of champagne in hand. The 'Rediscover Each Other' package for couples also includes private time in the rhassoul or in the hammam slathering on mineral-rich mud or salt scrub, followed by a massage lesson for two in the couple’s suite. The Ayurvedic spa has proved a big success and there are wide outdoor terraces on each level with designer loungers, log-fired hot tubs, and a reed-filtered natural swimming pool. Glorious sea and sunset views make this the ideal hotel for honeymooners, and there is a child-free policy. Read expert review From £230 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
• The best hotels for spa breaks in Britain
Corinthia Hotel London
Charing Cross, London, England
8Telegraph expert rating
The Corinthia is home to one of the most luxurious spa suites in the country: it comprises two treatment pods, a rasul steam shower tiled with vampish black mosaics, private changing area and bathroom, and relaxation bed surrounded by purple orchids. Those who book out the couple's treatment area also enjoy a rasul healing mud ritual before a two-hour ESPA treatment of their choice. A light lunch and glass of champagne is included, as is all-day access to the main spa area with its amphitheatre sauna, thermal pools and ice fountain. Afterwards, book into one of the luxurious rooms with restful beige and olive tones, and dreamy Hypnos beds. Read expert review From £504 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
• The most romantic hotels in London
St Brides Spa Hotel
Pembrokeshire, Wales
9Telegraph expert rating
Couples who book into this hotel are lured by the charming seaside setting, tucked into the south-easternmost fringe of the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park. The spa has a cliff-edge treatment room for two with French windows that, weather permitting, stay open so guests can breathe in the sea air and listen to the heaving waves during their facial or massage. There is also an infinity pool and a thermal bathing experience that includes a salt infusion room, herbal rock sauna and ice fountain. The hotel has its own gallery, showcasing works by local artists, and the restaurant offers fresh, colourful cuisine with a nod to local seafood. Read expert review From £175 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
