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Mind and body (37 posts found)

by Sarah Bridge
added August 8, 2019

There are some hotels with spas and there are some hotels which ARE spas. Ragdale Hall health spa in Leicestershire most definitely falls into the latter camp, making a spa break at Ragdale Hall a must for any spa fans. The moment you arrive you are ...

by Sarah Bridge
added July 9, 2019

Fans of Germaine de Capuccini who are wondering where to get Germaine de Capuccini spa treatments in the UK, will be delighted to hear that award-winning hotel Park House hotel and spa in West Sussex is the latest hotel to offer the skin care special...

by Sarah Bridge
added June 21, 2019

It's where James Bond beat Goldfinger in possibly the most famous golf match in cinema history, where Bridget Jones ditched singleton life for a weekend away with boss Daniel Cleaver and where Teri Hatcher and Pierce Brosnan (as another Bond) danced ...

by Sarah Bridge
added June 21, 2019

Guest post from the best-selling Good Hotel Guide - their top 10 luxury hotels with pools for the summer Summer’s here and with any luck we’ve all got summer holidays booked in. Come rain or shine, no holiday would be complete without a little swimm...

by Sarah Bridge
added May 29, 2019

Returning to The Swan hotel at Lavenham in Suffolk several years after my original stay, I was relieved to find that it was just as lovely as I remembered it. This time it also had the added attraction of its new (to me) Weavers' House Spa which had ...

by Sarah Bridge
added February 27, 2019

It isn't often I embrace a hotel gym so wholeheartedly but there was something about the brand spanking new spa Mallory Court luxury hotel Warwickshire which made it irresistible. As we'd just come from feasting at sister hotel Brockencote Hall in...

by Sarah Bridge
added June 22, 2018

It is rare that a holiday actually changes your life, but a week on Skyros, the original 'alternative' holiday destination, can do just that. From changing jobs or learning new skills, to getting married, ditching bad relationships and embarking on n...

by Sarah Bridge
added April 9, 2018

'Clutter makes you reach for a biscuit,' says Anna, as she looks around my bedroom. I can think of no better way to convince me to embrace the popular decluttering trend which takes in everything from Marie Kondo to the tradition spring clean via new...

by Sarah Bridge
added February 6, 2018

I've been lucky to stay in some of the best hotel rooms in the country but for sheer romance it's hard to beat a Beach Suite at the delightful Cary Arms and Spa on Babbacombe Bay, Devon - in the heart of the 'English Riviera'. With a private terrace ...

by Sarah Bridge
added January 16, 2018

It isn't often you plan on spending the night at a rather grand country house hotel and find yourself sleeping in a treehouse on stilts in the middle of a forest. But the treehouses at Chewton Glen, the five-star hotel and spa located deep in the hea...

by Sarah Bridge
added January 13, 2018

Walking into a really gorgeous hotel room can be such a bittersweet moment. There is the initial reaction of 'Wow! This is really, really nice....!' and delight that this is actually all yours for the next 20 hours or so. Then there is the sudden rea...

by Sarah Bridge
added January 12, 2018

If the holiday season left you feeling in serious need of a relaxing break with country walks, a first-class spa and restaurant and cosy rooms to hide away in, then Bailiffscourt hotel and spa is the place for you. Tucked away down a little countr...

by Sarah Bridge
added January 1, 2018

Skiing is one of the world's most sociable sports - there's the long lunches, the dancing-on-tables après-ski, the cosy chalet dinners and oh yes, the skiing itself (who wants to go on a ski lift on their own?) - which means that the idea of going on...

by Sarah Bridge
added October 17, 2017

It's been receiving guests for more than 60 years but Park House hotel and spa is only now making the transition from well-kept local secret to firm fixture on the British country house hotel scene. With a new general manager - Mark Yates, formerly o...

by Sarah Bridge
added September 27, 2017

There is always a worry when it comes to revisiting a hotel which you totally adored on the first visit - what if it's not going to be as good as you remembered it? I know people who won't go to the same place twice for that very reason, and others w...

by Sarah Bridge
added August 21, 2017

I hadn't meant to embark on an impromptu Champagne cocktail-tasting session just after breakfast, but in keeping with the overall spirit of relaxation and pampering at The Greenway hotel and spa Cheltenham it seemed the right thing to do. It was m...

by Sarah Bridge
added April 4, 2017

If the England rugby team need somewhere to recharge their batteries after this year's bruising contest in which they finished a lowly fifth, then they needn't travel very far: their training ground at Pennyhill Park luxury hotel in Surrey is just a ...

by Sarah Bridge
added January 31, 2017

There is something rather special about a rooftop bar in London. The views might not be spectacular - we're not taking Rio or Hong Kong harbour here - but to rise above the traffic and gaze down at the crowds from on high feels incredibly luxurious. ...

by Sarah Bridge
added December 3, 2016

As skiing is such a sociable sport - there's the long lunches, the dancing-on-tables après-ski, the cosy chalet dinners and oh yes, the skiing itself (who wants to go on a ski lift on their own?) - going on a ski holiday by yourself with a tour opera...

by Sarah Bridge
added November 2, 2016

You have to be deeply relaxed to nod off during a massage, so falling completely asleep, not once, but twice, during my treatment at the Lime Wood hotel spa shows how totally unstressed I was. This was quite an achievement considering that on the...

by Sarah Bridge
added June 3, 2016

Spas in luxury hotels are big business and over the last few years owners have been making multi-million pound investments in providing the latest in pampering experiences. But like hotel bedrooms, hotel spas come in all shapes and sizes and if yo...

by Sarah Bridge
added May 18, 2016

Just when you think you've stayed in the best hotels in the Cotswolds, along comes Whatley Manor luxury hotel and tops the lot. From the moment the gates opened to reveal a beautiful cobbled courtyard, the entrance garlanded by wisteria and lavender,...

by Sarah Bridge
added December 31, 2015

From Michelin-starred dining to London's most decadent pancake, grand country house hotels, brand new cruise ships, boutique hotels and celebrity hangouts (not to mention cocktail classes, private cinemas and hot tubs in the Cotswolds), it's been a l...

by Sarah Bridge
added December 31, 2015

For those who love the idea of staying in a luxury spa hotel in the Cotswolds (and who doesn't?) and are travelling with children in tow, its sister hotel Calcot Manor luxury hotel, just the other side of Circencester, is a great choice - a Cotwold...

by Sarah Bridge
added June 16, 2015

Note: my review of Ashdown Park hotel East Sussex was first published in 2015 so some of the details might now be out of date As beautiful settings go, Ashdown Park hotel East Sussex certainly has the 'wow' factor. It's easily one of the best hote...

by Sarah Bridge
added June 13, 2015

Note: this review of Luton Hoo luxury hotel in Bedfordshire was first published in 2015 so some of the details might now need updating It isn't often you get to share a sink with Hugh Grant but the sign in our bedroom at the five-star Luton Hoo hote...

by Sarah Bridge
added June 9, 2015

You would have to start pretty early and finish late to be able to squeeze in the maximum amount of relaxation possible at my Nirvana Spa day near Reading, the award-winning spa near London and one of the top day spas in the country. I spent the w...

by Sarah Bridge
added May 13, 2015

Note: my review of luxury Buckinghamshire hotel Hartwell House was first published in 2015 so some of the details might now be out of date You know you're in good hands when you arrive at a hotel spa and find Downton Abbey's head butler Carson (ak...

by Sarah Bridge
added May 2, 2015

Note: my review of The Grove hotel near Watford was first published in 2015 so some of the details might now be out of date There was nothing around to disturb the peace of my morning stroll around the 300 acres of Hertfordshire countryside which ...

by Sarah Bridge
added November 3, 2014

[This article was originally published in 2014 and since then NuBeginnings has ceased running its weight loss boot camps in North Devon. Details of its current activities can be found here] It was when I was hiking along the North Devon coast on my ...

by Sarah Bridge
added August 28, 2014

It isn't every day I stay in a 17th century Palladian mansion but after just a few hours at the Luckham Park luxury hotel near Bath I was walking around as if I had lived there for years. I would grandly descend the staircase from my room - no, ma...

by Sarah Bridge
added August 2, 2014

[Editors’ note – this review was first published in 2014 and some information might need updating] There are worse things to do on a Monday morning spending the day at Centurion Club St Albans out in the glorious sunshine being taught how to play ...

by Sarah Bridge
added June 3, 2014

[Note: this review of Center Parcs Woburn Forest was written in 2014 when the park was first opened] Center Parcs is practically immune from criticism. With occupancy running at a staggering 97.2 per cent all year round, the private-equity owned l...

by Sarah Bridge
added May 8, 2014

Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire is usually a beautiful, serene, quintessentially British sort of place, where visitors happily amble around admiring the stately grandeur of the birthplace of Winston Churchill before enjoying afternoon tea and ditherin...

by Sarah Bridge
added February 16, 2014

Equinox gym London could possibly be one of the most expensive gyms in Kensington or even one of the priciest gyms in London. And as it's one of the most luxurious gyms in London, it is possibly one of the more expensive gyms in the country. And it d...

by Sarah Bridge
added January 9, 2014

There's nothing more than the fitness industry loves than the newest fad, the latest trend, the 'next big thing'. It guarantees column inches in newspaper supplements and magazines as the new idea is relentlessly promoted in books and articles...

by Sarah Bridge
added January 2, 2014

My friends in the drinks industry won't thank me, but I've joined the growing ranks of those who have sworn off booze for January - hello Dry January! Swearing seems to be the appropriate word too, as it's what I've felt like doing every one of t...

Mind and body (37 posts found)

A most relaxing spa break at Ragdale Hall in Leicestershire

Trying out Park House hotel’s new Germaine de Capuccini spa treatments

Bond, Bridget and me: my stay at Stoke Park luxury hotel

The Good Hotel Guide’s ten luxury hotels with swimming pools

Medieval magic with a modern twist at The Swan hotel and spa in Lavenham, Suffolk

A relaxing stay at Mallory Court luxury hotel Warwickshire

Skyros – the Greek island holiday which could change your life

How to declutter your wardrobe and give yourself (and your stuff) a chance to breathe

A romantic seaside stay in a beach suite at Cary Arms and Spa hotel, Devon

Chewton Glen hotel, New Forest – luxury from spa to treehouse

Time for some serious pampering at Ockenden Manor hotel and spa

A luxurious country escape at Bailiffscourt hotel and spa, West Sussex

How to go on a ski holiday on your own without feeling alone

Park House hotel and spa: a West Sussex secret (but not for much longer)

Whatley Manor review: a Cotswolds gem revisited (with added oxygen)

Greenway hotel and spa, Cheltenham: a luxury hotel with the fizz factor

Pennyhill Park – a luxury hotel fit for the England rugby team

Rooftop cocktails and a spa make Montcalm Royal London House a top to toe destination

Skiing on a Mark Warner ski holiday – on your own but never alone

A deeply relaxing day at Lime Wood hotel spa in the New Forest

Which are the top luxury hotel spas around? Here’s some of the best to get you in the mood

Whatley Manor hotel and spa – one of the best hotels in the Cotswolds

ALadyofLeisure’s 2015 review of Britain’s best luxury hotels

Calcot Manor luxury hotel: a family-friendly hotel in the Cotswolds

Ashdown Park hotel East Sussex: luxury hotel in beautiful grounds

Luton Hoo: a classic country house hotel (with Hollywood glamour)

Nirvana Spa: A hard day’s relaxing at this top day spa near London

Hartwell House Buckinghamshire hotel: a stay with the Downton Abbey factor

The Grove Hotel near Watford: luxury country living at its finest

NuBeginnings weight loss boot camp: shedding the pounds in North Devon

Luckham Park luxury hotel near Bath: my very own Palladian mansion for a night

Spending the day at Centurion Club St Albans

Center Parcs Woburn Forest: it’s reviewer-proof

Preparing for the Blenheim Triathlon – your support for Leukaemia Research much appreciated

Equinox gym London: super-pricey but it will get you super-fit

After the Fast Diet, there’s Fast Exercise, but aren’t we missing something?

Dryathlon or Dry January: worth trying once

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