An indulgent spa day is the perfect way to take care of both your body and mind. From a tranquil seaside retreat to a Mediterranean-inspired oasis, there are many unique luxury spas to visit around Yorkshire. Here are a few of our favourites.
Grantley Hall
Located on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales, this five-star spa hotel resides in a grand, palladian-style country house, set in acres of stunning grounds. Grantley Hall was named AA Hotel of the Year for 2022, which is no surprise as this luxury wellness retreat houses eight restaurants, including the eastern-inspired EightyEight, Valeria’s cocktail bar and the Michelin-starred Shaun Rankin at Grantley Hall. The Hotel’s Three Graces Spa boasts an 18-metre indoor pool and an indoor-to-outdoor hydrotherapy pool, along with a sauna, steam room and snow room, where you can boost your circulation, relax or cool down after a workout in the ELITE gym. You can visit the Three Graces Spa from £165 for a weekday twilight session. This evening of pampering starts with a welcome drink at 4:15 PM, followed by a 45-minute Natura Bisse face and body ritual of your choice. You can then use the spa’s facilities until 7:45 PM. Alternatively, you could splash out with a full spa day. This costs £245 and features a welcome ritual, after which you can unwind with a 60-minute treatment. You’ll then be able to spend the rest of your day in the spa or gym and can enjoy a delicious light meal in the Spa Lounge at lunchtime.
Middlethorpe Hall
Situated on Bishopthorpe Road, on the outskirts of York, Middlethorpe Hall brings together the best that the city and its surrounding countryside has to offer. Take a walk in the peaceful gardens of this 4-star spa hotel and you’ll feel much further than two miles from the hustle and bustle of York’s City centre. Middlethorpe Hall is one of the National Trust’s three historic house hotels and its building has a long and varied past – it was built in 1699 and was once home to the aristocratic writer Lady Mary Wortley Montagu. Middlethorpe’s spa is tucked away behind the facade of two Edwardian cottages – an exterior that belies the impressive space hidden within. This calming sanctuary has three treatment rooms, a large indoor swimming pool, a spa bath, steam room and a sauna. Outside, you’ll find a sunlit private garden to lounge in, complete with a restored Victorian summerhouse that’s now a gym. If you’d like to escape from it all here, you can try a half day Spa Discovery for £105. This includes a hot or soft drink and two 20-minute or one 50-minute treatment. You’ll also have use of all the spa’s facilities for two hours. A full spa day at Middlethorpe starts at £149 for the Relax and Unwind Ritual. In this dreamy daytime experience, you’ll be treated to an 80-minute treatment, with options like massages, manicures, waxing and aromatherapy for the face and body. You’ll also be served a light two-course luncheon in the spa’s own Club Room.
Rudding Park
Rudding Park sits in 300 acres of beautifully landscaped gardens and parkland, just twenty minutes from Harrogate. This award-winning hotel helps the spa town to live up to its reputation as one of the country’s best spots to recuperate – Harrogate’s famous spring waters are even used in the treatments here. Rudding Park’s destination spa houses a rooftop hydrotherapy infinity pool and a panoramic sauna, luxury steam room, herbal steam bath and experience showers, along with a foot spa, sunlight therapy and an oxygen pod. You can also chill out in one of its escape zones, which are equipped with visual and audio aids to help you unwind and mandala colouring therapy to promote mindfulness. Spa sessions here start at £67 for a supper or brunch experience, which includes access to the rooftop spa, indoor swimming pool, juniper log sauna and bucket shower with brunch or a two-course dinner at the Horto Cafe. You can enjoy even more ‘me’ time with a full spa day. Prices start from £153 and include nine hours in the spa and escape zones with a 50-minute bespoke treatment. You’ll also be able to tuck into a nutritional two-course lunch, prepared with ingredients grown in Rudding Park’s own kitchen garden.
The Devonshire Arms & Spa
A country house hotel with a contemporary yet cosy feel, the Devonshire Arms sits on the Bolton Abbey Estate, at the southern edge of the Yorkshire Dales. The hotel’s luxurious spa resides in an ancient barn near to the main hotel and has its own indoor swimming pool, relaxation space and gym. Temple Spa products are used for many of the treatments here, including facials, body brushing, massage and exfoliation. Behind the spa, you’ll find a hidden village of bell tents. If you opt to try the hotel’s magical ‘Secret Spa’ experience, one of these will become your own private space to chill out in for the duration of your time here. Each tent is equipped with everything you need, from slippers, a hair dryer and straighteners to a log burner and furniture for dining. You can spend a restful day here with a friend or partner from just £145 per couple. This includes a rasul mud chamber experience for two, use of the spa and a scrumptious light lunch, which will be delivered to your tent in a picnic hamper for you to eat while enjoying a stunning view of the Dales.
Raithwaite Sandsend
If you’d like to get some sea air on your spa break, Raithwaite Sandsend might be just the place. This modern hotel can be found between the sea and the North York Moors, near the picturesque coastal village of Sandsend. Raithwaite’s spa has a light and airy indoor swimming pool, which offers wonderful woodland views through its full-length windows. You’ll also find a steam room, sauna and several cosy treatment rooms here. You can spend a day at Raithwaite Sandsend from £75 per person. This includes use of all the spa’s facilities as well as a 30-minute treatment of your choice and a light lunch in the recently revamped restaurant. For a bigger treat, the spa also offers a Luxury Spa Day, where you can indulge in an afternoon tea with bubbles. During this full day retreat, you’ll be able to pick two heavenly treatments. These include Turkish Delight – an exfoliating aromatherapy experience that uses Temple Spa’s ‘Keep Calm’ aromatherapy cleansing bar, followed by a hot steam towel removal and a ‘Drift Away’ oil massage.
The Feversham Arms & Verbena Spa
A hidden oasis in the characterful town of Helmsley, the Feversham Arms has been imaginatively transformed, turning this Grade II listed former coaching inn into a Mediterranean-inspired paradise. The hotel’s Verbena Spa has an impressive open air swimming pool, along with an aromatherapy room, saunarium, steam room and monsoon
shower. Treatments here include rasul – a traditional Arabian ritual that uses warm, mineral-rich mud and steam to cleanse the body. You can choose your own mood scent to add to your rasul mud here, making the experience truly personal. The spa also offers ‘Baby Love’ sessions, which are designed to give mums-to-be some much-needed pampering. If you’d like to spend a blissful morning or afternoon here, the spa’s classic half day experience costs £160 and includes a Mediterranean-style exfoliation, followed by an indulgent tailor made facial. You’ll also be able to use the spa’s facilities for four hours and can enjoy a one-course lunch, accompanied by a glass of prosecco. If you’d like even more time to de-stress, a full spa day starts from £210 and includes two hours of treatments with seven hours in the spa.
The Parsonage Hotel & Spa
This romantic 4-star hotel in the village of Escrick is brimming with history – take a break here and you might feel like you’ve stepped back in time to a grander era. The Parsonage retains many of its original Jacobethan features but now boasts its own sophisticated spa, which is named the Cloisters. Here, you’ll find a 16-metre swimming pool, jacuzzi, sauna and steam room, as well as aromatherapy and salt rooms and a spacious gym. Many of the hotel’s nourishing beauty treatments use products from Elemis and you can choose from a range of facials, body masks, hot stone therapy, massages, eyebrow shaping and more. Spa days here start at £66 per person for a ‘Taste of Relaxation’, which includes half a day’s access to all of the spa’s facilities, along with your choice of treatment. This Easter you can also try a unique chocolate-themed experience here. Cloisters’ Easter Treat lasts 75 minutes and costs £70. During this treatment, you’ll be soothed by a chocolate and cocoa bean self-heating body wrap, while undergoing a deeply cleansing facial. You’ll then relax with a cocoa drench face mask and a therapeutic scalp massage before a cacao flower massage candle is drizzled over you to finish.
Aldwark Manor Estate
Set on an idyllic rural estate, this opulent manor hotel near Alne offers accommodation, fine dining and a well-appointed spa with a heated swimming pool, jacuzzi, relaxation rooms and a gym. Aldwark Manor’s spa uses the finest ESPA products for its treatments. These include facials, aromatherapy and hot stone massages, marine mud and algae wraps, salt and oil scrubs and options specially tailored to men or mums-to-be. You can treat yourself to a long lasting Jessica gel manicure or pedicure here. If you’re looking for a personalised pampering session, you can even create your own ‘cocktail’ featuring two 30-minute treatments for £80. Spa breaks at Aldwark Manor start at £95 per person for the Simply Spa Day, which includes full use of all its facilities with a 45 minute treatment of your choice and a tasty and nutritious light lunch accompanied by a glass of prosecco.
Images: @ruddingparkhotel @fevershamarmshotel @devarmsboltonabbey