After the absolute mayhem that was 2020, I was feeling pretty frazzled by the end of the year. Just heavy from the weight of everything that’s happened over the last 12 months, y’know? So when I was offered a cheeky press visit to Whittlebury Park Spa in December, I jumped at the chance!
I was actually meant to visit back in November, but with lockdown 2, it was postponed to December. But to be honest I quite liked that. I have this thing now where I like to have a little getaway in early December to recharge before all the Christmas festivities kick in (even though they were considerably less frequent this year obvs).
We opted for the Time Out Spa Stay package which included a day in the spa, a lovely treatment called a “Peaceful Escape”, lunch, dinner and an overnight stay in the hotel. So basically the dream scenario when you want 24 hours off of mum duty. And as we were visiting just as Whittlebury Park were reopening after lockdown 2, it was very quiet there. So a nice little break for some peace and quiet!
Whittlebury Park Time Out Spa Stay
Peaceful Escape Treatment
Our itinerary at Whittlebury Park stated that we were kicking off our stay with a “Peaceful Escape”. But I had no idea what that meant. Was it a treatment of some sort? Was it an isolation room/tank? Was it just one of those sleeping rooms you sometimes get at spas?
Well I soon found out as I arrived at the spa, was greeted with a herbal tea and a lovely lady accompanied me to an ambient treatment room. It turns out the Peaceful Escape is a combination of treatments to help you relax and unwind. It starts with a full body hot oil application and then you have two mini treatments of your choice. The options were a scalp massage, a foot massage, a hand and arm massage or a facial. I went for the foot massage and facial. And both were so lovely.
Spa treatments are just dreamy aren’t they? I feel like I forget how great they are in between spa visits, but there is literally nothing as relaxing as a foot massage.
The Peaceful Escape experience lasted 45 minutes and was super relaxing. I emerged from the treatment room with baby smooth skin on my face and legs like jelly from feeling so at ease. I don’t think I’ve ever started my spa experience with a treatment before but it’s such a good idea because you feel instantly relaxed and able to leisurely enjoy the spa facilities, y’know?
Whittlebury Park Spa Facilities
We had full use of the spa facilities at Whittlebury as part of our stay. But these are split into two separate areas. There’s the heat and ice experience, the newest addition to the spa, but you have a timed hour slot to use this area. Our slot was in the afternoon so we spent the rest of the morning after our treatment in the other half of the spa – the so-called Leisure Club. Here, there is a big swimming pool with jacuzzi, sauna and steam rooms, all decorated in a Roman/Greek decor which feels quite kitschy.
Obviously we were visiting in Coronavirus times, so there were a few differences to a “normal” spa experience. Mainly, that there were maximum numbers of people allowed in each area in order to ensure social distancing. So two people maximum in the sauna for example. It didn’t make a difference to our experience because like I said, it was pretty empty that day. But I imagine it could be a little annoying if busier. Of course it’s necessary though and it’s stuff like this that’s keeping us safe.
I liked the facilities though. The pool was big enough for lengths (although freezing) and the jacuzzi was dreamy.
Just outside this area there is a cafe for snacks and drinks. We initially thought we’d go for a glass of wine each, but again, these are covid times and you can only have alcohol with lunch. So we had a coffee in our spa robes and started thinking about lunch.
Lunch at Whittlebury Park Spa
Lunch time was our first taste of food at the hotel and spa, and I’ll be honest, we were a little disappointed. We had chosen Bento boxes for lunch (Josh’s was chicken-based, mine tofu) and it was a bit of a sad looking dish, with the majority of the box devoted to plain lettuce. But I was soon informed that there is normally a buffet and this was a covid-secure method to ensure it was safe for everybody. Which is fair play really. There is a global pandemic going on, you can’t really complain about the spa lunch can you? Hashtag first world problems.
All I would say is that if you visit whilst this lunch menu is in play, go for the sharing platters instead of the Bento boxes, they look much nicer!
Tranquility Pod at Whittlebury
You get given an itinerary for your visit when you arrive and it said on mine that I could book a slot in the tranquility pod after lunch. Much like the Peaceful Escape, I didn’t really know what this would be, but I booked it an anyway.
Well, it turned out to be a very cosy room with a salt lamp and a water bed where you could take a little nap! There was ambient lighting, a warm snuggly blanket and that dreamy spa music playing. Honestly it was wonderful.
I actually wish I had booked this after my treatment in the morning. You know when you have a massage and feel like you could go straight to the best sleep of your life. That’s 100% what this little nook is for. I’m pro-tranquility pod, gang.
The Whittlebury Heat & Ice Experience
Last stop at the spa part of the complex was the Heat & Ice Experience. Here you could find saunas, steam rooms, sanariums, caldariums, ice caves, experience showers – the works! All set around a very luxurious hydropool with jacuzzi jets.
There’s a bathing plan Whittlebury offer to get the best out of the experience, but I spent most of my time here in the pool, at the foot spa (those ones with the bubble jets) and just relaxing on the fancy loungers.
There’s a lot going on here and think everyone would find something they like. I mean I literally can’t think of a spa feature they don’t have here.But in all honesty, by this point I was pretty tired so we left the spa for the day and went up to our hotel room for a nap before dinner. (This is what parents do on their days off, kids.)
Club Room at Whittlebury Hotel
I failed to mention that we dropped our bags off when we arrived at Whittlebury Park first thing, but we were cutting it fine for our spa check-in so hadn’t really looked around. Now however, we settled in, munched on the free snacks, ordered some room service to tide us over (hello cheesy chorizo chips!) and had some time to chill in the Club Room.
The room itself is large and roomy and had everything we needed; a big comfy bed, lots of light, cosy robes and a big bath. Can’t complain. It’s styled quite traditionally, as you would expect from a big manor house like Whittlebury Hall, but had everything we needed.
This is really my favourite part of a getaway to be honest. That in-between time when you can truly relax and power down, y’know?
Dinner at Aston’s
Part of the Time Out Spa Stay involved a three course dinner at Aston’s, one of Whittlebury’s onsite restaurants. So we moseyed on down for our little date night dinner.
All the tables were distanced 2 metres apart (for Miss Rona) which was actually quite nice because it meant we could laugh and chat and not feel like anyone else was there really. I was a bit ambivalent about the food considering we hadn’t particularly enjoyed lunch and to be honest it turned out to be a mixed bag. Josh had the pork as his main and loved it, it was really rich and tender. I had the pasta which was a pretty average. Throw in nice starters, but below-par desserts. Mixed bag, indeed.
But here’s the thing. Aston’s is the casual, informal restaurant and the food was decent enough to be good value as part of a spa package. There’s another restaurant called Murray’s, which has 3 AA rosettes placing it in the top 10% of all restaurants in the UK. And if you’re a foodie that wants to enjoy the more fine dining aspect of Whittlebury you can book it as an upgrade or in the Gourmet Getaway Package.
I thought that was important to point out because a lot of you messaged me on Instagram saying you thought the same about the food at Aston’s. I’d describe it as wedding food if that helps you picture it. Fine for a spa package but upgrade for the good shit, yeah?
What’s the verdict?
Overall we had such a lovely stay at Whittlebury Park. The spa literally has everything you could want in terms of facilities and the treatments are dreamy. We had a lovely night sleep in the Club Room and spent time relaxing and lounging around the gaff in cosy robes. Sure, I wasn’t massively impressed with the food (although I didn’t mention the a la carte breakfast was pretty nice), but like I said, there are other options for the foodie gang. So all in all, I definitely would recommend the Time Out Spa Stay at Whittlebury Park. It’s a wonderful little getaway with lots to do.
And I think best of all in current circumstances, it felt very safe and covid-secure. You can tell they’ve gone out of their way to do everything they can to keep guests feeling as safe as possible. Everyone has to do a temperature check on entry, masks worn at all times, rooms deep cleaned and of course the limits on how many people can use the facilities.
Of course, at time of writing we’re in lockdown 3, but if you were thinking of treating yourself to a spa day when we emerge the other side, Whittlebury Park is a good shout.
Total Blogger Transparency: My stay at Whittlebury Park was complimentary but all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own. I wouldn’t play you like that, shorty.