THIS IS NOT A SPA. I don't know how this was allowed to be advertised as a spa when it is a salon, nothing more and nothing less.
They expect you to be there from 10am till 5pm with lunch and treatments. Sounds lovely which is exactly what we thought it would be until we found out there is NO SWIMMING POOL!
We arrived and went to the hotel reception who then told us to go down the stairs and turn right- this led us to the staff corridors! We were at the bottom of the stairs and there are no signs for the spa- helpful! We went through the other door and were finally in the spa reception. Not a good start.
When we went to the reception desk the girl was friendly enough but it was clear she was new and didn't know 100% what to do.
I have worked as a spa receptionist and hotel receptionist for the past 3 years so have a certain standard that I expected as this is what my clients and guests require. This was not what happened.
The robes were not prepared ahead of our arrival so we had to wait for around 5 minutes while the girl went back and forth banging the doors as she went. Finally we were shown a room about 3 foot wide and 5 foot long with only 4 lockers and our robes and slippers. She told us to get changed here and that there is a sauna and gym and a relaxation area.
I had to ask if we would be toured around the facilities,had to check about the lunch times and had to enquire about the actual facilities.
We got changed into the robes and slippers and locked our items away in the small lockers and sat in the relaxation area. We had no towels and as there was no tour of facilities or any mention of a pool we began to worry.
I went to reception and asked if there was a pool and the two girls at reception looked at me surprised and told me no. At this point I realised there was nothing for my friend and I to do; even if we asked to bring our treatments and lunch forward we would not enjoy the day as it isn't the relaxing spa day we had been looking forward to.
We decided to get changed and leave so I went to reception and asked for my refund which the inexperienced receptionist managed to sort for us with my prompts and the help of the hotel head receptionist. I am very grateful for this spa receptionist as she did the best she can in a bad situation- her manager was away on holiday and there was clearly not enough training or support for her.
Please rectify the description of this place. It is new and the place is nice enough but it cannot be advertised as a spa and providing spa days, this is surely a breach of trade descriptions.
A spa day should involve a relaxing environment with a swimming pool, sauna/steam, treatment rooms and relaxation area. Upon arrival there should be informative staff to make you feel welcome and show you around the facilities as you are there for the whole day and you have paid to be there.
The staff did their best and the treatment rooms were nice however this is no more than a beauty salon and a hotel gym with a sauna- NOT A SPA OR EVEN A PLACE YOU CAN SPEND THE WHOLE DAY.
Great, value for money, a superb location, excellent food and first rate customer service. The rooms were comfortable, large and clean and the massage was one of the best I've ever had. The only point that I could offer for improvement was that there be a couple of more loungers in the relaxaction area instead of 2 loungers and 2 chairs, but that was only because there were 4 of us having treatments together. The space for the spa is quite small though so they do make the best use of the area. Great gym, great breakfast, you can order your eggs cooked to order and the poached eggs were perfectly cooked. I would definitely recommend this hotel and woud have no hesitation in returning, it was just a pity that we stayed one night.