A Spa Break in Warwichshire

The Walton Hotel in Warwickshire is a self-contained 4 star hotel and venue, perfect for holidays and short breaks near Stratford-upon-Avon and Warwick. The Hotel is situated in beautiful countryside and shares the site with the beautiful historic Walton Hall. The hotel is just 10 minutes from the M40 and seven miles from Stratford-upon-Avon and Warwick. Walton has a long and fascinated history that goes back at least as far as 1086. The village today is a nature reserve and part of the site claims to be the first reserve ever in the world. With the river Dene and the Barmsley canal running through the valley, the area is extremely beautiful and ideal for a weekend away. Walton Hotel is ideally located for exploring Warwickshire and the Cotswolds. The Hotel is quite big and boasts 130 roams but is spread out enough to give it a quiet feel even when full. On site, just a few dozen yards from the hotel reception, there is the Walton Hotel Health Club. A pool, saunas, steam room, fully equipped gym and also what is called the beauty rooms. The venue is set up really well. As guests come in, they are brought to the relaxation room where they are offered a glass of water. This room is a large quiet room, cosy with dimmed lights where you can relax and get in the mood as you wait for your treatment. Similarly, after your treatment, you are brought back here to get ready to leave or visit the pool area at your own convenience. Which is quite nice. Your therapists comes and gets you from the relaxation room and escorts you up to the treatment area which is formed of a corridor of cosy and very quiet treatment rooms. There is a whole array of treatments to choose from including massage, pedicure, facials, etc. Next to the health club, this Warwickshire hotel has a, lounge bar, roof terrace and an orangery restaurant which opens out onto an alfresco dining area (weather permitting) and the Victorian garden. The historic towns of Stratford-upon-Avon and Warwick are only a short drive from the hotel, and offer plenty to see and do. In Stratford-upon-Avon you can explore the birthplace of Shakespeare, visit Stratford Butterfly Farm, take a stroll down the River Avon or browse the many shops. Visit Warwick Castle for a great family day out or explore the town of Warwick. We visited the hotel on a Sunday afternoon on one of their special all in packages which included bed & breakfast, dinner and two 30 minute treatments in the health club. It was a very pleasant experience, the treatments where very good and the hotel’s restaurant serves excellent food. Overall, this was very good value for our money.

Coco Sun Lounge and Massage Centre

A little spa worth visiting in North London is Coco Sun Lounge and Massage Centre. Situated on Finchley Road in Golders green, Coco is the kind of place you cannot miss. It is on a corner and has an amazing amount of window advertisement going on. Don’t let this put you off though. Coco’s is more than a tanning salon. They have a wide range of massage therapies available, Shiatsu, Reflexology, deep tissue, hot stone,… you name it. The quality of the massage depends of course on the therapist, but both times I went, I had a very good massage. Next to the massage Coco’s offers different sauna treatments. They have three different types of sauna, which is remarkable for such a small venue. Next to traditional sauna and steam room sauna, they also have an infrared sauna which does wonders when you want to get the tiredness out of your mucles. If you want to really pamper yourself, there are a number of beauty and health treatments available. Arasys slimming machine, facials, body scrub, waxing, etc. as well as acupuncture and different herbal treatments. Coco’s is a no nonsense place. At first glance it does not look very chic or anything, but it is an efficient little place that does the job. If you have a couple of hours to spare and you want a good massage and or sauna session at an affordable price, Coco’s could be the right place to go. http://www.cocomassagelondon.com/