THE PROBLEM
The pandemic, my house moving and increasing back pain have made me long for a spa vacation.
Given the recent events, however, it is difficult for me to share a steamy sauna with strangers.
Perhaps I am being over-cautious, but I still don’t fancy being up close and personal with a masseuse in a windowless therapy room. It’s possible that someone else was there, coughing and spluttering.
There’s something about the process that, in a post-Covid world, feels unhygienic.
The Lake District’s Gilpin Hotel – a five-star retreat in Windermere – is now offering a Covid-friendly experience, with guests staying in one of three dedicated Spa Suites. Pictured is a therapy chair within a Spa Suite
THE SOLUTION
Thankfully, the Lake District’s Gilpin Hotel – a five-star retreat in Windermere – is now offering a Covid-friendly experience, with guests staying in one of three dedicated Spa Suites. You can enjoy expansive views from these lodges as they are set back from your hotel.
Each suite is attached to its own spa that comes complete with sauna, steam room, massage beds, infrared ceiling lights (which I’m told can have anti-ageing effects on the skin) and a state-of-the-art electric massage chair.
Guests can venture to the hotel’s two restaurants – including the Michelin-starred Hrishi – but speedy room service dropped off by mask-wearing staff outside the door means there’s little need to.
The staff and guests spend very little time together during their stay. All of the above, except for quick key exchanges and food ordering, can be accomplished via your smartphone.
THE TREATMENT
A 15-minute reflexology massage courtesy of the in-room chair – the latest in Japanese technology, offering six complex treatments including head massages – takes the edge off my back pain. However, I decided to try a Swedish massage. It is designed for stress relief and lower back twinges.
When the therapist arrives, I am directed into my suite’s spa to lie on my personal massage bed, while the doors are opened for an all-important flow of fresh air.
It feels strange at first. I used to enjoy a massage pre-Covid. But, after being without it for over two years, I have difficulty relaxing into it.
My shoulders rock slowly, releasing the knots. This helps me to forget about the things in my head. I fall asleep to the soothing ocean sounds that are played in the corners of my suite.
After about half an hour of the one-hour treatment, the tension in my back and anxious feelings start to fade. Best of all, my therapist makes no attempt at conversation, as if she knows I can’t stand chit-chat.
She then grabs her tools, and she leaves me to clean off my massage oils in the large rainforest shower, while I gaze at the frosty hills ahead.
The next day, I was completely relaxed and my back pain subsided. Best of all, I had encountered a total of one other person – and that, by my account, is a getaway that dreams are made of.
One night in a Spa Suite costs £850, based on two sharing (thegilpin.co.uk).