Back in September, I was given the opportunity by Bannatynes to come down and review one of their spas. Once they said I could bring my mum along I knew there was only one spa I wanted to try – Charlton House Spa & Hotel. Charlton House is located in Shepton Mallett in Somerset (FYI this is the same village where the Mulberry Factory shop is located and I may have paid a visit there also…).
When we pulled into the car park, we were immediately taken with how quaint the hotel is. It’s very Somerset – and by that I mean Somerset brick, just beautiful. I’m fairly certain the hotel was a house in a previous life that has been added on to. The corridors to the spa reminded me of old manor houses.
We checked in at the spa reception, were handed our robes and slippers and were shown to the changing rooms. Lockers are coded, which is great for those of us that forget padlocks and don’t carry pound coins. The showers had Elemis products already in there so no need to pack that either!
We started our day in the gym. I’m really into running and weights at the moment and while the gym is not huge, it fulfilled both my requirements with a small free weights areas and a few cardio machines. I left Mum on the bike and got on with my simple routine.
After doing out thing in the gym, we headed to the spa area. A Moroccan themed thermal spa, there were a number of hot rooms to choose from including an aroma infused Laconium, a crystal steam room and an invigorating Finnish Sauna along with a hydro pool and an outdoor hot tub (there was also Wifi for those of us who still needed to answer emails – although I didn’t do this until we sat down for afternoon tea!) We sat for a while in the hot rooms before cooling off in the experience showers.
Then it was time for treatments. Mum opted for a facial and I decided to go for the full body massage (because I just cannot turn them down). My therapist was lovely and very, very good at what she does. She asked me what sort of pressure I prefer and proceeded to iron out any kinks I had across my legs, back, shoulders and arms. I’m pretty sure I had a little nap while she was doing her thing. By the end of the session, I felt so good. I don’t want to keep using the word relaxed but that is truly what I felt.
After my massage, I didn’t really feel like doing much at all other than sitting and feeling all content, so Mum and I headed to the hot tub to sit and chat. The hot tub is outside so you’ll need your robe to get there in the colder weather but it’s so huge! You can easily fit a group of five or six in without feeling like you’re all huddled together. I can only imagine how fabulous it is to sit there when the sun goes down in the winter afternoons.
Around three o’clock we decided that we fancied something to eat, so headed to their restaurant for a spot of afternoon tea. This is where my Mum decided I needed to hear about Scones and whether you put your jam or cream on first is usually decided by where you were born… (Apparently, it’s important!) Afternoon tea was good and very filling with plenty of scones, cakes and sandwiches. My favourite were the mini chocolate eclairs!
Overall, we had a wonderful day relaxing and taking a bit of mother-daughter time. It’s so important to have a bit of ‘me’ time – even if you have to schedule it in months in advance. Thanks to Bannatynes Charlton House Spa for having us. If you’re looking for a relaxing spa day in the Somerset area, I can highly recommend Charlton House Spa. If you want to see the spa in more detail, check out my video from that week!
*We were invited down for a spa day and treatment by Bannatynes Charlton House. We paid for Afternoon Tea. All opinions my own.
