HEALTH + WELLNESS
GOING UNDERGROUND …
Brighton ’ s Harbour Spa is a lesson in subterranean chic
The Brighton Harbour Hotel is a many splendoured thing . As embodies the relaxed signature style of the Harbour Hotel group ( there ’ s a few in the pack , including Chichester ), the Brighton offering has been developed to relish bit by bit . First , The Jetty restaurant opened – the city ’ s latest and already lauded seafood eatery ; then , leisurely , followed HarBAR – their very cool cocktail bar ; next , the hotel above – 79 bedrooms , each with a stylish interior that brilliantly belies the buildings 19th-century exterior ; and now , to top it all off , the Harbour Spa . Polly Humphris went along to check it all out .
Billed as ‘ a fully immersive subterranean experience ’, I was intrigued to find out more about the Brighton Harbour Hotel ’ s Harbour Spa . Word on the street had disclosed some months before the grand unveiling that , while building what they thought would be a one-storey spa with six luxurious treatment rooms , a mood-lit indoor pool and a modern gym , the developers found yet another basement-level floor that they had never known existed . Incredible and fortuitous ? Absolutely . But , how do you make a basement inviting , relaxing and in keeping with the rest of the hotel ’ s perfectly poised atmosphere ?
You don ’ t . Instead , you fill it with a hydrotherapy pool , sauna , steam room , two Scandinavian hot tubs , relaxation room and exclusive private hire area and let it speak for itself . Of course it flows beautifully from its pearly-tiled , lemon-scented upstairs counterpart , but the basement of an already atmospheric Georgian building isn ’ t just any old basement and this one ’ s natural features
– exposed brick archways , cosy den-like areas and floor-to-ceiling wooden shelving – are all accessed via a polished concrete curved staircase : a veritable stairway to haven ( see what I did there …).
When you ’ re not lolling about in the hydrotherapy pool , which has an addictive water feature that massages your back as you sit under it , or contemplating staying in the Scandi hot tubs forever as you ’ re enveloped in a bubbly blanket of musclesoothing warmth , you can of course indulge in a treatment or two . There ’ s masses to choose from , from half-day ocean spa rituals that use traditional Swedish massage techniques to brush , polish and detoxify from head to toe , to express facials that can be completed in a lunch break – all using ESPA skincare ; one of the most natural and effective ranges out there .
A sucker for anything promising to halt ageing in its scheming tracks , I opted for an 80-minute ‘ Lift & Firm ’ facial , which combines advanced active ingredients with specialised facial massage and lifting techniques to turn back the clock . From first meeting with my therapist , I could tell the products , the setting and her were a perfect fit ; very friendly , but equally professional , she set to work with reassuring confidence explaining her actions every step of the way . Afterwards , my skin felt softer , but tighter , looked brighter and had a renewed plumpness – all the signs of brilliance .
Anyone is welcome to visit the Harbour Spa ( whether they are staying at the hotel or not ) for a one-off treatment , an indulgent spa day , or a spa break , and there ’ s an entire catalogue of wonderful wellness to be had ; I ’ d recommend a visit wholeheartedly .
Brighton Harbour Hotel & Spa 64 King ’ s Rd Brighton BN1 1NA
www . brighton-harbour-hotel . co . uk / spa
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