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The Good Spa Guide first visited the new Titanic spa shortly after its opening. That's always a difficult time for spas as everything is bedding in, so we were delighted to be asked back to sample one of the UK's greenest spas. Single Spy and a friend went off to Yorkshire and drifted back on the wings of the excellent 4-bubble experience that is now in place.
First impressions?
How did they welcome you?
What happens next?
Which treatments did you have?
What were the treatments like?
What happens afterwards?
Was it worth it?
What else could you have?
What do you wish you'd known before you went?
Any special features?
Who do you think would like it?
Why did you give the spa this rating?
Would you go again?
First impressions?
Once home to the Titanic textile mill, the huge industrial building is now a revitalised spa and apartments that share the same name. Your first impressions may well be that it is a building site. (They had yet to landscape the car park when we pitched up, and a luxury hotel is planned for the building, too.) However, do not worry. The bits you're interested in are definitely not in a state of runny concrete.
On entering, the atmosphere is one of space, with cool greens and browns. The entrance hallway is beautifully done in stone. Another of your first impressions may be to wonder why they have hidden the Reception desk behind such a huge and imposing pillar. That's one of the challenges the architects of Titanic faced when rehabilitating the building. There were certain things that any sympathetic refurbishment couldn't magic away, including the series of enormous pillars at evenly spaced intervals throughout. For a start, they hold the place up. So while an enormous pillar may not be the first thing you expect to see in a spa, be glad you see it. Here at The Good Spa Guide, we'd far rather see a building restored than a building razed. Plus, it keeps the roof off your head.
How did they welcome you?
Very efficiently. Someone whisked our cases away, posted us into the café and, after a cup of tea, we were practically spa-ing before we knew it, with only a pause for a health consultation form.
What happens next?
We were taken on a tour. If you're visiting Titanic for the first time, you need to know that it isn't set up as so many spas are with the pool and treatments rooms in the same place. This is because it is really two places at once: a health club to the left (as you enter) and the spa to the right, where you'll find the spa changing rooms, treatment rooms, the Heat Experience, and the relaxation area. This means that the pool and gym (being part of the health club) are separate from the spa. You can easily walk between them when spa-ing, but you have to walk through the public reception area (people wearing clothes!) to get there. If you're there for the day, you could start in the gym and pool and then move over for treatments and the Heat Experience.
If you're staying overnight in one of the apartments above the spa, there is an entrance to the apartments straight off the reception lobby. You can go up (your luggage will be spirited up, too), whip your swimming costume out of your suitcase and be ready to spa unencumbered.
The gym: The gym is quite small, overlooking the pool, but is light and bright. There are all the sorts of machines you would expect - running, cycling, weights, resistance machines - and the staff are helpful and friendly. Someone came over and offered to show me how all the machines worked. When I managed to put one of them out of action, someone else came to fix it without making me feel as if it was my fault. For me, a good workout is an essential enjoyment of any spa experience, and this gym will cater to your needs.
The pool: The 15-metre pool has gorgeously soft (salt regulated) water, is enough of a size to get a proper swim in, and has changing lights in the ceiling that add to your sense of peace. Well, we had a sense of peace until the Aquarobics started down the far end. It was nice to be invited to join in!
Afterwards, we showered in the changing rooms next to the pool. These are large, clean and have moisturiser - a nice added touch as we were in the health club side of the building.
The Heat Experience: Never let it be said that Good Spa Spies are timid creatures. Faced with a Heat Experience, we do the lot.
The Experience comprises of a series of rooms arranged in a circle around a central pillar containing various sorts of shower - tropical, massage and so on. We actually worked our way round each experience from the footbaths to the sauna to the ice room to the crystal steam room to the plunge pool to the saunarium. The steam room was large and hot, as was the sauna. The ice room has an ice fountain and deliciously chilled flannels so you can exfoliate with the ice - an impressively natural ingredient. Our favourite place was the aromatherapy room, which seemed neither too hot nor too cold. You could spend a happy hour or two in the Heat Experience, sampling the different temperatures and atmospheres.
The apartments: The rooms are light, airy, spacious and immaculate. The view over the river from my balcony was very tranquil. You have everything you need in the apartment from a kettle and toaster to a dishwasher and washing machine. All was meticulously clean and well set out, and I was pleased to see some mineral water. My bedroom was upstairs with a window in the pitched roof so I could see the changing sky from my bed. The bathroom had plenty of towels and a good supply of products, including moisturiser.
Because you are staying in an apartment and not a hotel, there is no restaurant to equip you with porridge and poached eggs in the morning. You can make tea or coffee, and there's cereal, and they put fresh milk and juice in your fridge. I was less tempted by the clingfilm-wrapped chocolate croissant that had been put there the day before.
However, we had a good night's sleep and it made a real difference to our enjoyment of Titanic, knowing we wouldn't have a long drive home after a day of relaxation.
Which treatments did you have?
You wait for your treatment on a soft bench where you are met by your therapist and taken through to your treatment room. I had deliberately booked a hamman massage as I wanted to be able to report on the treatments within the Heat Experience, as this is not something on offer at many spas.
My friend had a Decleor Aromaplastie Illuminating Facial and also booked in at the last minute for a Jessica manicure.
What were the treatments like?
The hamman massage was great. The room is steamy and warm, with a black marble plinth in the centre. My therapist asked me to take off my robe, pull down my swimming costume to my waist and array myself face down on the table. Perhaps not an easy manoeuvre if you are not light on your feet.
The massage itself was very professional and enjoyable - I have lots of knots in my shoulders and the pressure sometimes bordered on pain as the therapist tried to work them out - which was exactly what I wanted. I'd much rather that than some delicate feather fingers that don't touch my muscles at all.
My enjoyment would have been enhanced if I had been able to take off my wet swimming costume - which was now all tight and bunched up round my hips - and put on paper knickers for the duration of the massage. I'd have been able to relax that little bit more.
When my little bit of heaven was over, my therapist brought me some water and waited outside while I re-robed. Afterwards, I felt as if my neck and shoulders had been loosened and was very happy with the result.
Here is the report on the Decleor Aromaplastie Illuminating Facial: "Fantastic! One of the best I've had, and I have had a lot of facials. My skin felt wonderful afterwards, and looked lovely, too, which was great because I often find some redness or a flare-up after a facial. Not in this case. My skin looked smooth and calm and luminous. In fact, I bought one of the Decleor products and I've been using it since. My therapist did everything right. She made sure I was warm, didn't talk when I didn't want her to, and gave me a head massage while the mask was on. I came out much more relaxed than when I went in. I would go back, and ask for the same therapist as she was so good. Extremely good, in fact."
And the Jessica manicure? "It was the first time I've ever had a professional manicure and I will be going again. I loved the result. My nails looked really smart, much better than when I do it myself - smooth and perfect. I've since bought some Jessica products as the colour stayed on over a week without chipping."
What happens afterwards?
We went to the relaxation area and flung ourselves into the beanbag pit; this is surprisingly comfortable. There are also loungers in the room if you want to be horizontal in a slightly more sedate fashion. The relaxation area has some books and magazines, and also a water dispenser. We wanted to chat, but there was someone on one of the loungers apparently asleep and we didn't want to disturb them.
Was it worth it?
We felt the apartments were well worth it if you're visiting Titanic from a little further away. Titanic runs some special offers and these are definitely worth looking out for, too.
What else could you have?
Whatever takes your fancy. There is a wide range of treatments by Decleor and Elemis plus manicures and pedicures and there is a hair salon. The mud treatments are fun, and there are specific treatments for men, too - especially designed not to unnerve first-time spa-goers. (We did see quite a few men while we were there; they won't feel alone.)
What do you wish you'd known before you went?
To bring a book. The reading matter was a bit thin on the ground if you like your Marie-Claires. Also, I hadn't realised there was a hair salon, as I would probably have visited!
Any special features?
Titanic is the UK's first eco-spa. It aims to have little impact on the environment so you can pamper yourself without conscience. The spa is supplied with water from a bore hole on site. The facilities for people with disabilities are impressive, too.
Who do you think would like it?
Everyone within a 100-mile radius.
Why did you give the spa this rating?
We gave Titanic 4 bubbles because it got right four things we look for most in a spa: cleanliness, customer service, quality of the treatments, and value for money. The food menu is a little light on salads - more paninis than poached pears - but it was fresh and tasty. The treatments earned full marks - the facial in particular. What we missed was a sense of a place to sit and chat. The only place we found was back in the aromatherapy room when there was no-one in it, or in the café, where you'd have to a) sit upright and b) buy a drink. In most spas, there are loungers around the pool for this very purpose but, while there are one or two at Titanic, these are over in the health club part of the building and a bit of a trek after your treatment. This architecture and split between spa and pool isn't something the owners are going to be able to change, but it does affect the holistic spa experience. The relaxation room is relaxing, but sometimes you don't want to disturb the hallowed hush. And dipping in and out of the pool is such a pleasurable part of a spa day, we felt it was missing here.
See more on how we rate the spas
Would you go again?
Yes. We even bought some vouchers for a relative in the local area while we were there, because we would definitely encourage people to try Titanic.
We visited Titanic in June 2007
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