TAKE ME WITH YOU…
Built as a summerhouse in 1868, Rowhill Grange is a 38-room red-brick, white-timbered English country manor house. It sits in 17 acres of pristine gardens, just minutes from the M25 and the Dartford tunnel. The hotel's Utopia Spa spans two floors and offers treatments from Temple Spa, Oskia and Jennifer Young.
SHALL WE SPA?
The spa’s own reception is light and bright, with a retail area selling tempting products. Staff greeted us and invited us to take a seat while we selected our lunch and read through our itinerary. We were then shown downstairs to the limestone-tiled changing rooms.
These are well lit with banks of large lockers, each containing a white waffle robe and towel; change beside one of two padded benches. There’s a separate room next door for showering with four showers stylishly tiled in natural stone, and equipped with Temple Spa shampoo, conditioner and shower gel.
The vanity bar area contains everything you could wish for
including mirrors, hairdryers, straighteners, as well as Temple Spa cleanser, toner, serum and moisturiser. Don’t forget to take your own flip-flops. Both male and female changing rooms benefit from their own sauna.
Swing doors lead from here to the Roman-themed thermal area and pool, with its frescoes and columns. Enjoy a steam,
a bubble in the Jacuzzi or a wallow in the round hydropool
fed by a waterfall. Upstairs, the 11-metre pool is just long enough to swim a few lengths; relax on wicker-style loungers or chairs afterwards. You need to go back downstairs to enjoy the thermal area; you'll find the treatment rooms and relaxation room back through the changing rooms and up another flight of stairs.
The Relaxation Lounge is inviting, with mood lighting and twelve contoured beds; grab a soft, woollen blanket from the basket and snuggle down. Or take a seat into one of four large wicker swivel egg chairs and twist away whist reading a magazine.
Fitness lovers can make good use of Utopia Spa's well-appointed gym and exercise studio. In need of more indulgence? Head to the large Nail Bar
for a manicure and pedicure.
TREATMENT TALK
We tried the Oskia Muscle Melting Back Recovery (75 minutes, from £130).
Our therapists, Sonia and Mozianne, greeted us in the treatment waiting area - where we had been enjoying the comfortable blue chairs, magazines and flavoured waters - and escorted us through the relaxation room to the couples’ treatment room tucked at the back.
Mozianne explained the stages of the treatment: a back exfoliation followed by a heated clay mask (to help eliminate toxins), and a hot stone foot and leg massage. Our therapists then left us to disrobe and snuggle face down on the warm beds.
Hot towels on the feet was a wonderful way to begin. A hot cloth on the back warmed the skin before the clay mask was applied, followed by a cover to keep the warmth in. The hot stone massage on the feet and legs was just what I needed - too many squats in the gym had left by upper leg muscles very tight.
Another hot cloth on the back removed the remains of the clay mask and softened the area for a back, neck and shoulder massage. Turning over, Mozainne massaged my shoulders and décolletage before moving up to a gentle head massage. Noticing that I was still holding some tension in my head and neck, she gently persuaded me to let go and relax so that she could loosen the area.
As the treatment concluded, we were offered cups of water and then shown to the cool and quiet relaxation room, where we could compare results.
HOW DID IT MEASURE UP?
My spa partner had drifted off mid treatment and was very happy to find himself relaxed and refreshed when he woke. We both noticed our skin was silky smooth; our shoulders looser. In fact, when I hit the laptop later, I realised just how effective the massage was - my shoulders usually prop up around my ears as I type.
SPOT OF LUNCH?
If you visit for a spa day, you can choose between a two-course lunch and afternoon tea served in Elements Bar and Lounge. If the weather is kind you can sit on the outside terrace with its permanent canopy-style cover, and grey chairs and tables.
The two course lunch menu changes with the seasons and offers a choice of four starters and four mains. We opted for an interesting hummus made from butternut squash, followed by roast chicken supreme with pearl barley and confit lemons. Our Spa Partner went straight for the woodland mushroom spinach and Gorgonzola flatbread, along with a few twice cooked chips.
Evening meals can be enjoyed in the Rowhill Grange's 2 AA Rosette restaurant RG's. Here, we enjoyed some very fresh (and perfectly cooked) pan-fried sea trout with minted new potatoes. This felt both healthy and delicious. We finished with coffee and petit fours: the baileys fudge was divine.
GOT ALL DAY?
Plan to spend the day in the spa and finish with afternoon tea.
Take a couple of circuits around the pools and heat area to warm the muscles for a treatment or two. Then have a snooze in the relaxation room before afternoon tea.
SHORT ON TIME?
Prioritize a treatment: the 55-minute Indulgent Face, Head & Shoulder Ritual covers all bases.
Sybaritic Spy
2nd October 2025
Spy Likes:
Warm treatment beds; fragrant steam rooms; therapists who listen to what you say; unexpected treats such as back massages that start with hot towels on your feet.
Spy Dislikes:
Small towels; crowded changing rooms; black mould in the showers; therapists who sniff; anyone who doesn't take my lavender allergy seriously - until I'm actually sick on them!
