St Pancras Renaissance Hotel

The spa at St Pancras Renaissance Hotel is a real hidden gem among the bustling St Pancras-Kings Cross transport hub and interestingly, the spa philosophy echoes the travel element of its location.

Earlier this year, I had the pleasure of visiting The Booking Bar at St Pancras Renaissance Hotel to try the Charles Dickens punch and some delicious bar snacks, in celebration of the great Victorian author’s centenary. I was delighted to return to the hotel for a spa afternoon to discover the exotic spa journeys that sounded so enticing.

Arrival

On arrival, I was offered a cool, cleansing towel and a glass of lime-infused chilled water, which was very refreshing on such a humid summer’s day. The spa receptionist gave me a detailed questionnaire to fill out, followed by a tour of the spa. The subterranean spa area is like a long, narrow maze, so this tour was very helpful.

In the luxurious changing room (complete with REN amenities) I had a locker already waiting for me, filled with a thick embroidered bathrobe bearing the spa’s peacock emblem and slippers, a large bathsheet, hand towel and a personalised welcome note with an appropriate quote by Ovid:

“Take rest; a field that has rested gives a bountiful crop.”

The Pool

I reflected on this while getting ready and then headed straight for the stunning silver and mosaic pool, to do just that. The pool area is impressive and palatial, with Eastern-style Victorian tiles in rich colours, high ceilings and bricked archways.

I started with a swim and then enjoyed the powerful jacuzzi jets while sitting on one of the hydro loungers. The water temperature worked well for swimming, but to make the most of the hydrotherapy massage, it could have been a touch warmer.

The mosaic tiled steam room was ultra hot and effective, with calming twinkling lights on the ceiling. There was a pleasant scent of eucalyptus and it didn’t have any molten hot drips of condensation from the ceiling that occur in less efficient steam rooms. The sauna was at just the right temperature to sweat out the toxins and it was spacious and immaculately clean.

I left enough time to properly shower, wash and dry my hair before my treatment and then the spa manager came to take me to the Relaxation Room. I sat briefly with a glass of water and was soon greeted by my therapist. She took me to one of the treatment room, of which there are six, including a couples suite.

The Treatments

Being a travel addict, I was keen to experience one of the various spa journey to Africa, India and the Far East. I was able to incorporate any of the indulgent treatments into my own bespoke one-hour journey, so I chose a Flowers of Bali Radiance Facial and Traditional Massage of the Orient.

The spa exclusively uses Cinq Mondes, a high end body and skincare brand that I was pleased to try for the first time.

My therapist made me feel very comfortable, cocooned within the thick duvet and heated treatment bed, and began by cleansing my feet with a hot towel. She then asked me to take deep breaths and inhale the aromas of essential oils to relax my body, before getting to work on my knotted shoulders.

Using Argan Oil, she massaged my back, neck and shoulder with an effective combination of kneading, stretching and smoothing techniques. The pressure was strong enough to deeply impact the muscles, however, I never felt any pain. I then turned over and my arms were given an energising rub.

For the facial, a wider selection of Cinq Mondes products were used and the treatment was very thorough and nourishing. As I was using the Philips ReAura laser treatment at home, my therapist advised not to have exfoliation, as my skin might be more sensitive from the effects of the laser. I’d also sweated and washed out any last traces of make-up earlier, so most of the time was dedicated to massaging the contours of my face. I particularly loved the scalp massage and could feel myself drifting off towards the end of the treatment.

The Relaxation Room

I was brought back to earth gently and slowly and then taken to the Relaxation Room where I chilled out in peace with some glossy magazines, hot jasmine tea, dried apricots and mixed nuts.

The Spa Menu

The spa journeys all sound heavenly, so here is the complete list…

Journey to Africa, purification and harmony (90 mins) – creme de Rassoul wrap, traditional massage of the Orient.
Journey to India, invigoration and renewal – (120 mins) – aromatic scrub with spices, Ayurvedic massage.
Journey to Indonesia, for stillness and radiance (150 mins) – papaya radiance scrub, Balinese massage, ritual of the five flowers facial.
Journey on the Silk Route (India-China-Japan), road to transformation (180 mins) – aromatic scrub with spices, Udvartana slimming ritual, Ko Bi Do precious youthful facial.

The spa at St Pancras Renaissance Hotel is a wonderful facility for all hotel guests to enjoy, however, it’s also a very special haven away from the central London crowds for visitors. What could be better than a spa journey to start your Eurostar journey in complete relaxation, or taking a few hours to unwind before going home.

For more information and booking, visit: www.marriott.co.uk

Chérie City was a guest of St Pancras Renaissance Hotel

For more spa ideas, read my reviews of:

In celebration of the 200 year anniversary of the birth of Charles Dickens, St Pancras Renaissance Hotel has added a special punch to their menu at the Booking Office Bar in his honour.

Dickens was notably a fan of punch and this special recipe was concocted by the man himself. The magnificent Victorian building provides an ideal backdrop for reimagining Dickens’ tales of high society, mysterious characters and the murky, treacherous side of London.

Since the St Pancras Renaissance Hotel opened last year, I’ve been dying to cross its door. Built by Sir George Gilbert Scott, the five star hotel is a revived Gothic treasure, with a stunning redbrick façade, touches of gold leaf and hand-stencilled wall designs. It’s opulent and comfortable but still restrained, in that special Victorian way.

The Booking Office Bar offers a range of six different punches, each with their own history, served hot or cold. They are traditionally lined up along the bar in decorative metal punch bowls and are poured into glass mugs or bowls for twelve.

To start with, we ordered two mugs of hot Charles Dickens Memorial Punch (£8) and four small plates of bar snacks to munch on.

The Charles Dickens Memorial Punch was a delicious combination of demerara sugar, pineapple infused rum, Martell VSOP Cognac, lemon juice and boiling water.

It had a sweet, citrusy taste and wasn’t overwhelmingly strong – a perfect winter warmer that you could easily drinks mugs of.

The highlights of the bar snack menu were the excellent Mini Hotdogs (£7) served with a delectable red onion marmalade and a cute mini bottle of ketchup. I also loved the thick-cut Truffle and Parmesan Chips (£5), which came freshly cooked and piping hot in a mini fryer – see a ‘mini’ trend happening here?

Cheese ‘n’ Toast (£5) served with Worcestershire sauce was tasty enough but wasn’t exactly hot and bubbly like cheese on toast should be but Pigs in a blanket (£5) were plump, succulent and smothered in a light barbecue sauce – a cross between a Christmas Day accompaniment and American diner food.

For our second round, I ordered the Billy Dawson’s Punch (£8.50) – a blend of Jamaican rum, VSOP Cognac, Batavia Arrack (an Indonesian spirit similar to rum), muddled lemon peel, nutmeg and boiling water.

Named after the famous New England punch brewer, the Billy Dawson’s Punch was a cloudy red colour and fruitier and much stronger than the Charles Dickens Memorial Punch. It came laden with red fruit and berries, which became all soft and boozy from the punch.

Steven ordered the United Service Punch (£6) – hot lady grey tea infused with sugar, the peel and juice of a lemon and Batavia Arrack.

This punch was drunk by the highest ranking officers of the British Army & Navy at London’s United Service Club. It was sharp and citrusy with a strong hint of black tea.

If punch isn’t your thing (although I can’t imagine why not) the Booking Office Bar has one of the most unusual drinks menus in London with lots of inventive cocktails and old fashioned tipple such as hop and apple drinks, low alcohol long drinks and temperance non-alcoholic drinks including sarsparilla and cream soda.

I expected the Booking Office Bar to have a relaxed, hotel bar atmosphere, but it was actually quite buzzing, with a mix of hotel guests, Eurostar travellers and the after-work crowd. It has an unpretentious vibe and is equally suited to intimate drinks or a night of cocktails with friends.

It’s reassuring to know that I share a love of punch with the great Charles Dickens and that London has reclaimed the punch bowl in time for his anniversary. I’ll leave you with a few words from the man himself…

“When Mr. Pickwick awoke next morning, there was not a symptom of rheumatism about him: which proves, as Mr. Bob Sawyer very justly observed, that there is nothing like hot punch in such cases: and that if ever hot punch did not fail to act as a preventative, it was merely because the patient fell into the vulgar error of not taking enough of it.”
– Charles Dickens, The Pickwick Papers (1836)

Visit the Booking Office Bar at St Pancras Renaissance Hotel on 7th February, officially Dickens’ 200th birthday and raise a glass of punch to one of Britain’s greatest writers.

Chérie City was a guest of St Pancras Renaissance Hotel.

All photos by Chérie City

A Wonderful Spa Day at St Pancras Renaissance Hotel

Arrival

The Pool

The Treatments

The Relaxation Room

The Spa Menu

Charles Dickens Punch at St Pancras Renaissance Hotel