A place where the England Football Team come back time and time again to be pampered, a place that celebrities are often seen relaxing in. So when I felt last week very stressed and in need of 24hrs complete relaxation I couldn’t think of a better place to go. I had never been to Champneys Springs before and so was very excited as to what it would be like and wondering whether I might bump into a celebrity on my stay there. The resort is situated out in the countryside of Ashby de la Zouch in Leicestershire.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS
On entering the resort I felt like I had been transported into another world. A world away from problems, a very care free environment full of smiling faces and pleasant surroundings. I instantly felt a sense of calm floating around me. The reception area looked very lush and had several relaxing abstract paintings on the walls, there were several plants and modern décor. The lad in the reception area was very friendly and helpful and gave me my treatment schedule for my stay and showed me to my room.

THE ROOM
My room was very spacious and modern. There were 2 single beds with a large dressing table and bedside cabinet on the back wall. Against the other wall was a television which stood on top of a set of draws and next to that stood a spacious wardrobe which also contained a safe that was free of charge to use and had instructions with it that were very easy to follow. The en-suite was my favourite part to the room. The sink, toilet and bath were all in white ceramics with modern ceiling lights. The sink was set into a marble green top which on this top contained a generous amount of Champneys products including 2 aromatic hair and body washes and 2 hand and body lotions. There were also 2 Champneys bars of soap. I tried all of these out to see what they smelt like and they were so great. They all had a really relaxing scent to them. Everything in the en-suite was spotless and well presented. Also in the room were 2 magazines and lots of information on the rooms and services available. Plus there was a kettle to make lots of cups of tea – there was a whole tray full of about 15 teas and 15 coffees. Some of them were fruit teas which were really nice.

THALASSOTHERAPY POOL
Well I hadn’t much of an idea as to what Thalassotherapy was other than it was supposed to be good for people who suffer with eczema and that it was like a whirlpool full of salt water. Well my session was due at 6pm and there are a maximum of 8 people they allow into the pool at anyone time. The Spa Therapist arrived on time and all 8 of us were escorted to the Thalasso Pool. At first it just looked like on large round pool. The water was still and as fascinating as it looked I wondered why so many celebrities class this as one of there favourite treatments when they come to the resort. Well I was soon to find out. 4 of us were told to stand in the centre of the pool and the other 4 to lye on these metal bars which were on the inner edge of the pool but situated under the water. I lay there in anticipation as to what was going to happen next. All of a sudden the Spa Therapist flicks a switch on the wall and all these bubbles shot up and around me and it was a very relaxing feeling. I lay there for about 2 minutes and then the bubbles stopped to everyone’s disappointment. But then we are all led to different parts of the pool. I was led to the inner wall of the pool where there are 4 jets of water. You stand by one and it massages your upper back, the next your lower back, the next is your thighs and the one lower down is your feet. From that I moved onto another section which I stood in and all these jets of bubbles come rushing up from under the ground, this was probably the most powerful one of them all, and then from that I moved to stand under this huge tap of rushing water which I aimed onto my back and my shoulders and could feel the tension rapidly disappearing as the water soothed all my aches and pains away in my shoulders. The session lasted 25 minutes in all and I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. It was so exciting as it was a bit like going on a magical fairground ride as I never knew what was going to happen next. Afterwards the Therapist makes sure we all have a glass of water which is supplied as you can easily dehydrate after this treatment otherwise. We also had to take a shower straight after as well as the thalasso pool contains two tonnes of salt and so there is probably a lot of salt on the skin so its important to wash it all off.

The same seating arrangement rules followed with breakfast and lunch and I actually found I was getting to know quite a few people there which made my stay much more pleasant. Both breakfast and lunch are buffet style meals where you can help yourself to as much as you want and there was a great variety of many things to chose from. I was in heaven. It was just great.

FINAL IMPRESSION
The Champneys Springs building is very well laid out making everything there very easy to find – which is important as the last thing you want when you come to a place to relax is to find your spending half your time getting lost.

After all the treatments I had I left feeling like I was floating on air. My whole body felt completely relaxed and I felt so good in myself. It is very expensive but was worth every penny to come away feeling this good. I suffer with eczema and one week on after my thalassotherapy session I have found a marked improvement in this. I am convinced that with regular thalassotherapy sessions my eczema would probably be none existent. (A single Thalasso session for 25mins costs £19.95).