Express & Star

Perfect weekend of pampering

Scorching sunshine, a luxury hotel with a spa, and a quaint city to explore is the perfect recipe for a long relaxing weekend away.

Published
The Lancaster House Hotel in Bailrigg, Lancaster, enjoys views overlooking the countryside close to the university

So I jumped at the chance to visit Lancaster House Hotel in Bailrigg, Lancaster, with my other half.

The hotel is based just off the M6, far enough away for peace and quiet but close enough to be easily accessible.

As we pulled up in the car park we saw a wedding party was having photos outside the front, but this was only once of two times we saw the party – or heard them.

We checked into the hotel and were directed to our room, while my history buff boyfriend admired the old pictures on the walls.

The room had views overlooking the countryside, TV, seating areas, huge bed and luckily a fan to cool the room as it was almost 30 degrees.

But my favourite part was the bathroom. Similar to what would be my dream bathroom, it featured a spacious waterfall shower and one of the biggest baths I’ve ever seen, all filled with Elemis products.

We unpacked and decided to have a walk around the grounds, which we realised were very close to Lancaster University’s campus but most of the students had gone home for the year.

We headed to the bar and had a drink sat in the sunshine, before sitting down to dinner inside The Foodworks Restaurant.

We shared a bottle of Merlot and had olives and feta to nibble on while we waited for our shared main.I’m a big steak fan so we decided to go for something we’d never had before, a 16oz chateaubriand for two, which was on the restaurant’s signature dishes section.

The steak came out and was sliced in front of us before being divided between us along with chunky chips, salad, mushrooms and tomatoes.

It was one of the best steaks we’ve ever had for definite, something we were very glad we tried. For me it was just enough, but my boyfriend, who has a much bigger appetite, was left wanting more.

For dessert I had a minted chocolate pot, I always go for something chocolatey and ended up having it twice over the weekend, while my boyfriend went for a cheese board. We settled down for an early night ready for our breakfast buffet in the morning.

After stuffing ourselves with a full English breakfast, along with pastries and cereal we headed to the spa.

In the Sandpiper Club we were shown to separate rooms where I had a facial – using Elemis products – a body scrub and then a back, neck and shoulder massage.

I love being pampered and I left the room glowing and relaxed, ready to dip in the pool.

My other half headed to the gym while I settled outside on a sun lounger with my book, relaxed in the outdoor jacuzzi and had a quick swim, before nipping into the sauna and steam room.

There was plenty to do in the spa, but it was time for lunch and we chose to sit outside before catching a bus into Lancaster to explore.

The city was quiet as students had finished for the summer, so we headed to the medieval prison and I took some Instagram-worthy pics before we explored a bit inside. We found a canal-side pub and sat in the sunshine watching the canal boats go by while drinking and eating, which was a great end to the day.

We headed back on the bus for another night in the hotel, I sank into a bubble bath while my boyfriend fell asleep in front of the TV on the comfy sofa.

It was a well-timed break away to relax and unwind and be pampered in the sunshine, while trying new things and visiting a new city.