The Woodland Spa

Embraced by the rolling Lancashire countryside, the Woodland Spa is a day spa within the Crow Wood Leisure Centre which, in turn, forms part of the Crow Wood Hotel. A destination in its own right, the spa has seven (yes, seven) pools, impressive thermal facilities, a delightful outdoor terrace with its own bar and two AA rosette restaurants.

The spa itself is housed in a separate building to the hotel; access it directly from the leisure centre car park or - if you are staying overnight - ask the concierge to take you in a golf buggy to arrive in style.

The spa reception has double-height windows looking out to the hydrotherapy pool and thermal facilities; it is light and spacious. The treatment rooms and spa restaurant can be found upstairs.

One of the spa reception team greeted us and walked us through our day using a map (it’s large) before handing us over to a spa host, who showed us through to the changing rooms.

Clusters of large wooden lockers containing white robes, towels and Declèor samples (cleansers, serums, moisturisers) line the walls; use the faux-leather benches in the centre for changing, or pop into one of two private changing cubicles. We loved the glass partitions containing dried leaves.

Limestone-effect showers contain Neal and Wolf body wash, shampoo and conditioner. On hand afterwards is a swimsuit dryer with bags, and a mirrored vanity bar with tissues and hairdryers for post-spa titivating.

The Woodland Spa's indoor thermal suite is impressive, with its 7.5-metre bubbly hydrotherapy pool surrounded by loungers and columns, and charming ceiling lights featuring giant glass leaves (clearly a theme).

We began our thermal journey at the Roman foot baths with their reflexology-effect bubbles before moving onto the three-tier, pine-scented sauna which was roomy enough for eight spa-goers.

You’ll find two steam rooms to get hot under the collar in: a salt steam room and a more traditional humid experience with a delightful rose fragrance. Spa hosts continually handed out cups of water on our visit– a nice touch.

If you're not a fan of the heat, head to the cooler saunarium overlooking the outdoor terrace and pool or cool off in between heat experiences at the ice fountain or under an experience shower.

Despite the December weather, we braved the outdoor terrace with its three pools: a brilliantly bubbly infinity-edge pool sitting under a retractable roof, two hot tubs and a 12-metre pool, perfect for swimming lengths in more clement weather.

Slump onto a wicker sofa or rattan lounger afterwards and lose yourself in a book or order a cocktail from the Terrace Bar. An enclosed fire pit comes into its own on wintery days, as does the Serenity room, a dark area lined with comfortable rattan cushioned loungers, perfect for an afternoon snooze. A Serenity pool sits, rather unusually, in the centre. We floated around in the warm waters without a care in the world, returning for another wallow later in the day.

Two Rasul mud rooms (bookable at extra cost) and a large, light and airy manicure and pedicure suite complete the list of facilities.

As The Woodland Spa is part of the Crow Wood leisure centre, guests wishing to exercise as part of their spa day can make use of the large gym or enjoy a class.

We tried the Paradise Escape Signature Treatment (105 minutes, £115), a top-to-toe ritual created by therapists at The Woodland Spa.

Chelsea, my therapist, led me to a modern, softly lit treatment room and invited me to sit on a chair so that she could talk me through the treatment and enquire about my skincare routine. Chelsea then left the room so that I could get comfortable on the treatment bed.

The treatment began with a few deep breathes of a fig and vanilla fragrance to soothe my mind. Chelsea then performed a foot cleanse and pressure point foot massage which felt very grounding.

For the scrub, Chelsea smoothed a watermelon, Yuzu and beetroot exfoliator on the back of my legs and back before asking me to turn over so that she could repeat on the process on my front.

Chelsea then showed me into the shower and handed me two mitts so that I could encourage the scrub off; my skin immediately felt softer.

Back on the treatment bed, Chelsea massaged a 100% raw and organic coconut oil all over my body before massaging my back with long strokes. Comforting paraffin wax mitts were then popped onto my hands and feet; I could feel the tension melting away. As the wax hardened, Chelsea massaged coconut oil into my scalp making me feel like I was in the tropics. The treatment is called Paradise Escape, after all.

By the time the treatment was over, I was in a deeply tranquil state; my skin felt silky soft  and my mind was both relaxed and alert – spa nirvana.

Chelsea ended the treatment with some skincare suggestions before leading me to the dark relaxation room. While she poured me a glass of water, I wriggled under a blanket.

The treatment menu at Woodland Spa is vast, offering facials and massages from Declèor, wellbeing treatments from Neom, signature treatments from Natural Spa Factory and manis/pedis from OPI, as well as hot stone massages, Indian head massages and a range of beauty treatments.

The outdoor Terrace Bar serves pretty tapas dishes plus a good selection of drinks, including cocktails and smoothies.

We stayed in our robes and headed upstairs to AA Rosette Bertram's, the spa's a la carte restaurant with its green views through floor-to-ceiling windows. On the menu: a classic selection of seasonal dishes such as pork and leek sausages and mash, and pan-seared sea bass, as well as soups, sandwiches and homemade desserts. Everything is freshly prepared to order.

Vegetarians are well catered for too: our goat's cheese burger with sweet potato fries got us nicely in the spa mood; the chocolate and berries dessert to follow was wonderfully indulgent.

Some spa packages include dinner at Wilfred’s, the hotel’s restaurant, instead of lunch – as we were staying overnight, we were able to enjoy both. We began our evening meal with cauliflower pakoras served with a colourful mango salsa; this we followed with Linguini Gambas Pil Pil, a spicy Spanish pasta dish containing succulent prawns. We ended the meal with a light fruit salad served with apple and elderflower sorbet. Guests can also tuck into fish & chips, steaks and stone-baked pizzas.

We loved

The poolside service: being waited on lifted the spa experience.

Our treatment: designed by the therapists, the Paradise Escape treatment was a triumph and unlike anything we have experienced before. Paradise indeed.

We didn't love

The amount of single use plastic in the spa: at the water fountains, in the thermal facilities and as swimsuit bags.

The spa can get a little busy at times – if your thermal facility of choice is full, move on to another and return later.

Sociable spa goers: we saw groups of friends, couples, and mothers and daughters enjoying the spa on our visit.

Active spa-istas will love the fitness facilities and range of classes on offer in the leisure centre.

Overnighters: the rooms are fantastic, and dining at both restaurants was a real highlight.

We awarded The Woodland Spa a Good Spa Guide Bubble Rating of 5 Bubbles for its countryside views, fantastic food and signature treatments.

Serene Spy visited in December 2021 and awarded it 5 Bubbles.