Wyndham Grand, Chelsea
A dip and a squish at Blue Harbour Spa
Spa buddy Kit
Regaining lost calories at Chelsea Riverside Brasserie
Fruit salad with frozen honey yoghurt
Wearing: Cardigan & Criss-cross sandals, Zara. One-piece python swimsuit, Mona via Bengt. Print skirt, Sarah Pugh via Bengt. Bag, Bottega Veneta. Body rope, Brook & Lyn Surrounded. Watch, GUESS Watches rose gold.
When you live in North East London anything past Covent Garden requires a weekend bag and a passport – and the land of Chelsea is one of the far-far destinations where you might even require to fill out a landing card. To the depths of Chelsea harbour we ventured, Kit and I, around the riverbend, just under an hour (aeon and a bit) on the Overground. (I do realise that if you live in West London then Shoreditch might be your exotic far-east but for some reason I imagine all my readers to be East Londoners with all your swagger.) I generally tend to try to solve needs and wants within my neck of the woods but I just couldn’t turn down a rare spa break opportunity at the Wyndham Grand London Hotel to un-do sailing knots in my shoulder from hours of being hunched over the laptop trying to code a laser beam widget for this blog (“laser“).
To provide a somewhat impartial review, as rare as they might come in this blogging industry, I must confess that I personally wasn’t too smitten with the general atmosphere and service within the hotel. Overall it seemed to lack a certain 2%, or a charm that might have guests curious to poke their heads around different corners, but I do imagine it would serve a more than satisfactory abode for those coming in for business purposes. Yes, I’m aware the fact that I don’t possess any authority to be sitting on this high pony and saying yay or nay, but going as a twenty-something who appreciates design and likes to travel at lot, it left a lot of boxes unticked. My favourite facility however, and one I do recommend to Londoners and travellers, was the Blue Harbour Spa. The pool is simple and comfortable at 1.5m depth, the steam room is a doozy and the treatments range from skincare to acupuncture, which means if you hail butt from the North East at least you’ll be going back with a de-stressed, smooth butt. I had the De-Stress Muscle massage and definitely felt a ton lighter when I walked out. The spa isn’t super-luxurious, falling just short with details such as plastic cups for water or changing-room decor (I hear people saying who-the-crap-cares), but really you simply get what you pay for. And that’s all that matters at the end of the day, isn’t it.
Many thanks to Alexandra and Natacha of MangoPR for organizing the appointment.
Wyndham Grand London; Chelsea Harbour, SW10 OXG (0800 4458667; www.wyndhamgrandlondon.co.uk)
