Forest Spa at Middleton Lodge | Created to connect to nature

Branches bow over the driveway dramatically framing your view as you wind towards the 200-acre Estate, arriving at the serene retreat Forest Spa Middleton Lodge. Near the market town of Richmond, on the edge of the Yorkshire dales, you feel miles away from reality and can completely relax.

As if entering a secluded woodland, it’s hard to comprehend Middleton Lodge is home to two award-winning restaurants, the Coach House and Forge, a two-acre walled garden, two self-catered cottages and 57 bedrooms. Not forgetting the new Forest Spa.

Encouraging guests to slow down and connect to nature

For the past 20 years, the Allison family have brought the Georgian estate back to life, creating a place for guests to eat, gather and pause.

Middleton Lodge is constantly adding to its experiences for hotel residents and visitors to enjoy and 2023 has been a busy year for the estate. In February it reopened Forge, its fine dining restaurant, and in June opened the highly anticipated Forest Spa.

The Forest Spa Middleton Lodge blends in beautifully with the estate’s environment, setting and range of elegantly restored buildings. Designed to be a different kind of spa, one that encourages guests to slow down and connect to nature, discovering a new sense of calm.

Rarely do we take time to unwind and slow down. There’s always something to do and now more than ever we crave time out, peace, quiet, and the countryside. As soon as you enter the Forest Spa, which is hidden away behind the farmhouse on the old farm of the estate, you begin to relax, it’s warm and inviting, and you begin to feel at ease.

Every detail of your experience has been carefully thought through on the estate. On arrival you’re greeted and shown to a seat where you’re asked to remove your shoes, handed your personalised itinerary for the day and served a delicious, refreshing homemade beetroot smoothie.

You’re also shown the Forest Spa Middleton Lodge menu, which is filled with nourishing, balanced plates created with produce grown in the gardens and greenhouses on the estate.

Here you’re in the Pool House lounge, which is cosy, there’s a large log-burning stove that sits at the centre of the room, comfortable off-white seating, sheepskin rugs and textured cushions, the walls are open brick and the floors wooden, there are even pressed flowers in frames carefully placed here and there and quotes that have been thoughtfully chosen.

Large floor-to-ceiling doors look out onto the large heated outdoor pool, which is warm and inviting with an air of steam rising above. The pool has loungers placed around it for relaxing and there’s a sheltered outdoor hot tub tucked away outside, overlooking the pool and views into the distant parkland.

A unique relaxation experience and food offering.

The Thermal Spa building mirrors the Pool Lounge, it has a relaxation area, with a sauna that has views over the parkland a beautiful plunge pool with a stone archway and a Tadelak steam room. There’s a large relaxation area here too, with an open fire and long loungers, here you can relax and soothe the mind and body.

The Forest Spa Middleton Lodge has created a range of experiences for hotel residents and spa guests to choose from, those being morning, afternoon, evening, day spa and day ritual packages. Each offers a unique relaxation experience and food offering.

Six treatment huts built amongst the ancient woodland.

Massages, rituals and beauty treatments have been included in some of the experiences or can be booked individually and are outlined on the Treatment Menu (spa experiences and individual massages need to be pre-booked).

Six treatment huts have been carefully built amongst the ancient woodland to the back of the Pool House. Between the trees, grows wildflowers and scented medicinal herbs. There are two huts for special bathing ritual experiences that have tin bathtubs and log-burning stoves.

The Spa Therapists are skilled and experienced, their knowledge of the carefully chosen product houses, VOYA and Aromatherapy associates is noteworthy and the products are amazing.

We got to enjoy the facilities of the Forest Spa Middleton Lodge and I opted for the rejuvenating body scrub in a treatment hut, the experience was uplifting and rejuvenating, just what I was looking for. After your treatment you can unwind in the relaxation room, this had large windows, beautiful window seats, mirrors, and cushions. A therapist then brought me a delicious Chakra herbal tea, energy balls, and a dainty dish of frozen grapes.

She then talked me through a recommended product for aftercare, suggesting the VOYA ‘feel the heat gel’ for my aching muscles on a postcard printed with affirmations. Candles in glass lanterns light up every corner. Gorgeous beams, crafted from wood from the estate or local timber suppliers surround you, it’s magical.

Forest Spa menu is detailed, and nourishing

After relaxing we had lunch in our dressing gowns by the pool, you feel very zen here. Unlike a usual spa lunch, the Forest Spa menu is detailed, and nourishing and has been created with the concept of feeling good starting from within.

Courses are fresh and created with ingredients growing in the estate’s kitchen garden, greenhouses, orchards, and woodlands. You can expect summer salads, fresh fruits, nutrient-dense pickles, and dressings.

Chalk Stream trout flakes perfectly over crinkled courgettes and Mayan Gold potatoes from the farm. Lemon verbena from the herb borders fizzes from the estate’s strawberry and marigold juice.

The Forest Spa Middleton Lodge is the place to soothe your mind and body, realign, refocus, and completely relax. It’s magical and enchanting, a different kind of spa in the most magical of ways.

Head to Middleton Lodge’s website to choose the spa package for you.

Before we left, we headed over to the Coach House restaurant and sat in the famous courtyard area, we got to taste the delicious homemade Coach House ice cream created by the Coach House head chef with icing sugar-dusted ricciarelli cookies.

For more information and to book visit: https://middletonlodge.co.uk/ or email [email protected] or call 01325 377-977

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