Packing for a Spa Day

Last weekend we took ourselves off on a spa day for a relax and pamper. We visited the Ocean Rooms Spa at the Hilton Birmingham Metropole. 

If you haven't ever treated yourself to a spa day, it can be difficult to work out what you would need to take with you and what to expect of the day. After being on a few spa days/overnight stays it's safe to say that spa facilities can vary greatly. After some bad experiences and some good ones, I think I have sussed a selection of things to take that will fit in one bag!

I have put together some tips, advice and details on what I took with me on my trip last weekend.

Before going

I usually have a quick google search of the spa itself so I know what to expect. I look on the spa's website to check what facilities are available and decide if I will eat there (if so, it's a good idea to book ahead) or whether there is a town nearby and I would rather shop and eat after.

I will also have a quick glance over some reviews, as they usually give you a heads up on things the website may not mention. These could be things such as needing change for lockers, putting a deposit down on a towel or robe. 

What to pack

First up are the essentials. I always take a towel as I prefer to dry myself with my own towels, there is no reason that you wouldn't be given a towel on arrival, but you never know! Secondly you should definitely pack a pair of flip flops, I forgot mine on this occasion and my germ-a-phobe tendencies were on full alert each time I saw a hair on the floor anywhere! 

Now you have those sorted, you are on to clothes, if you are on an overnight stay then this isn't really an issue as you can go back to your room after. You are usually given a robe and slippers to change into which is always nice.

If I am on a day trip, I put my swimwear on to go in and put loose clothes over the top such as leggings and a loose t-shirt. Last weekend we made a day of it and had lunch in town and went shopping, so I took a nice outfit for afterwards!

Fancy spa's will usually have shampoo and conditioner in the shower, but not always. I decided to take my own. At the moment I am loving the Garnier Ultimate Blends line, so I took these along with my Avon Advance Techniques 360 Nourishment Moroccan Argan Oil. For my body wash I took my Elemis Quiet Mind Bath Elixir, this is a bath product but I love the smell of it and the bottle was small, so I grabbed it to pack as a shower gel. I wouldn't advise taking a hair dryer as they should provide these for you. Also you don't want to be worrying about finding a plug socket!

It's completely up to you if you want to apply make-up afterwards. I had a facial as part of my treatments and my skin felt so amazing. I was advised to not apply make-up for 24 hours after, but I decided as we were going out for the rest of the day to apply some. I kept it quite simple and my foundation applied amazingly after my skin treatments. 

After swimming in the pool and showering,  I refreshed with my Body Shop Vitamin E Moisture Cream which is amazing for some skin hydration. I am also absolutely loving the L'oreal True Match Foundation at the moment, so I took this with me. I have also recently purchased a new powder, which is the Collection Lasting Perfection Ultimate Wear Powder.  I have only been using it for a couple of weeks but I think it's a great buy so far. I popped on some MAC 'Well Dressed' blusher, Rimmel Scandal Eyes eye liner and Urban Decay Super Curing Mascara.

Keep hydrated

I have been known on more than one occasion to feel ill on a spa day (memories of stuffing my face with scones after not eating for the whole day). The main cause of this is a lack of hydration. This time I equipped myself with a bottle of water, luckily there was access to a drinking water fountain by the pool at this particular spa, but in the past this hasn't always been the case. Our spa day began at 8am so I had to ensure I ate something before I went, as I knew we weren't going to eat again until lunch.

Review

Ocean Rooms Spa at the Hilton Birmingham Metropole

Image from: www.bookaspa.com

The spa itself had a really great sized pool, some hotel spa's have really tiny swimming pools, but this one was set out under a glass conservatory type building which looked out over the river. This was so lovely as it was a cold winter morning and we were warm and relaxed in the pool. There were loungers to use, a drinking fountain and a small area where you could sit and order food and drinks. There was also a room to the side which had a sauna and steam room in. I was really impressed with both of these, they were quiet- especially for a Saturday so you could have some peace, and the temperatures were really great in both these rooms. I like them quite hot, but not too hot! There was also a jacuzzi to the side of the pool which you could turn on and off yourself, we also had this to ourselves too!

The treatments were really amazing, we had them on arrival so we had the rest of our time to use the other facilities. We chose to have the back, shoulder and neck massage then we had a facial. We were offered hot stones during the massage too as a little extra, which was really nice as I hadn't had a hot stone massage before. The facial was also really gentle and refreshing, I'm not too sure what products were used (I was feeling very sleepy at this point) but there was some gentle exfoliation, oils and moisturising products used. My skin felt really glowing afterwards so I was really pleased with the results.

The one criticism I would make would be that we were given towels, but not offered slippers or a robe. I read somewhere after that you had to ask for these and pay a deposit but I didn't read this anywhere before I went. I would recommend asking about that on arrival!

Overall it was a great experience, and really good value for money!

jessica d x

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