The only Lowood I had previously come across was the terrible school the young Jane Eyre attends as a kind of punishment. I’m glad to say, though, that Low Wood Bay Resort and Spa bears no resemblance to this! Instead, it’s a historic house with a huge new spa that tumbles down the hillside overlooking Lake Windermere, the biggest lake in England. This a spa that has space at its core and it never feels busy (numbers are carefully controlled).
The main pool is in a huge room, the pitched roof lined with tongue and groove, opening into dormer skylights that light up every corner even on the dullest day – and the Lake District does get some of those. Being there in mid-February, I was certainly on the receiving end of such a day but it did little to dampen the spirits of my fellow spa-goers who were making their three-hour thermal journey starting from the main pool with hydrotherapy jets as well as a good swimming space, surrounded by hot tubs, steam rooms and an infra-red sauna.
It didn’t even stop them from venturing outside where there are more hot tubs and infinity pools as well as saunas dotted around the hillside and a bar serving some very nice cocktails. Further down the hill there’s another indoor spa, this time with a range of saunas and steam including one that is moderately hot and furnished with swing seats big enough for two. Delightful.
There are two relaxation areas and both feature lots of little extras, notably DIY face masks – there’s a range including detox, moisturising and night repair – which you apply as you like (there are flannels for removal) and then find yourself a lounger, a sofa or (my favourite) an egg chair again big enough for two. There’s a counter full of drinks and nibbles and trays appear with cups of hot chocolate (this is the Cumbrian winter, as I said).
The whole complex overlooks Lake Windermere which is beautiful even on a winter’s day – I could see snow on the distant, higher fells. Under a blue summer’s sky with the pleasure boats criss-crossing the water, the outside spa is going to be even more fun – though, to be fair, no one seemed troubled even when it was raining. You’re wet anyway and no doubt the prosecco helps.
There’s an interesting spa menu, too. The ESPA Advanced LED Facial promises to restore radiance and refresh your skin and mind. It sounded good to me and, strangely enough, I did feel profoundly relaxed even though there was the odd sensation of having a very bright light shining on my face that took, as therapist Maya told me, a minute or two before my eyes would adjust. When that part of the treatment begins, it is rather startling but there is a great deal of preparation first including cleanser and a cleansing mask, both tingling with enzymes.
While this first mask was on, Maya massaged ESPA’s pink scalp mud into my scalp (it guarantees baby-soft hair) and when it was removed and my face carefully dried, it was time for the nano-dermabrasion pen. This smooths the skin and removing any dry, flaky bits and feeling like a buzzing brush against your skin. All this is, of course, leading up to the LED centrepiece of this facial.
LED light has been proven to optimise skin health, strengthening its structure and increasing firmness, elasticity and collagen. Maya first applies a hyaluronic gel mask and then the LED kit on my face and decolletage – the latter is also beneficial for releasing the muscles, she tells me. The LED only lasts for ten minutes (time for a lovely arm and hand massage). This wasn’t, though, the end. There was a deep facial massage, followed by a serum and eye cream (all ESPA). And the results? My skin felt great, well fed and very soft. And those irritating fine lines? I think someone must have taken an iron to them. Brilliant.
There’s been a Low Wood Bay hotel here for a very long time. It began as a farmhouse in 1705 that gradually evolved into a simple inn and was further extended until it became such a grand destination that Queen Adelaide became a guest in 1840. It has been expanding ever since, most recently with the spa that opened in 2019, along with a new section, the Winander Club, set slightly higher than the original building and affording great views of the lake and the fells, a delightfully quiet breakfast restaurant (they have afternoon tea and cake, too) and a bar where you pick your choice of vinyl records.
It is still (despite Wordsworth’s fears about increasing visitor numbers) a very relaxing spot though probably not the kind of spa hotel where you’re going to lose weight. There are two restaurants and I had a very good steak in the Blue Smoke grill while the Major had a generous burger. This is, as you might guess, a bit of a meat feast kind of place and the quality of that meat is first rate and, though I chose the smallest steak, I would definitely describe the portions as hearty. The W is the hotel’s fine dining restaurant and the menu is more varied and beautifully presented in an airy room with the loftiest of ceilings and huge windows facing the sunset.
I was back in the spa on my last morning as I still had my bespoke massage to go, with therapist Leia. We talked through first whether I had any areas particularly to focus on but really all I wanted was a deep, relaxing massage with plenty of oil (though not in my hair, please, as there was a train waiting later that morning). We decided, therefore, to heat up the bed, leave oil out of the scalp massage and dim the lights.
Leia threw some Thai massage techniques into the mix and, once my back and legs were done, I turned over and she raised the back of the bed and let it lift up my knees, too, into a super-relaxed position that also supports the back. Here, she massaged the front of my legs, the decolletage and shoulders, scalp and arms, with an unusually scrunchy hand massage that was strangely relaxing.
It all took place in the couples’ room so there were two massage beds as well as a shower, a huge round metal bath and a relaxation area that is all cushions and mattresses behind a palisade of slender branches, still covered in bark. It’s all part of a spa décor that has a decided woodiness (perhaps a play on the hotel’s name?), here also reflected in the byres full of straw and lit by twinkling lights. It’s all very charming and no doubt one of the reasons this was recently voted the best spa in the north-west. Deservedly so, I would say.
The Spa Low Wood Bay has been nominated as Best Resort Spa and Best Spa in the North West in the Spa Awards 2026, with entries closing on 31st August. For more information about the property, including details of treatments, packages and special offers, please visit www.englishlakes.co.uk.
