A weekend of bliss: Thornton Hall Review

IT is a rare occasion for me to stay in a hotel. Although I have stayed in my fair share abroad and on long weekends, I have never felt the urge to stay at a hotel just a short journey away.

What’s the point? I used to ask myself. It is an ever-rarer occasion for me to spend the afternoon in a spa. Why not just get treatments at your local salon? However, a weekend spent at Thornton Hall made me realise how much I’ve been missing out on.

Thornton Hall Hotel & Spa is sat in the picturesque village of Thornton Hough on Wirral. Upon arrival, I was welcomed by a team of staff who were incredibly friendly. They gave me a brief tour of the grounds before showing me to my room. The hotel boasts 62 bedrooms with many overlooking the hotel grounds. There are a range of rooms to choose from, including club bedrooms, grand clubrooms, executive garden view rooms, executive boutique rooms and a penthouse suite.

However, I stayed in an executive garden view room. The room was large with a king-size bed and boasted free Wi-Fi, a TV and a hot beverage tray. The room had a luxurious bathroom which also had a TV in. However, the best thing about the room was the incredible view from the balcony, which overlooked the hotel’s grounds and miles of countryside. The views made me feel like I was in the middle of nowhere, even though we were just a short drive away from Liverpool and Chester.

After settling into my hotel suite, I headed over to the spa. The spa is located just a minute walk away from the hotel and offers visitors an inside pool and outdoor hydro spa pool and a thermal zone which has a sauna, steam room and a snow cave. The spa also has a gym, a hair and makeup studio and a brassiere. I opted for an all body massage, which was incredible. Me and my guest were made to feel very comfortable by the workers and the room where we had our massages was gorgeous, with candles lighting the area and relaxing music on. In fact, the massage was so relaxing that I even fell asleep! Afterwards, we were taken to the tranquillity suite where we relaxed for a while after. We then headed into the brassiere where we enjoyed a snack and a hot chocolate.

On the evening, we headed to the hotel’s restaurant The Lawns. To say that The Lawns restaurant is exquisite would be a complete understatement. The décor of the restaurant is incredibly elegant and grand and the staff were some of the most hardworking people I had met in a long time, they couldn’t do enough for me. They also knew the menu’s from back to front and impressed me with their knowledge and passion they had for telling me about it.

The food was by far some of the best I have ever had the pleasure of enjoying. There were several courses, with mini dishes between mains, which meant that although the portions were small, I became very full by the end of the meal. I opted for three dishes from the A la Carte Menu. I chose Bacon and Egg for starter, which came with sourdough and mooli. For main, I went for Tuna, which came accompanied with celeriac, dashi and caper and for dessert, I chose Cereal which came with rice krispy and banana. The food was not only delicious, it was luxurious and matched well with the surroundings. There was also an incredibly impressive wine selection menu and a glass or two made my experience at The Lawn’s truly wonderful.

For me, the highlight of my time at Thornton Hall was by far the food. In fact, The Lawns have won a number of awards, which I am not surprised about at all. However, although the food was incredible, the workers made the restaurant what it is and without them, my experience at The Lawns wouldn’t have been as enjoyable.

If I could change anything about my stay at Thornton Hall, it would be the décor in my room. I think it was fairly dated and just didn’t feel right with the rest of the hotel, which felt lavish and opulent.

Overall, my stay at Thornton Hall was everything I wanted it to be. Upon reflection, there is so much point in spending the weekend away in a hotel and treating yourself to an afternoon in the spa, even if the destination isn’t miles away. It was relaxing, fun and a real escape from the city and I came away feeling refreshed and ready for the following week. However, I think the best part about Thornton Hall is the staff and the effort they put in with each visitor, they are what makes the hotel such a special destination.

Thornton Hall rating: 8.5/10